A year after the brutal police killing of the African American George Floyd, US President Joe Biden meets relatives of the victim on Tuesday. Biden will meet with Floyd’s family in Washington on the anniversary, the White House said.
Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota had sparked protests against racism and police violence in the United States for months. Biden was then a US Democratic candidate for president. He has made the fight against racism one of his main concerns.
Biden has also campaigned for a police reform bill named after George Floyd. He has repeatedly urged Congress to pass the bill by the anniversary of Floyd’s death at the latest, a timeline that has not been met. The House of Representatives, which is controlled by Biden’s Democrats, passed the bill back in March. In the Senate, however, the Democrats are dependent on the votes of several Republicans.
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White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Monday it was a good sign that Democrats and Republicans continue to negotiate the police reform bill. The negotiators on both sides reported progress. Biden is still very hopeful that he will be able to sign the law in the end.
Among other things, the law stipulates that the federal government should create incentives for the ban on strangleholdings during police operations. The immunity of police officers should be restricted in order to facilitate prosecution in the event of the use of force. In addition, a national database for police misconduct is to be set up under the aegis of the Ministry of Justice. This is to make it more difficult for violent police officers to hire other police authorities after they have been released.
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White policeman Derek Chauvin was found guilty of second degree murder in a trial in Minneapolis in April for killing Floyd. The sentence has not yet been announced. The trial of three alleged accomplices of Chauvin is due to begin in March next year. Videos documented Chauvin pressing his knee against Floyd’s neck for a good nine minutes a year ago while the 46-year-old pleaded for him to breathe.
Psaki said Monday that Biden’s meeting with Floyd’s family would be behind closed doors to allow for “real conversation.” But there will certainly be a message from the President on the anniversary of Floyd’s death.
