152-558: The murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, triggered a wave of protests throughout Tennessee in late May and early June 2020. These protests continued throughout the year. On June 1, about 200 people held a candlelight vigil for George Floyd on State Street in both Bristol, Tennessee and Bristol, Virginia . The protests were largely peacefully held across the Tri-Cities region of Southwest Virginia and East Tennessee . On May 30, there were three different protests which formed throughout
304-508: A pulmonologist , testified that Floyd's chances of survival could have "doubled or tripled" if the officers performed CPR on him. Use-of-force expert Tim Longo testified that Chauvin was acting outside of department protocol and the other officers should have intervened to save Floyd, although Lane's defense questioned this view. Testimony was also heard from Darnella Frazier, who filmed the initial arrest and Floyd's subsequent murder. The prosecution rested with this testimony. Tou Thao took
456-579: A wrongful death lawsuit in federal court against the City of Minneapolis and the four officers involved in the murder. The complaint said Floyd's Fourth Amendment rights were violated by "excessive use of unjustified, excessive, illegal, and deadly force". The lawsuit did not specify the amount of monetary damages the family sought. On March 12, 2021, the City of Minneapolis announced a settlement with Floyd's family for $ 27 million. The City Council approved it unanimously. Family lawyer Ben Crump called it
608-591: A "baby step in the right direction". In late June, 2020 local activists raised money to create a Black Lives Matter mural along Martin Luther King Jr Street in front of the Bessie Smith Cultural Center. The mural was completed on June 29. On May 30, over 200 participated in a protest in Clarksville that shut down a major highway but remained peaceful. On June 3, over 100 protesters gathered on
760-457: A "comprehensive investigation will compile all available information and thoroughly evaluate evidence and information obtained from witnesses ... If it is determined that there has been a violation of federal law, criminal charges will be sought". On May 28, state and federal prosecutors held a press conference at a regional FBI office in Brooklyn Center , a Minneapolis suburb, in what
912-491: A 44-year-old police officer who had served in the Minneapolis Police Department since 2001. Chauvin and Floyd sometimes worked overlapping shifts as security guards for a local nightclub, but the club's former owner was unsure of the extent of their acquaintance. Tou Thao, a Hmong-American , was 34 at the time of Floyd's murder and started as a part-time community service officer in 2008. He graduated from
1064-439: A cardiac arrest. Andrew Baker, who performed Floyd's autopsy, also took the stand to repeat his testimony from Chauvin's trial. The court postponed trial proceedings until February 7, after Lane tested positive for COVID-19 . When the trial resumed, officer Nicole Mackenzie testified that Kueng and Lane were in a medical training course that she instructed, and that her course included lessons in first aid . Dr. David Systrom,
1216-719: A chairperson. The board elects one person as the president and one as the chief executive officer for the organization. Julian Bond , civil rights movement activist and former Georgia State Senator, was chairman until replaced in February 2010 by healthcare administrator Roslyn Brock . For decades in the first half of the 20th century, the organization was effectively led by its executive secretary, who acted as chief operating officer. James Weldon Johnson and Walter F. White , who served in that role successively from 1920 to 1958, were much more widely known as NAACP leaders than were presidents during those years. The organization has never had
1368-401: A few hours before Baker's final findings were issued. From the evidence available to them, which did not include a toxicology report or unspecified bodily samples, they found that Floyd's death was a homicide caused by asphyxia due to neck and back compression. Also, Floyd had no underlying medical problem that contributed to his death. They said that neck compression affected blood flow to
1520-654: A forerunner to the NAACP. On May 30, 1909, the Niagara Movement conference took place at New York City's Henry Street Settlement House; they created an organization of more than 40, identifying as the National Negro Committee . Among other founding members were Lillian Wald , a nurse who had founded the Henry Street Settlement where the conference took place. Du Bois played a key role in organizing
1672-470: A half years in jail. On the evening of May 25, 2020, sometime before 8:00 pm, Floyd purchased cigarettes at Cup Foods, a grocery store at the intersection of East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis's Powderhorn Park neighborhood. A store employee believed Floyd had paid with a counterfeit $ 20 bill. Employees approached Floyd while he was in his vehicle and demanded that he return
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#17328513192181824-495: A hearing in December 2021 to offer a revised plea to the federal charges, a legal move that did not apply to the other three officers. He pled guilty on December 15, 2021, to the federal charges of violating the rights of Floyd and for the charge related to the 2017 incident. Chauvin admitted to willfully violating Floyd's constitutional right to be free from unreasonable seizure, including the right to be free from unreasonable force by
1976-423: A jury trial on the state charge in lieu of a review of the evidence and a determination by a judge. He was found guilty of aiding and abetting manslaughter in a written verdict delivered on May 2, 2023, and he was sentenced to 4 + 3 ⁄ 4 years in prison. Floyd's murder led to worldwide protests against police brutality , police racism , and lack of police accountability . George Perry Floyd Jr.
2128-574: A large crowd on Beale Street. Shelby County Commissioner Tami Sawyer , who was on scene, tweeted: "Memphis police have threatened to use lethal force if we don't leave the parking lot. They have arrested our friends. We're not leaving." On Sunday Evening May 31, the fifth straight day of protests, more riot police attempted to disperse a crowd of 100 that were occupying Main Street. A curfew went into effect in Memphis, TN, on Monday, June 1, from 22:00 to 06:00, and
2280-451: A lawyer and clergyman, was elected his successor. In the 1990s, the NAACP ran into debt. The dismissal of two leading officials further added to the picture of an organization in deep crisis. After such, Rupert Richardson began her term as president of the NAACP in 1992. In 1993, the NAACP's Board of Directors narrowly selected Reverend Benjamin Chavis over Reverend Jesse Jackson to fill
2432-458: A major get-out-the-vote offensive in the 2000 U.S. presidential elections . 10.5 million African Americans cast their ballots in the election; this was one million more than four years before. The NAACP's effort was credited by observers as playing a significant role in Democrat Al Gore 's winning several states where the election was close, such as Pennsylvania and Michigan. During
2584-406: A man on the ground as bystanders pleaded for them to show mercy. Kueng and Lane were with Chauvin as the day was part of their field training. The man, whom they detained wrongfully, said he had trouble breathing, and the incident was later said to be similar to Floyd's arrest. Kueng and Lane were in their first week as Minneapolis police officers when Floyd was murdered. Lane's application to join
2736-408: A minute after the ambulance arrived, despite Floyd being silent and motionless. Around 8:29, paramedics lifted Floyd onto a stretcher, then loaded him into an ambulance. Lane boarded the ambulance and checked Floyd's pulse at his neck, and a medic instructed him to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation . A medical device was placed on Floyd's chest to provide mechanical chest compressions, and
2888-454: A minute around 8:18 in the driver's side backseat while Thao watches. According to The New York Times , at 8:19, Chauvin pulled Floyd across the backseat from the driver's side to the passenger side. Then, according to NPR , Floyd exited the vehicle while being pulled out by police and fell to the pavement. While Floyd lay on his chest with his cheek to the ground, Chauvin knelt on his neck. Floyd stopped moving around 8:20, though he
3040-509: A motion in federal court to vacate his guilty plea. The federal civil rights trial of Kueng, Lane, and Thao was held at a courtroom in the Warren E. Burger Federal Building in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Jury selection began on January 20, 2022, and opening statements were given by both sides on January 24. The 12-person jury seated for the trial was drawn from across Minnesota. The racial makeup of
3192-477: A new constitution in 1890. Through 1908, Southern legislatures, dominated by white Southern Democrats , ratified new constitutions and laws creating barriers to voter registration and more complex election rules. In practice, this and the Lily-white movement caused the exclusion of most blacks and many poor whites from the political system in southern states. Black voter registration and turnout dropped markedly in
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#17328513192183344-618: A new trial. On April 17, 2023, a three-judge panel for the Minnesota Court of Appeals affirmed the original criminal conviction. Chauvin petitioned for review by the Minnesota Supreme Court , which denied the petition in an order issued on July 19, 2023. Attorneys for Chauvin filed a petition to the United States Supreme Court for review, but it was rejected on November 20, 2023. The federal civil rights trial
3496-487: A police chase on June 1 and fled to Arkansas . On May 31, a group of around 50 protesters marched toward a building on the Middle Tennessee State University campus named after Ku Klux Klan leader Nathan Bedford Forrest but were stopped by police in armored vehicles. Police accused protesters of vandalizing an armored car and throwing a brick through the window of a local business. A 12-year-old girl
3648-463: A police department. In the evening, the crowd damaged a police car, threw rocks and sprayed graffiti; at least 5 were arrested. Mayor John Cooper declared a state of emergency and called in the national guard after a spate of arsons, including the burning of Nashville's courthouse. The Nashville Autonomous Zone, sometimes referred to as the Ida B. Wells Plaza, was an attempt to declare an autonomous zone on
3800-492: A police officer. Chauvin also admitted to willfully violating Floyd's constitutional right not to be deprived of liberty without due process of law, including the right to be free from a police officer's deliberate indifference to Floyd's serious medical needs. On July 7, 2022, Judge Magnuson sentenced Chauvin to 21 years, with roughly 17 incarcerated and 5 under supervised release, that will be served concurrently with his state criminal sentence. In mid-November 2023, Chauvin filed
3952-551: A port-a-potty. Two individuals were arrested after an officer was injured. Black Lives Matter Knoxville denounced the vandalism as a distraction from their mission. On June 2, University of Tennessee, Knoxville students organized a peaceful march along Gay Street. The Knoxville chapter of Black Lives Matter chose not to attend the event. Over the July 4th weekend, activists began painting a Black Lives Matter mural in East Knoxville, on
4104-521: A proposed budget that would have led to millions in cuts from the police budget and movement of those funds to other city programs. In response to what the DSA denounced as "political stonewalling" members of Concerned Citizens for Justice (CCJ) and the DSA protested at Councilman Chip Henderson's house demanding he support the DSA's budget proposal. I Can't Breathe Chattanooga denounced the protest as an invasion of
4256-444: A result, several cities refused to allow the film to open. The NAACP began to lead lawsuits targeting disfranchisement and racial segregation early in its history. It played a significant part in the challenge of Guinn v. United States (1915) to Oklahoma 's discriminatory grandfather clause , which effectively disenfranchised most black citizens while exempting many whites from certain voter registration requirements. It persuaded
4408-572: A second person, standing near the Cup Foods entrance, began recording the incident. Floyd can be heard repeatedly saying "I can't breathe", "Please", and "Mama"; Lane then asked for an ambulance for Floyd, "for one bleeding from the mouth". Floyd repeated at least 16 times that he could not breathe. At one point, a witness said: "You got him down. Let him breathe." After Floyd said, "I'm about to die", Chauvin told him to "relax". An officer asked Floyd, "What do you want?"; Floyd answered, "Please,
4560-457: A state charge of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter and was sentenced on September 21, 2022, to three years in prison to be served concurrently with his federal sentence of 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 years. Kueng pleaded guilty on October 24, 2022, to the state charges of aiding and abetting manslaughter and was sentenced to 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 years in prison, to be served concurrently with his federal sentence. Thao waived his right to
4712-468: A store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a counterfeit $ 20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck for over nine minutes while Floyd was handcuffed and lying face-down in a street. Two other police officers, J. Alexander Kueng and Thomas Lane, assisted Chauvin in restraining Floyd. Lane had also pointed a gun at Floyd's head before Floyd was handcuffed. A fourth police officer, Tou Thao, prevented bystanders from intervening. Before being placed on
George Floyd protests in Tennessee - Misplaced Pages Continue
4864-465: A time with limited resources and internal conflict and disbanded in 1910. Seven of the members of the Niagara Movement joined the Board of Directors of the NAACP, founded in 1909. Although both organizations shared membership and overlapped for a time, the Niagara Movement was a separate organization. Historically, it is considered to have had a more radical platform than the NAACP. The Niagara Movement
5016-610: A white nationalist with ties to hate group League of the South and a participant in the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, was arrested after assaulting a protester. At a protest on September 13, a North Carolinian man named Jared Lafer drove his vehicle into a crowd of protesters leaving one protester with a concussion, brain bleed and two broken legs. He later turned himself in to
5168-470: A woman president, except on a temporary basis, and there have been calls to name one. Lorraine C. Miller served as interim president after Benjamin Jealous stepped down. Maya Wiley was rumored to be in line for the position in 2013, but Cornell William Brooks was selected. Departments within the NAACP govern areas of action. Local chapters are supported by the "Branch and Field Services" department and
5320-500: Is "to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination". NAACP initiatives include political lobbying, publicity efforts, and litigation strategies developed by its legal team. The group enlarged its mission in the late 20th century by considering issues such as police misconduct , the status of black foreign refugees and questions of economic development. Its name, retained in accordance with tradition, uses
5472-415: Is an American civil rights organization formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. B. Du Bois , Mary White Ovington , Moorfield Storey , Ida B. Wells , Lillian Wald , and Henry Moskowitz . Over the years, leaders of the organization have included Thurgood Marshall and Roy Wilkins . Its mission in the 21st century
5624-504: Is headquartered in Baltimore , with additional regional offices in New York , Michigan , Georgia , Maryland, Texas , Colorado , and California . Each regional office is responsible for coordinating the efforts of state conferences in that region. Local, youth, and college chapters organize activities for individual members. In the U.S., the NAACP is administered by a 64-member board led by
5776-480: Is inherently dangerous". He was the first officer in Minnesota to be charged in the death of a black civilian. On June 3 , the charge against Chauvin was upgraded to second-degree murder , and the three other officers were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder as well as aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. The officers were held in jail after the state criminal charges were filed. Before
5928-518: Is punishable by six years' imprisonment and the loss of the right to vote . Tennessee was the first state to pass anti-protest legislation in response to the George Floyd protests. Murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd , a 46-year-old black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin , a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested after
6080-467: Is to advance health care for minorities through public policy initiatives and education. As of 2007 , the NAACP had approximately 425,000 paying and non-paying members. The NAACP's non-current records are housed at the Library of Congress , which has served as the organization's official repository since 1964. The records held there comprise approximately five million items spanning the NAACP's history from
6232-472: Is why you don't do drugs, kids." By 8:25, Floyd appeared unconscious, and bystanders confronted the officers about his condition. Chauvin pulled out mace to keep bystanders away as Thao moved between them and Chauvin. Bystanders repeatedly yelled that Floyd was "not responsive right now" and urged the officers to check his pulse. Kueng checked Floyd's wrist but found no pulse; the officers did not attempt to provide Floyd with medical assistance while he
George Floyd protests in Tennessee - Misplaced Pages Continue
6384-666: The Capitol grounds of Nashville , Tennessee . It was an attempt to mirror the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone of Seattle , though this "zone" never actually formed and was more of an occupational protest of the Tennessee State Capitol. On June 12 local activists called for protesters to occupy the Capitol grounds, starting at 5:00 p.m. local time. Fliers circulated by organizers demanded "Fire Chief Anderson . Defund
6536-737: The Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill . In alliance with the American Federation of Labor , the NAACP led the successful fight to prevent the nomination of John Johnston Parker to the Supreme Court, based on his support for denying the vote to blacks and his anti-labor rulings. It organized legal support for the Scottsboro Boys . The NAACP lost most of the internecine battles with the Communist Party and International Labor Defense over
6688-471: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was joining the investigation. The four officers were briefly placed on paid administrative leave before being fired later that day. Two autopsies—one by a local government official and one by doctors working for Floyd's family—determined that his death was a homicide. Released on June 1, 2020, they differed over whether there were contributing factors and whether
6840-425: The Minneapolis Police Department fired all four officers. Two autopsies, and one autopsy review, found Floyd's death to be a homicide . On March 12, 2021, Minneapolis agreed to pay US$ 27 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Floyd's family. On April 20, Chauvin was convicted of unintentional second-degree murder , third-degree murder , and second-degree manslaughter , and on June 25 he
6992-644: The Supreme Court of the United States to rule in Buchanan v. Warley in 1917 that state and local governments cannot officially segregate African Americans into separate residential districts. The Court's opinion reflected the jurisprudence of property rights and freedom of contract as embodied in the earlier precedent it established in Lochner v. New York . It also played a role in desegregating recreational activities via
7144-701: The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirmed his federal conviction. The state criminal trial of Kueng, Lane, and Thao was delayed several times to allow the federal civil rights case to proceed first. In a ruling on April 26, 2022, Judge Peter Cahill, who also presided over Chauvin's trial, ordered that the proceedings of the trial would not be livestreamed, a move that media organizations criticized. Lane pleaded guilty in Hennepin County District Court on May 18, 2022, to
7296-730: The Voting Rights Act of 1965 , which provided for protection of the franchise, with a role for federal oversight and administrators in places where voter turnout was historically low. Under its anti-desegregation director J. Edgar Hoover , the FBI 's COINTELPRO program targeted civil rights groups, including the NAACP, for infiltration, disruption and discreditation. Kivie Kaplan became NAACP President in 1966. After his death in 1975, scientist W. Montague Cobb took over until 1982. Roy Wilkins retired as executive director in 1977, and Benjamin Hooks ,
7448-418: The gold standard , and anti-imperialism . Storey consistently and aggressively championed civil rights , not only for blacks but also for Native Americans and immigrants (he opposed immigration restrictions). Du Bois continued to play a pivotal leadership role in the organization, serving as editor of the association's magazine, The Crisis , which had a circulation of more than 30,000. The Crisis
7600-449: The shooting of Justine Damond , a white woman. Following Chauvin's conviction, Judge Cahill revoked his bail and Chauvin was taken back into custody. Chauvin was given a sentence of 22.5 years imprisonment. On May 12, 2021, Judge Cahill allowed for the prosecution to seek a greater prison sentence than the 12.5-year state guideline after finding that Chauvin treated Floyd "with particular cruelty." Chauvin filed an appeal requesting
7752-554: The " separate but equal " doctrine announced by the Supreme Court's decision in Plessy v. Ferguson . The NAACP's Baltimore chapter, under president Lillie Mae Carroll Jackson , challenged segregation in Maryland state professional schools by supporting the 1935 Murray v. Pearson case argued by Marshall. Houston's victory in Missouri ex rel. Gaines v. Canada (1938) led to the formation of
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#17328513192187904-537: The "Youth and College" department. The "Legal" department focuses on court cases of broad application to minorities, such as systematic discrimination in employment, government, or education. The Washington, D.C. , bureau is responsible for lobbying the U.S. government, and the Education Department works to improve public education at the local, state, and federal levels. The goal of the Health Division
8056-558: The "largest pre-trial settlement in a civil rights wrongful death case in U.S. history". The settlement surpassed the previous record for Minneapolis of $ 20 million, paid in 2019 in the killing of Justine Damond . The city allocated $ 500,000 "for the benefit of the community around 38th and Chicago", the intersection where Floyd was murdered. Chauvin's trial commenced in Minneapolis on March 8, 2021, in Hennepin County District Court. Opening statements occurred on March 29, 2021, and closing arguments on April 19, 2021. On April 20, 2021,
8208-456: The 2000 presidential election, Lee Alcorn , president of the Dallas NAACP branch, criticized Al Gore's selection of Senator Joe Lieberman for his vice-presidential candidate because Lieberman was Jewish. On a gospel talk radio show on station KHVN , Alcorn stated, "If we get a Jew person, then what I'm wondering is, I mean, what is this movement for, you know? Does it have anything to do with
8360-534: The 2800 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. They were asked to stop due to a lack of a permit, and could not finish the project. On July 10 the activists completed the mural after acquiring approval from the city. At a June 6 rally in Worlds Fair Park, 10 Tennessee Volunteers football players and head football coach Jeremy Pruitt spoke in support of the protests. Pruitt announced in press conference that
8512-579: The Civil Rights Movement by pressing for civil rights legislation. The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom took place on August 28, 1963. That fall, President John F. Kennedy sent a civil rights bill to Congress before he was assassinated. President Lyndon B. Johnson worked hard to persuade Congress to pass a civil rights bill aimed at ending racial discrimination in employment, education and public accommodations, and succeeded in gaining passage in July 1964. He followed that with passage of
8664-825: The Civil Rights Movement while it was barred from Alabama. New organizations such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC, in 1957) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC, in 1960) rose up with different approaches to activism. Rather than relying on litigation and legislation, these newer groups employed direct action and mass mobilization to advance the rights of African Americans. Roy Wilkins , NAACP's executive director, clashed repeatedly with Martin Luther King ;Jr. and other civil rights leaders over questions of strategy and leadership within
8816-583: The Cleveland City Council to talk about how to move forward. On August 24, Cleveland City Council voted 4–3 to create a task force to help decide what would happen to the Confederate monument near Lee University. On September 14, Emancipate Cleveland released a statement stating they supported the formation of a task force but the task force's unwillingness to remove the monument was an example of city council "ignoring and deflecting problems they don’t have
8968-602: The Cleveland Police Department on May 31. The protest was peaceful, and included protesters discussing police brutality issues with local law enforcement. In early June, students of Lee University circulated a petition calling for the removal of a local monument honoring the Daughters of the Confederacy . The author of the petition, political science student Kelsey Osborne, received various death threats. President of
9120-462: The Grand Jury decision continued throughout September and October. Victoria Hewlett, who was sitting in a parked car with her husband at an intersection just yards from the hit and run, told The Daily Beast that protesters were crossing the road in a pattern consistent with the walk signal. She says that Lafer pulled up behind her car, then swerved around her vehicle “pretty aggressively,” before rounding
9272-592: The Jefferson Davis Chapter of the UDC Linda Ballew said, “[an] overwhelming majority of Cleveland residents are rallying around our beloved Cleveland monument.” On June 30, City Councilman Bill Estes proposed a solution that would erect a monument to Union soldiers who fought in the Civil War to the north side of the Confederate statue on North Ocoee and Broad streets. Estes also proposed signage to be added to
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#17328513192189424-572: The Johnson City Police Department. A Tennessee Grand Jury later dismissed the case. Lafer's attorney argued "he did what he felt was necessary to get out of a situation that he felt was dangerous to his family". Robin Ellis, president of the NAACP for Yancey and Mitchell Counties, called for the incident to be treated as a hate crime citing screenshots of Lafer's social media posts where he joked about running over protesters. Protests against
9576-628: The Legal Defense Fund in 1939. The campaign for desegregation culminated in a unanimous 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education that held state-sponsored segregation of public elementary schools was unconstitutional . Bolstered by that victory, the NAACP pushed for full desegregation throughout the South. NAACP activists were excited about the judicial strategy. Starting on December 5, 1955, NAACP activists, including Edgar Nixon , its local president, and Rosa Parks , who had served as
9728-578: The Minneapolis Police Department issued a statement that said nothing about Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck: "After Floyd got out of his car, he physically resisted officers. Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress." Hours later, witness and security camera video circulating on the internet showed Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck. The department updated its statement, saying "new information" had "been made available" and that
9880-658: The Minneapolis Police found that the city and the police department engaged in a "pattern or practice of race discrimination" and that the police department's organizational culture had "flawed training and emphasized a paramilitary approach" with a lack of accountability. In February 2021, the United States Department of Justice empaneled a grand jury in Minneapolis as part of a federal investigation into Chauvin. On May 7, 2021, all four officers were indicted on federal charges of civil rights violations. Chauvin
10032-530: The Montgomery County Courthouse chanting " no justice, no peace, prosecute the police " and " I can't breathe ". Leonia Tucker, president of community activist group Commission on Religion and Racism (CORR), spoke about the need "to bring awareness to potential problems and create a conversation". Dozens protested in downtown Cleveland in front of the Bradley County courthouse and headquarters of
10184-554: The NAACP and recruited for its board such Jewish leaders as Jacob Schiff , Jacob Billikopf , and Rabbi Stephen Wise ." In its early years, the NAACP was based in New York City . It concentrated on litigation in efforts to overturn disenfranchisement of blacks, which had been established in every southern state by 1908, excluding most from the political system, and the Jim Crow statutes that legalized racial segregation . In 1913,
10336-526: The NAACP had been infiltrated by Communists. To distance themselves from these accusations, the NAACP purged suspected Communists from its membership, according to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee 's website. The board of directors of the NAACP created the Legal Defense Fund in 1939 specifically for tax purposes. It functioned as the NAACP legal department. Intimidated by the Department of
10488-523: The NAACP organized opposition to President Woodrow Wilson 's introduction of racial segregation into federal government policy, workplaces, and hiring. African-American women's clubs were among the organizations that protested Wilson's changes, but the administration did not alter its assuagement of Southern cabinet members and the Southern bloc in Congress. By 1914, the group had 6,000 members and 50 branches. It
10640-412: The NAACP's membership from 9,000 to almost 90,000. In 1920, Johnson was elected head of the organization. Over the next ten years, the NAACP escalated its lobbying and litigation efforts, becoming internationally known for its advocacy of equal rights and equal protection for the "American Negro". The NAACP devoted much of its energy during the interwar years to fight the lynching of blacks throughout
10792-761: The North Shore neighborhood. On May 31, protesters marched from Coolidge Park to the Hamilton County Courthouse . After protesters damaged a light fixture and tore down a banner near the courthouse, the National Guard, the Tennessee Highway Patrol , the Hamilton County Police Department and Chattanooga Police Department began arresting people and dispersing the crowds with tear gas. A statue of Confederate general A.P. Stewart
10944-551: The Police. Demilitarize the Police. Remove Racist Statues." In the wake of Occupy Wall Street the Tennessee State Legislature passed law making the occupation of State land after 10:00 p.m. a Class A misdemeanor. In August 2020, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed legislation in response to the protests that made it a felony to participate in certain types of protest. Under the legislation, camping on state property
11096-710: The South as a result of such legislation. Men who had been voting for thirty years in the South were told they did not "qualify" to register. White-dominated legislatures also passed segregation and Jim Crow laws. Because hotels in the US were segregated, the men convened in Canada at the Erie Beach Hotel on the Canadian side of the Niagara River in Fort Erie, Ontario . As a result,
11248-627: The South were unable to elect representatives of their choice to office. The NAACP regularly displayed a black flag stating "A Man Was Lynched Yesterday" from the window of its offices in New York to mark each lynching. It organized the first of the two 1935 New York anti-lynching exhibitions in support of the Costigan-Wagner Bill , having previously widely published an account of the Lynching of Henry Lowry , as An American Lynching , in support of
11400-542: The State of Minnesota banning chokeholds and neck restraints, requiring police officers to intervene against other officers' use of excessive force, and requiring authorization from the police chief or designate before using crowd-control weapons such as chemical agents and rubber bullets. On June 8, a Hennepin County Court judge ordered the Minneapolis Police Department to cooperate with a civil rights investigation, and extended
11552-597: The Supreme Court ruled against the white primary. Although states had to retract legislation related to the white primaries, the legislatures soon came up with new methods to severely limit the franchise for blacks. During the Second Red Scare the NAACP was often linked to Communism by right-wing politicians. The House Un-American Activities Committee , the United States Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security , and security agencies sought to prove to
11704-642: The Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service, the Legal and Educational Defense Fund, Inc., became a separate legal entity in 1957, although it was clear that it was to operate in accordance with NAACP policy. After 1961 serious disputes emerged between the two organizations, creating considerable confusion in the eyes and minds of the public. By the 1940s, the federal courts were amenable to lawsuits regarding constitutional rights, against which Congressional action
11856-479: The U.S. In the decades around the turn of the century, the rate of lynchings of blacks, particularly men, was at an all-time high. Mary White Ovington , journalist William English Walling and Henry Moskowitz met in New York City in January 1909 to work on organizing for black civil rights. They sent out solicitations for support to more than 60 prominent Americans, and set a meeting date for February 12, 1909. This
12008-547: The United States by working for legislation, lobbying, and educating the public. The organization sent its field secretary Walter F. White to Phillips County , Arkansas, in October 1919, to investigate the Elaine Race Riot . Roving white vigilantes killed more than 200 black tenant farmers and federal troops after a deputy sheriff's attack on a union meeting of sharecroppers left one white man dead. White published his report on
12160-689: The Volunteers planned to wear black jerseys for the Nov. 7th matchup against Kentucky in Neyland Stadium . Following the game, the team planned to auction off the game-used jerseys and donate the proceeds to the Black Lives Matter movement. On September 3, over a thousand protesters, primarily UTK students, rallied on the University of Tennessee campus. The UT Knoxville football team and other student athletes led
12312-516: The agreed cause, restraint and neck compression, was combined with subdual or asphyxiation. Andrew Baker, a pathologist and Hennepin County's chief medical examiner since 2004, performed an autopsy examination at 9:25 a.m. on May 26. Prosecutors summarized portions of Baker's preliminary findings in charging documents that were released publicly on May 29 . Baker's final autopsy findings, issued on June 1, found that Floyd's heart stopped while he
12464-550: The ambulance departed for Hennepin County Medical Center . En route, the ambulance requested assistance from the Minneapolis Fire Department . At 8:32, firefighters arrived at Cup Foods; according to their report, the police officers gave no clear information about Floyd's condition or whereabouts, which delayed their ability to find the ambulance. Meanwhile, the ambulance reported that Floyd
12616-718: The brain, that ability to speak does not imply ability to breathe, and that Floyd apparently died at the scene. It was revealed in August 2020 that the United States Department of Justice had the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's official autopsy results reviewed by the Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner, which agreed with them. The Office of the Armed Forces Medical Examiner added that
12768-746: The chapter's Secretary, helped organize a bus boycott in Montgomery , Alabama. This was designed to protest segregation on the city's buses, two-thirds of whose riders were black. The boycott lasted 381 days. In 1956 the South Carolina legislature created an anti-NAACP oath, and teachers who refused to take the oath lost their positions. After twenty-one Black teachers at the Elloree Training School refused to comply, White school officials dismissed them. Their dismissal led to Bryan v. Austin in 1957, which became an important civil rights case. In Alabama,
12920-422: The charge of aiding and abetting manslaughter related to the murder of George Floyd. The charge against Lane for aiding and abetting second-degree murder was dismissed. Lane agreed to a three-year sentence, with two years in prison, to be served concurrently with his civil rights federal conviction. On September 21, 2022, Lane was formally sentenced by the Hennepin County District Court to three years in prison. In
13072-437: The charges at a September 14, 2021, arraignment hearing. Chauvin faced an additional federal charge for a 2017 arrest incident of a 14-year old in Minneapolis that he initially pled not guilty to. In late 2020, prior to the trial, lawyers for Thao, Lane, and Kueng had sought to sever their case from Chauvin's. In a hearing on November 29, 2021, Magnuson ruled that all four officers would stand trial together. Chauvin requested
13224-431: The cigarettes; he refused. A store employee called the police to report that Floyd had passed "fake bills" and was "awfully drunk" and "not in control of himself". The store owner later said that most patrons who pay in counterfeit bills do not know they are fake, and that the store called the police to "make sure there is no crime being committed". The store's security camera recorded the interaction between Floyd and
13376-492: The city council's privacy. In response to protests the Chattanooga Police updated policy requiring members to intervene in situations of police brutality. Mayor Andy Berke formed a new Office of Community Resilience. The OCR took $ 150,000 from the police budget to fund social work, recidivism reduction programs, job training for felons and youth mentorship programs. Cameron Williams, of I Can't Breathe Chattanooga, called it
13528-534: The control of those cases and the legal strategy to be pursued in that case. The organization also brought litigation to challenge the " white primary " system in the South. Southern state Democratic parties had created white-only primaries as another way of barring blacks from the political process. Since the Democrats dominated southern states, the primaries were the only competitive contests. In 1944 in Smith v. Allwright ,
13680-470: The corner and driving “directly into where the protesters were in the crosswalk.” Hundreds of protesters demonstrated on May 29 in front of police headquarters and then marched through downtown Knoxville. The first night of protest remained overwhelmingly peaceful. On the following night a group of around 50-100 protesters rallied in downtown. After confrontations with the police, protesters began to break windows, shot fireworks, throw trashcans and destroyed
13832-609: The courage to face". Almost 200 protestors showed up to protest peacefully at Jackson City Hall on May 30. On June 10, dozens of protesters gathered in front of Old Hickory Mall for a peaceful demonstration. Hundreds of protesters peacefully gathered in Johnson City on May 31. Several protesters were arrested after they refused to stop blocking a road. At a protest on July 13, a confrontation broke out between Black Lives Matter protesters and neo-nazi counter protestors wearing shirts that read “ National Socialist Club 131”. Garon Archer,
13984-595: The day. Around mid-day hundreds protested at Miller Park followed by a march across the Walnut Street Bridge site of the 1906 lynching of Ed Johnson . At 4pm a silent protest was held in Miller Park. Chattanooga Police Chief David Roddy met with protesters and listened to their concerns about police abuse. At 6pm protesters met again at Walnut Street Bridge led by newly formed activist organization I Can't Breathe Chattanooga but were blocked by police from marching into
14136-465: The door opened, he drew his gun and ordered Floyd to show his hands. When Floyd complied, Lane holstered his weapon. Someone parked behind Floyd's SUV began recording a video at 8:10. They briefly struggled, and Lane pulled Floyd from the SUV and handcuffed him. Two other people in the car with Floyd, including 45-year-old Shawanda Hill, were interrogated. At 8:12, Kueng sat Floyd on the sidewalk against
14288-424: The employees. At 8:08, Kueng and Lane arrived, briefly entering Cup Foods before crossing the street to Floyd's SUV, parked in front of a restaurant, Dragon Wok. Lane tapped his flashlight on the window, startling Floyd. He asked Floyd to show his hands, and tapped again when he did not obey. Floyd apologized as he opened the car door. Lane instructed him three more times to show his hands. Seconds after
14440-581: The event and presided over the proceedings. Also in attendance was Ida B. Wells-Barnett , an African-American journalist and anti- lynching crusader. Wells-Barnett addressed the conference on the history of lynching in the United States and called for action to publicize and prosecute such crimes. The members chose the new organization's name to be the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and elected its first officers: The NAACP
14592-407: The federal government was involved. Barr worried that protesters might view the agreement as too lenient and prefer a full investigation. On May 29, Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter and held at Oak Park Heights state prison . According to the criminal complaint, police are trained that the neck restraint that he applied "with a subject in prone position
14744-519: The ground instead. A Minneapolis Park Police officer arrived and guarded Floyd's vehicle (across the street by the restaurant) and the two people who had been in it with Floyd. At 8:17, Chauvin and Thao arrived in a third police car, joining Kueng and Lane, with Chauvin assuming command. He asked if Floyd was going to jail, and Kueng replied that he had been arrested for forgery. Floyd said, "I can't fucking breathe" twice. Cup Foods security footage shows Kueng struggling with Floyd for at least
14896-589: The ground, Floyd had exhibited signs of anxiety , complaining about having claustrophobia , and being unable to breathe. After being restrained, he became more distressed, still complaining of breathing difficulties, of the knee on his neck, and of fear of imminent death. After several minutes, Floyd stopped speaking. For the last few minutes, he lay motionless, and Kueng found no pulse when urged to check. Despite this, Chauvin ignored bystanders' pleas to lift his knee from Floyd's neck. The next day, after videos recorded by witnesses and security cameras became public,
15048-597: The group came to be known as the Niagara Movement . A year later, three non-African-Americans joined the group: journalist William English Walling , a wealthy socialist; and social workers Mary White Ovington and Henry Moskowitz . Moskowitz, who was Jewish, was then also Associate Leader of the New York Society for Ethical Culture . They met in 1906 at Storer College , Harpers Ferry, West Virginia , and in 1907 in Boston, Massachusetts . The fledgling group struggled for
15200-408: The historic Bob-Lo Excursion Co. v. Michigan after plaintiff Sarah Elizabeth Ray was wrongfully discriminated against when attempting to board a ferry. In 1916, chairman Joel Spingarn invited James Weldon Johnson to serve as field secretary. Johnson was a former U.S. consul to Venezuela and a noted African-American scholar and columnist. Within four years, Johnson was instrumental in increasing
15352-415: The jury found Chauvin guilty of all charges, including second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. He was the first white Minnesota police officer to be convicted of murdering a black person. It was only the second time an officer has been convicted of murder in Minnesota, the first being the third-degree murder conviction of Somali-American officer Mohamed Noor in
15504-417: The jury on February 24 found the former officers guilty on all counts they faced at trial. All three officers were convicted of willfully violating Floyd's constitutional rights by not providing medical care when he lost a pulse. Kueng and Thao were also found guilty of failing to intervene to stop Chauvin from using unreasonable force. After finding them guilty, the jury concluded that the cause of Floyd's death
15656-419: The jury was described by The New York Times as appearing to be all-white, a contrast to the more racially diverse jury during Chauvin's criminal trial. The prosecution's first witness, Katie Blackwell, testified for three days about the department's training and policies regarding use of force. During her testimony, Blackwell stated that the officers should have moved Floyd onto his side to prevent him having
15808-572: The knee in my neck, I can't breathe." At approximately 8:22, the officers called for an ambulance on a non-emergency basis, escalating the call to emergency status a minute later. Chauvin continued to kneel on Floyd's neck. A passerby yelled to Floyd, "Well, get up, get in the car, man", and Floyd, still handcuffed and face down on the pavement, responded, "I can't", while Chauvin's knee remained on his neck. Floyd said, "My stomach hurts, my neck hurts, everything hurts", requested water, and begged, "Don't kill me". One witness pointed out that Floyd
15960-466: The law. The larger conference resulted in a more diverse organization, where the leadership was predominantly white. Moorfield Storey , a white attorney from a Boston abolitionist family, served as the president of the NAACP from its founding to 1915. At its founding, the NAACP had one African American on its executive board, Du Bois. Storey was a long-time classical liberal and Grover Cleveland Democrat who advocated laissez-faire free markets,
16112-512: The military, the criminal justice system, employment, housing). The Pan-American Exposition of 1901 in Buffalo, New York , featured many American innovations and achievements, but also included a disparaging caricature of slave life in the South as well as a depiction of life in Africa, called "Old Plantation" and "Darkest Africa", respectively. A local African-American woman, Mary Talbert of Ohio ,
16264-446: The monuments, providing appropriate context to the statues. On August 10, members of local community activist group Emancipate Cleveland stood outside the city council meeting, asking for the confederate statue to be removed. Community activist Kezmond Pugh called the statue a "symbol of oppression, a symbol of hate". Vice Mayor Avery Johnson suggested City Council should form a task force with members of NAACP , Emancipate Cleveland, and
16416-563: The movement. The NAACP continued to use the Supreme Court's decision in Brown to press for desegregation of schools and public facilities throughout the country. Daisy Bates , president of its Arkansas state chapter, spearheaded the campaign by the Little Rock Nine to integrate the public schools in Little Rock , Arkansas. By the mid-1960s, the NAACP had regained some of its prominence in
16568-413: The once common term colored people , referring to those with some African ancestry. The NAACP bestows annual awards on African Americans in three categories: Image Awards are for achievements in the arts and media, Theatre Awards are for achievements in theatre and stage, and Spingarn Medals are for outstanding achievements of any kind. Its headquarters are in Baltimore , Maryland . The NAACP
16720-574: The organization's funds. In 1996, Congressman Kweisi Mfume , a Democratic Congressman from Maryland and former head of the Congressional Black Caucus , was named the organization's president. Three years later strained finances forced the organization to drastically cut its staff, from 250 in 1992 to 50. In the second half of the 1990s, the organization restored its finances, permitting the NAACP National Voter Fund to launch
16872-410: The parking garage to the city center at around 11 p.m. where a line of police officers were stationed. The protesters threw small rocks and water bottles at the officers' feet and were ordered to disperse around 12:40 a.m. One man was arrested on June 3 for allegedly assaulting the counter-protester during the protest, as well as for felony evading arrest and reckless endangerment. The man had escaped
17024-398: The plea agreement, Lane admitted he knew from his training that the manner of Floyd's restraint created a risk of death, that he heard Floyd say he could not breathe, and that he was aware of Floyd's deteriorating condition. Lane completed both sentences and was released from prison on August 20, 2024. NAACP The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ( NAACP )
17176-468: The police "subdual and restraint had elements of positional and mechanical asphyxiation ". On May 26, the FBI announced it was reviewing the incident at the Minneapolis Police Department's request. On May 28, the United States Department of Justice released a joint statement with the FBI, saying that their investigation into Floyd's murder was "a top priority" and outlining the investigation's next steps:
17328-493: The police academy in 2009. After a two-year layoff, he resumed police work in 2012. Six complaints had been filed against Thao, none resulting in disciplinary action. In 2014, a man claimed Thao handcuffed him without cause, threw him to the ground, and punched, kicked, and kneed him; the man's teeth were broken and he was hospitalized. The resulting lawsuit was settled for $ 25,000. During the Floyd arrest Thao kept bystanders away. He
17480-410: The police department had portions covering his criminal history redacted, including convictions for obstructing legal process and damaging property when he was 18. Kueng and Lane helped Chauvin hold Floyd down; both were found guilty of violating Floyd's civil rights. In October 2022, Kueng pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter and in December 2022 he was sentenced to three and
17632-417: The position of executive director. A controversial figure, Chavis was ousted eighteen months later by the same board. They accused him of using NAACP funds for an out-of-court settlement in a sexual harassment lawsuit. Following the dismissal of Chavis, Myrlie Evers-Williams narrowly defeated NAACP chairperson William Gibson for president in 1995, after Gibson was accused of overspending and mismanagement of
17784-435: The previously named whites Henry Moskowitz , Mary White Ovington , William English Walling (the wealthy Socialist son of a former slave-holding family), Florence Kelley , a social reformer and friend of Du Bois; Oswald Garrison Villard , and Charles Edward Russell , a renowned muckraker and close friend of Walling. Russell helped plan the NAACP and had served as acting chairman of the National Negro Committee (1909),
17936-613: The protesters on a march around campus to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Silent demonstrations of around 40 people protesting the murder of Floyd, the death of Breonna Taylor in Kentucky, and the murder of Ahmaud Arbery , led to "verbal confrontations" with Memphis police and two counter-protesters from the Facebook group Confederate 901. On May 27, protesters shut down Union Avenue near McLean Boulevard. Just after midnight Saturday night, police in riot gear clashed with
18088-479: The restrictions on the department to require that the chief make discipline decisions in a timely and transparent manner, and that civilian analysts and investigators in the city's Office of Police Conduct Review be given authority to audit body-worn camera footage and to file or amend complaints on behalf of the Minneapolis Civil Rights Department. In April 2022, the state investigation into
18240-593: The riot in the Chicago Daily News . The NAACP organized the appeals for twelve black men sentenced to death a month later based on the fact that testimony used in their convictions was obtained by beatings and electric shocks. It gained a groundbreaking Supreme Court decision in Moore v. Dempsey 261 U.S. 86 (1923) that significantly expanded the Federal courts' oversight of the states' criminal justice systems in
18392-404: The stand to testify in his own defense. Thao claimed that he was not aware that Floyd was suffering medical problems until he was taken into the ambulance, and that the technique of kneeling on a detainee's neck was "not uncommon", although he denied having ever done so. He admitted that neither Chauvin nor any other officers had administered CPR to Floyd, but claimed he took this to indicate Floyd
18544-445: The state responded by effectively barring the NAACP from operating within its borders because of its refusal to divulge a list of its members. The NAACP feared members could be fired or face violent retaliation for their activities. Although the Supreme Court eventually overturned the state's action in NAACP v. Alabama , 357 U.S. 449 (1958), the NAACP lost its leadership role in
18696-463: The time of its founding until 2003. In 2011, the NAACP teamed with the digital repository ProQuest to digitize and host online the earlier portion of its archives, through 1972 – nearly two million pages of documents, from the national, legal, and branch offices throughout the country, which offer first-hand insight into the organization's work related to such crucial issues as lynching, school desegregation, and discrimination in all its aspects (in
18848-550: The trials, the four officers were released on bail. Lane was released on June 10, Kueng on June 19, and Thao on July 4. Chauvin was released on October 7 after posting a $ 1 million bond. On June 2, the Minnesota Department of Human Rights opened an investigation into the Minneapolis Police Department's practices. On June 5, the Minneapolis City Council authorized the mayor to enter a restraining order with
19000-533: The virus that causes COVID-19 , but did not list it as a fatal or other significant condition. Attorneys for Floyd's family announced on May 29 that they would commission a second autopsy. It was carried out on May 31 by Michael Baden , a pathologist and former New York City chief medical examiner, and Allecia Wilson, a pathologist and director of autopsy and forensic services at the University of Michigan Medical School . They announced their results on June 1,
19152-436: The wall in front of the restaurant. Lane asked Floyd if he was "on something right now", and Floyd replied "No, nothing". Kueng told Floyd he was acting "real erratic" and Floyd said he was scared. Kueng asked Floyd about foam around his mouth, to which Floyd responded that he had been "hooping" earlier. Floyd then said he was calming down, and remarked, "I'm feeling better now." At 8:13, Kueng and Lane told Floyd he
19304-525: The years to come. White investigated eight race riots and 41 lynchings for the NAACP and directed its study Thirty Years of Lynching in the United States . The NAACP also worked for more than a decade seeking federal anti-lynching legislation, but the Solid South of white Democrats voted as a bloc against it or used the filibuster in the Senate to block passage. Because of disenfranchisement, African Americans in
19456-545: Was Chauvin's restraint, which permitted the judge to consider a lengthier sentence than the recommended three to four years in prison. The three officers remained free on bond while they awaited a sentencing hearing. In July 2022, Judge Magnuson sentenced Lane to 2.5 years in prison, Kueng to three years in prison, and Thao to 3.5 years in prison. Lane was ordered to report to federal prison on August 30, 2022. By October 2022, Kueng and Thao had both reported to federal prison. Thao filed an appeal, but on August 4, 2023,
19608-615: Was a 46-year-old black American born in Fayetteville, North Carolina , and raised in the Third Ward of Houston, Texas. In 2014, he moved to the Minneapolis area. He resided in the suburb of St. Louis Park , and was a frequent customer at the Cup Foods convenience store in Powderhorn Park, Minneapolis . At the time of Floyd's murder, Derek Michael Chauvin, a white American , was
19760-577: Was anticipated to be a major development in the case against the officers at the scene of Floyd's murder. Hennepin County Attorney Michael O. Freeman , the local official with jurisdiction to bring criminal charges for police misconduct, said his office needed more time to investigate. In explaining the anticipation of the media briefing and its two-hour delayed start, U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald said, "I thought we would have another development to talk to you about, but we don't." On June 9, it
19912-578: Was appalled by the exhibit, as a similar one in Paris highlighted black achievements. She informed W. E. B. Du Bois of the situation, and a coalition began to form. In 1905, a group of thirty-two prominent African-American leaders met to discuss the challenges facing African Americans and possible strategies and solutions. They were particularly concerned by the Southern states ' disenfranchisement of blacks starting with Mississippi 's passage of
20064-529: Was being restrained and that his death was a homicide caused by " cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression". Fentanyl intoxication and recent methamphetamine use may have increased the likelihood of death. Other significant conditions were arteriosclerotic heart disease and hypertensive heart disease, including an enlarged heart, one artery 90% blocked, and two others 75% narrowed. The report said that on April 3, Floyd had tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 ,
20216-461: Was bleeding from the nose. Another told the officers that Floyd was "not even resisting arrest right now". Thao countered that Floyd was "talking, he's fine"; a witness replied that Floyd "ain't fine ... Get him off the ground ... You could have put him in the car by now. He's not resisting arrest or nothing. You're enjoying it. Look at you. Your body language explains it." As Floyd continued to cry for help, Thao said to witnesses: "This
20368-478: Was breathing. Thao also stated that his main role at the scene was "crowd control" rather than to assess Floyd's condition. Closing arguments were heard on February 22. Prosecutor Manda Sertich stated that Kueng, Lane, and Thao "chose to do nothing" while Floyd was dying. Defense attorneys stated that the former officers were inexperienced, improperly trained, and that they did not willfully violate Floyd's civil rights. After deliberating for 13 hours over two days,
20520-479: Was damaged by protesters during the event. On June 3, during the fifth day of protests, police arrested a man standing on a rooftop along the route of the march with multiple firearms including an AK-47 and six beers. On June 9, 146 Chattanoogans spoke during a 7-hour long city council meeting demanding effort to defund the police . Chattanooga's chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America put forward
20672-486: Was entering cardiac arrest and again requested assistance, asking firefighters to meet it at the corner of 36th Street and Park Avenue. Five minutes later, the fire department reached the ambulance; two fire department medics who boarded the ambulance found Floyd unresponsive and pulseless. Floyd was pronounced dead at 9:25 at the Hennepin County Medical Center emergency room. Early on May 26,
20824-501: Was extended the following day to June 8. On May 30, a group of around 150 protesters gathered at 9 p.m. and peacefully marched up and down Morristown's Main Street District , chanting phrases such as “ I can't breathe ” and “ no justice, no peace .” No buildings or property in the downtown area were damaged. One counter-protester with a thin blue line flag was struck in the face and taken away by ambulance. The protesters blocked off
20976-465: Was formed exclusively by African Americans. Four European Americans were among the founders of the NAACP, they included Mary White Ovington , Henry Moskowitz , William English Walling and Oswald Garrison Villard . The Race Riot of 1908 in Springfield, Illinois , the state capital and Abraham Lincoln 's hometown, was a catalyst showing the urgent need for an effective civil rights organization in
21128-462: Was found guilty of violating Floyd's civil rights. J. Alexander Kueng, a black American then aged 26, and Thomas Kiernan Lane, a white American then aged 37, were licensed as law enforcement officers in August 2019. They had trained together. Chauvin was the superior officer responsible for most of Kueng's field training. On May 3, 2020, video of an arrest incident in Minneapolis showed Chauvin, Kueng, Lane, and another officer roughly detaining
21280-448: Was incorporated a year later in 1911. The association's charter expressed its mission: To promote equality of rights and eradicate caste or race prejudice among citizens of the United States; to advance the interest of colored citizens; to secure for them impartial suffrage; and to increase their opportunities for securing justice in the courts, education for their children, employment according to their ability, and complete equality before
21432-435: Was indicted for violating Floyd's civil rights, along with those of a teenager who survived a similar restraint in 2017. The other three officers also faced charges for violating Floyd's civil rights. Thao, Lane, and Kueng appeared at a hearing virtually, and each posted $ 25,000 bond. Chauvin did not appear at this hearing, and remained in jail while awaiting sentencing for his state charges. In July 2020, Floyd's family filed
21584-531: Was influential in winning the right of African Americans to serve as military officers in World War ;I . Six hundred African-American officers were commissioned and 700,000 men registered for the draft. The following year, the NAACP organized a nationwide protest, with marches in numerous cities, against D. W. Griffith 's silent movie The Birth of a Nation , a film that glamorized the Ku Klux Klan . As
21736-422: Was initially scheduled to include all four officers—Chauvin, Kueng, Lane, and Thao—and begin in January 2022 with U.S. District Judge Paul A. Magnuson presiding. The four officers were charged federally with abusing their positions as police officers, depriving Floyd of his constitutional rights to be "free from the use of unreasonable force", and failing to give medical aid. All four officers pled not guilty to
21888-541: Was injured by tear gas. Mayor Shane McFarland issued a state of emergency order. A curfew was in effect as of 6:30 pm. Earlier in the day, a peaceful vigil was held at the Rutherford County Courthouse with hundreds of participants. On May 30, thousands gathered for a protest in downtown Nashville , the capital of Tennessee; protesters peacefully demonstrated in Legislative Plaza and then marched to
22040-470: Was intended to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the birth of President Abraham Lincoln , who emancipated enslaved African Americans. While the first large meeting did not occur until three months later, the February date is often cited as the organization's founding date. The NAACP was founded on February 12, 1909, by a larger group including African Americans W. E. B. Du Bois , Ida B. Wells , Archibald Grimké , Mary Church Terrell , and
22192-441: Was on the ground. According to the criminal complaint against Chauvin, Lane asked Chauvin twice if they should move Floyd onto his side, and Chauvin said no. At 8:27, a Hennepin County ambulance arrived. Shortly thereafter, a young relative of the owner of Cup Foods attempted to intervene, but was pushed back by Thao. Emergency medical technicians checked Floyd's pulse. Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck for almost
22344-454: Was revealed that state and federal prosecutors had discussed a plea deal with Chauvin that would have included state murder charges and federal civil rights charges, but the deal fell apart when United States Attorney General William Barr rejected it. Chauvin believed his prospects of winning at trial could be poor, and was willing to plead guilty to third-degree murder for a ten-year prison sentence. As he would have gone to federal prison,
22496-449: Was sentenced to 22 + 1 ⁄ 2 years in prison. All four officers faced federal civil rights charges. In December 2021, Chauvin pleaded guilty to federal charges of violating Floyd's civil rights by using unreasonable force and ignoring his serious medical distress. The other three officers were also later convicted of violating Floyd's civil rights. Lane pleaded guilty in May 2022 to
22648-436: Was still conscious. Multiple witnesses began to film the encounter, and their videos circulated widely on the internet. At 8:20, a witness across the street began recording a video showing Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck, Kueng applying pressure to Floyd's torso, and Lane applying pressure to Floyd's legs, while Thao stood nearby. This witness stopped filming when one of the officers ordered him to leave. Also at 8:20,
22800-461: Was under arrest and walked him to their police car across the street. The officers then leaned him against the car's door. Floyd told the officers that he was not resisting, but that he was recovering from COVID-19 , that he was claustrophobic and had anxiety , and that he did not want to sit in the car. While Kueng and Lane attempted to put him in the car, Floyd begged them not to, repeatedly saying " I can't breathe " and offering to lie on
22952-566: Was used both for news reporting and for publishing African-American poetry and literature. During the organization's campaigns against lynching, Du Bois encouraged the writing and performance of plays and other expressive literature about this issue. The Jewish community contributed greatly to the NAACP's founding and continued financing. Jewish historian Howard Sachar 's book A History of Jews in America notes "In 1914, Professor Emeritus Joel Spingarn of Columbia University became chairman of
23104-463: Was virtually impossible. With the rise of private corporate litigators such as the NAACP to bear the expense, civil suits became the pattern in modern civil rights litigation, and the public face of the Civil Rights Movement . The NAACP's Legal department, headed by Charles Hamilton Houston and Thurgood Marshall , undertook a campaign spanning several decades to bring about the reversal of
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