Special Episode: A Verdict for Change ❤️
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Description
We recommend listening with a grown-up for this special episode. 👨🏽⚖️ Correspondent Pamela Kirkland brings us the outcome of the trial of Derek Chauvin, the officer accused of killing George Floyd in 2020. We learn about President Biden’s pledge to have the government work harder to fight systemic racism. 🇺🇸 Find out ways to support the Black Lives Matter movement with civil rights leader Alicia Garza 📣
Transcript
Various Voices 0:00
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Pamela Kirkland 0:07
People all over the world listened intently on Tuesday, April 20 as the verdict was announced in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former police officer charged with the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last May. The jury pronounced Chauvin guilty on all counts for the murder of George Floyd. I'm Pamela Kirkland with this special episode of The Ten News. We'll find out more about this important trial and the impact of this verdict on the fight for racial equality. You may want to grab a grown up to listen along with you in case you have questions. Now, let's get into The Ten News.
A verdict has been reached in the trial of Derek Chauvin over the killing of George Floyd. That means the 12 jurors who listened to the case and all of the evidence from both sides have made a decision. The jury found the former Minneapolis police officer guilty on all charges second degree unintentional murder, third degree murder and second degree manslaughter. The judge will decide how much time Chauvin will spend in prison as a result, finding jurors who were impartial and open to hearing both sides of the story was difficult. But here's what we know about them. The jury was made up of five men and seven women. Of the 12 jurors, six were white, four were black and two were mixed race. According to information released by the court, they spent 10 hours talking with each other until they all came to the same conclusion. This is something that doesn't happen often. It's rare that police officers face criminal charges. With this trial ending, there will be even more attention on other cases of police accountability and racial injustice that have happened since the death of George Floyd last May. Dante Wright, a 20 year old black man, was shot by a white police officer when he was pulled over in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota not far from Minneapolis. The police say the shooting was accidental, in that former officer Kim Potter was reaching for her taser and grabbed her gun by mistake. And then there were protests in Chicago recently after police released a video showing an officer firing a single shot that killed 13 year old Adam Toledo. Police say Adam was holding a handgun. Video released by the Chicago Police Department shows the officer telling Adam to show his hands and drop it. As Adam puts his hands up, they appear to be empty. The guilty verdict in the Chauvin trial will have a big impact on these other cases we're watching, but it's also sparked conversations about race and the police and why it seems like this keeps happening in our country. It's been a very emotional trial as the prosecution and the defense presented what happened to George Floyd that day. And the issue of police using deadly force has been a very hard concept to deal with. Peaceful protests against police and celebrating the verdict popped up in Minneapolis, Atlanta and other cities around the country. And that's a right that's guaranteed to all of us. If something is happening that you don't like, you have the right to peacefully protest against it. As our country continues to try to become more equal for everyone, it's going to be uncomfortable. It's going to be hard. But that doesn't mean we can ignore things that are happening to people in our communities, just because of the color of their skin. After the verdict on Tuesday, President Biden addressed the country and said this can be a moment of significant change. He pledged that his administration under the leadership of Merrick Garland, the US District Attorney would be working to fight systemic racism and protect people of color. Biden also pushed for support from Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020. That would increase police accountability and has been stalled in Congress for over a year. Lastly, President Biden called on state and local governments to step up and combat racism and work to restore trust between police and the communities they serve. The end of the Shogun trial has led a lot of people to ask what's next? This past summer, The Ten News caught up with Alicia Garza, one of the co founders of the Black Lives Matter movement who shared a few different ways that we can all be involved.
Alicia Garza 4:51
Hey, I'm Alicia Garza. I'm one of the co-creators of the Black Lives Matter global network. And I now run an organization called the Black Futures Lab. And we work to make Black communities powerful in politics. Here's some things you can do if you want to get involved in the movement. First, you can make sure that all of your neighbors know that you support Black Lives Matter. Make a sign, make your voice heard, let people know where you stand at this moment in history. Number two, you can get together with your friends. And you can think of other ways to make sure that everywhere you are that Black Lives Matter. Maybe you want to do a bake sale, and you want to raise resources for an organization in your community that is fighting to make sure that black lives matter. Maybe you want to ask your teacher to do a lesson plan on what the Black Lives Matter movement is really about and why it matters. Maybe you even want to ask your parents to talk to you about what's going on with this movement, and how your family can get involved. The next thing that I think you can do to get involved in this movement is to stay committed. Here's the thing, right now, we're all talking about Black Lives Matter. But in a few months will we be? You can help us make sure that we are we don't want to let any of our attention get diverted, because we have a long way to go to make sure that Black lives really matter. So help us out. Help us make sure that we can still keep moving forward. And the only way that's going to happen is if you lend your voice
Pamela Kirkland 6:37
Time's up. Thank you for listening to today's episode Ten'ners. We also want to hear from you. Send us a note at hello@thetennews.com and share with us your thoughts and any questions you may have about this time. Thanks for listening to The Ten News. Look out for our new episodes on Tuesdays, Thursdays and extras on Saturdays. The Ten News is a co production of Small But Mighty Media and Next Chapter Podcasts and is distributed by iHeartRadio. This special episode was put together by Tracey Crooks, Pete Musto, Jenner Pascua, Stephen Tompkins and Sarah Olender. Our production director is Jeremiah Tittle. And The Ten News is executive produced by Donald Albright and show creator Tracy Leeds Kaplan. I'm Pamela Kirkland filling in for Bethany Van Delft, and thanks for listening to The Ten News. And don't worry, Bethany is going to come back real soon.
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