Jay-Z asks for justice over death of George Floyd

Yesterday (31 May), during a press conference, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz revealed he had spoken to Jay-Z the previous night about the death of Floyd, and about bringing justice to those involved in his death.

Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on 25 May by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin after he knelt on his neck while detaining Floyd. Chauvin has since been arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter, but the other officers involved are yet to receive consequences.

Last night (31 May), Jay-Z shared a statement via Roc Nation's socials. He thanks Governor Walz for "doing what's right and calling in Attorney General Keith Ellison to take over the George Floyd case."

Jay-Z adds, "Earlier today, Governor Walz mentioned having a human conversation with me - a dad and a black man in pain. Yes, I am human, a father and a black man in pain and I am not the only one."

The rapper continues, "Now I, along with an entire country in pain, call upon AG Ellison to do the right thing and prosecute all those responsible for the murder of George Floyd to the fullest extent of the law."

He writes that although justice for Floyd's death is "just a first step", he is "more determined to fight for justice than any fight my would-be oppressors may have."

Jay-Z ends his statement by writing, "I prevail on every politician, prosecutor, and officer in the country to have the courage to do what is right. Have the courage to look at us as humans, dads, brothers, sisters, and mothers in pain. And look at yourselves."

.@GovTimWalz #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd pic.twitter.com/lkM2NdrIZF

— Roc Nation (@RocNation) June 1, 2020

Two days ago (30 May), Beyoncé shared a video on Instagram regarding Floyd's death. In the clip, she says, "We need justice for George Floyd. We all witnessed his murder in broad daylight. We’re broken and we’re disgusted. We cannot normalise this pain. I’m not only speaking to people of colour. If you’re white, black, brown or anything in between, I’m sure you feel hopeless by the racism going on in America right now."

She adds, "No more senseless killings of human beings. No more seeing people of color as less than human. We can no longer look away. George is all of our family and humanity. He is our family because he is a fellow American. There have been too many times that we’ve seen these violent killings and no consequences. Yes, someone’s been charged, but justice is far from being achieved."

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If you want to demand more charges brought on all those involved in the death of George Floyd, click the link in my bio to sign the petition.

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on May 29, 2020 at 8:13pm PDT