OXFORD campaigners have welcomed the guilty verdict of ex-police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd, but say more needs to be done to eradicate racism.
Chauvin kneeled on the neck of the African-American man for more than nine minutes during an arrest in the city of Minneapolis in May 2020, ignoring pleas that he could not breathe.
Mr Floyd’s death sparked protests not only in the US, but in the UK - including Oxford - and around the world.
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Following a three-week trial, last Tuesday a jury found Chauvin guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter.
Campaigners are relieved by the conviction and say the protests that were held last year played an important role in the run-up to the trial.
The Black Lives Matter protest in Oxford. Picture: Bob Weatherhead
Black Lives Matter protestors in Oxford last summer. Picture: Bob Weatherhead
Ian Mckendrick, chairman of Oxford Stand Up To Racism, said: “Oxford Stand Up To Racism welcomes the guilty verdict for the murder of George Floyd as a major victory for the Black Lives Matter movement, without which the conviction of Derek Chauvin would not have been possible.
“The movement in the UK raised important demands for action to tackle institutional racism, and some important changes were won.”
Despite the ‘victory’, the group feels racism is still a problem that will take a lot of work to overcome.
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Mr Mckendrick continued: “But racism remains deeply entrenched in British and American societies and much more needs to be done to root it out.
“In the US, police shootings of black people continue to provoke protests, and here in the UK no police have ever been convicted of deaths of black people following police contact.
“The verdict in the US came hours after the British government defended its internationally criticised CRED report which concluded that it found no evidence of institutional racism in policing, health, education and employment. This flies in the face of all evidence.”
Chauvin will be sentenced on June 16. The three counts have varying maximum sentences. The most serious charge, second-degree murder carries a maximum penalty of 40 years.
BLM protest at South Park, Oxford. Pic: Ed Nix
Mr Mckendrick says justice for Mr Floyd is more than what happens in court.
He added: “Justice for George Floyd would be a society where black people don’t face racism from cradle to - an often early - grave.
“Anti-racists should take heart from the conviction and commit to building a bigger united anti-racist movement to win more fundamental changes.”
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Liberal Democrat South Oxfordshire District councillor Alexandrine Kantor said the conviction was monumental, but that many other victims of police brutality go unheard.
She said: “I am thinking of all those victims of police violence where there is no camera recording events.
"Chauvin could not defend himself as there were countless witnesses and cameras, but how many Chauvins are there who will get away with it because their crimes are witness-free?
"It’s great to recognise that George Floyd was murdered, but it’s only a start.”
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