May 25 marked five years since the murder of George Floyd. Floyd’s death should never stop being a catalyst for social change. His death illustrates how a typical, nonviolent encounter with law enforcement can go wrong, resulting in another needless death of an innocent person. His death revealed the depth of our commitments to humanity as individuals and a nation. For more than nine minutes, while police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on the back of Floyd’s neck, Floyd repeatedly cried out, “I can’t breathe,” which became a protest slogan against police brutality.
I do not believe any human being, Black, white, or brown, should die in police custody under those circumstances. Nor do I think a person’s life should be taken away over a counterfeit $20 bill. Many people who shared that sentiment protested nationally and worldwide in record numbers. As we live in a nation where many people view situations through a racial lens rather than a lens of humanity and common decency, all citizens have the moral responsibility to resist any form of inhumane treatment at the hands of police officers regardless of the race of the victim or the officer.
The George Floyd protest movement began hours after his murder when protests in support of police accountability and racial justice started in Minneapolis and then spread quickly nationwide and to over 2,000 cities and towns in over 60 countries. Polls estimated that between 15 million and 26 million people had participated in demonstrations in the United States at some point. In the aftermath of Floyd’s murder, there was a surge in support for DEI initiatives and calls for police reform. Unfortunately, the surge could not be sustained.
Trump was under tremendous pressure to respond during his first term as president. At the time of the protest movement, Trump issued an executive order to reform policing, which included tightened use-of-force rules, banned chokeholds, steered federal dollars toward state and local police that meet certain standards, and encouraged initiatives that better address vulnerable populations’ needs and lessen the burdens that law enforcement face in responding to them. The public pressure placed on Trump made a difference in his actions.
If you take away the pressure and exposure of national and worldwide protests, the true Trump is free to emerge and lead the backlash against progressive police reform initiatives. As a result of the backlash, the nation reversed course by taking two steps forward and three steps backward. Corporate America flip-flopped on its commitments by scaling back or eliminating DEI policies and programs. To continue reading please visit www.triceedneywire.com.
Errors for the headline of this Op-ed have been updated and corrected as of 6/9/25.