YWCA USA Statement on the Sentencing of Derek Chauvin

Today, former Minneapolis police office Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22.5 years for the murder of George Floyd. In response, Elisha Rhodes, Interim CEO and COO of YWCA USA has issued the following statement:“Our hearts are with the family and friends of George Floyd, and with the larger Minneapolis and St. Paul community. While Derek Chauvin was held accountable in court, no amount of jail time is going to bring back the life that was lost. As Philonise Floyd stated of the loss of his brother George, “My family has been given a life sentence.”YWCA USA stands firm in our call for immediate Congressional action to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act as a first step toward ending the use of racial profiling, excessive force by police, and ensuring police accountability. This Congressional action is urgently needed to ensure that what happened to George Floyd, Daunte Wright, Breonna Taylor, Ma’Khia Bryant and so many others in the BIPOC is not the norm in our country.To keep the movement going, all Americans must continue to stand together and see each other as human beings. As long as they can’t breathe, we can’t stop. And at YWCA, we will continue to do the work until injustice is rooted out, until institutions are transformed, and until justice just is.”