6.06.2020 06:58
(Act. 6.06.2020 07:00)
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Anti-racism protests in Minneapolis
© APA / AFP
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After days of protests against police brutality and racism after the death of 46-year-old African American George Floyd in a brutal police operation in Minneapolis, efforts are now being made in several US states to ban the stranglehold on police operations. A white police officer had pressed his knee into the neck of the man lying on the ground for minutes.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo made a corresponding reform proposal for his state on Friday. The files on past misconduct by police officers should also be made transparent. He hoped that the New York State Parliament, home to some 19 million people, would adopt the bill next week, Cuomo said. Californian governor Gavin Newsom also said he would ban a police training program from a method that blocks blood flow to the brain. He also wanted to set this up legally. The Democrat also supported protesters who should not face tear gas, rubber bullets, or arrests in “peaceful protests”. Newsom named a former police officer and a judicial reform activist to implement new rules for dealing with protesters.
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The city of Minneapolis itself has also launched its police reforms. In the future, officials will no longer be able to use strangleholds or hold suspects by the neck, Mayor Jacob Frey said on Friday afternoon after a city council meeting. In addition, all police officers who witnessed an “unauthorized use of force” by their colleagues would have to report this under the threat of punishment. All officials are also required to intervene in such cases, otherwise they face the same disciplinary consequences as the perpetrator.
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The reforms legally binding with the state of Minnesota are a good step to change the culture of the police force and “uproot systematic racism,” Frey wrote on Twitter. At the same time, he admitted that the reforms are only a first step. “We still have a long way to go to change – not just in city politics, but also in state law and the contract with the police union,” he said.
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Former US President Barack Obama believes that Floyd’s death has finally sparked an “honest” debate about racism in the United States. The movement is “inspiring,” said the 58-year-old ex-president in a video chat.
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“There have been so many honest discussions about racism in this country in the past week that I’ve never remembered,” said Obama. Not just from a minority, but from “a large part of the country”.
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