SLO County activists relieved but wary after Floyd verdict: ‘It’s hard to see this as a win’
A day after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty on all charges for the murder of George Floyd, San Luis Obispo County racial justice advocates say that the verdict brings relief but “it’s not a celebration.”
Local activists appreciated Wednesday that jurors held Chauvin accountable, finding him guilty on second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.
But they have lingering societal concerns around policing, systemic racism and inequalities, they told The Tribune.
Courtney Haile, executive director of R.A.C.E. Matters SLO County, described watching the court announcement live on television.
“Waiting for the verdict was anxiety-inducing,” Haile said. “My heart was beating fast, and then when the verdict came in, I felt relief because of the accountability. But it does feel strange to celebrate.”
Haile said that’s because a 16-year-old Black girl, Ma’Khia Bryant, was shot to death by police in Ohio 20 minutes before Chauvin’s guilty verdict was announced. The moment of justice being upheld was brief, she said.
“Having that moment of fleeting relief and another hashtag and another fatal police-related death of a young Black woman was very difficult to say the least,” Haile said.
Tianna Arata — arrested in SLO and charged for alleged wrongdoing as part of last summer’s protests — posted on Instagram in regards to Bryant’s death that: “I don’t have the words no more ... I don’t watch videos of death anymore, nor do I encourage others to. You should never need to graphically watch someone’s passing to know if police murder was justified.”
Black community will need to heal
Haile said that R.A.C.E. Matters will prioritize resources and programming in “the space of Black healing” to help community members emotionally cope with killings of people of color.
“We’ll dedicate resources to healing and will have more on it to come,” Haile said.
She’s hopeful the racial justice movement will lead to lasting change, but Haile also has observed the “cycle” of police brutality and discrimination, given a well-documented history of high-profile incidents nationwide.
“I am cautiously optimistic and cynical of the cycle,” Haile said. “Just when we thought we could breathe, then another Black person stopped breathing because of the police.”
The NAACP SLO County chapter is hosting a Thursday night event titled “Healing the Rage Within Rally” outside the SLO Courthouse at 1050 Monterey St. from 6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. to call for justice for Daunte Wright.
A Minnesota police officer shot Wright, a 20-year-old Black man with an outstanding warrant, after a struggle ensued when she tried to detain him during a traffic stop.
The officer, Kim Potter, is being charged with second-degree murder after reportedly mistakenly drawing her gun when she meant to draw her taser.
“Another Black Life that Did Not Matter,” the NAACP SLO County chapter posted.
Stephen Vines, the SLO County NAACP president, told The Tribune in a phone interview that public dababase information that keeps records of police use of force, complaints, gun discharges and other conduct would help hold police accountable.
“If the bad cops can’t get away with it, they’re not going to do it,” Vines said. “There needs to be legislation that mandates public access to this information and if agencies don’t provide it, they won’t get federal money.”
Vines also urged compassion and empathy, saying: “At the end of the day, we’re all one race, the human race. There’s no white, Black, Mexican. We’re all human.”
International outcry helped, activist says
Another local advocate, Rita Casaverde, who has been active in the San Luis Obispo County racial justice movement and progressive politics, said that she was following social media on Tuesday around the families of George Floyd and another police shooting victim, Breonna Taylor, after the verdict came in.
Racial justice leaders were speaking in support of their families and continued work on justice and equality.
“I had admiration for the positivity and hope that they were expressing,” Casaverde said.
Casaverde said that she believes that Chauvin might not have been charged except for the outcry of the entire country and an international protest response to the video footage of Floyd’s death.
“It’s hard to see this as a win,” she said. “The life of George Floyd will never be given back. His daughter will never have a father again.”
SLO County protesters punished
SLO County was part of the racial justice outcry, where, Casaverde said, “It was led (locally) by Black youth in ways we’d never seen.”
But Casaverde is disappointed that law enforcement officials arrested and charged Arata and other Black Lives Matter demonstrators for alleged crimes at rallies last summer.
“Rather than Tianna Arata attending college or thinking about what to do on the weekend with her friends, she has a court date,” Casaverde said. “The charges should be dropped against all of them.”
District Attorney Dan Dow previously said in a press release regarding the prosecution against Arata, who faces 13 misdemeanor allegations, his office is basing its decisions on holding “individuals accountable for their actions when their conduct exceeds the bounds of the law.”
Judge Matthew Guerrero disqualified the DA’s Office in seven BLM-related cases, citing a “clear conflict” presented by an email sent from Dow’s re-election campaign that appeared to reference the protesters’ cases in seeking financial contributions.
The DA’s Office has appealed the decision, which will be heard by the California Court of Appeal.
Views on policing
Casaverde said she personally doesn’t drive at night because of fear of police, saying she doesn’t feel protected as a person of color.
“I don’t feel comfortable with anything that could happen at night,” she said.
Casaverde said she realizes the job of police is challenging, and officers deserve respect, but added the role needs to change “to work from a perspective of empathy and protection.”
Casaverde also pointed to the Minneapolis police press release about George Floyd’s death on May 25, 2020, citing medical distress, not police violence, as the cause.
“Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress,” the press release said. “Officers called for an ambulance. He was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center by ambulance where he died a short time later.”
In a post on the SLO County Protest Watch Facebook page, a commenter noted: “As a black woman in this country I truly thought (Chauvin) would get off. ... (Thank you) to all that support (Black Lives Matter). ... In my years we have never seen this happen (police accountable ) before! (Thank you, thank you) ... we still must keep fightn!!”
The group Abolitionist Action Central Coast posted on its Instagram page: “We know there can never be justice for the family of George Floyd (rest in peace).”
The group continued: “And we know that until no one else’s family has to feel that pain — until the whole violent apparatus of policing, incarceration, surveillance and state control is torn down — there will be no justice. We are committed to a world where there is no more violence of policing. We are committed to a world where there is no more policing.”
Some members of the Abolitionist Action group have spoken in public comment at recent San Luis Obispo City Council meetings, calling for divestment of police resources and reallocation to social services.
But council members such as Carlyn Christianson and Jan Marx have defended city police budgeting, saying law enforcement is necessary to keep order as in situations like the Jan. 6 insurrection in Washington, D.C.
Marx also is calling for a city police oversight commission.
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This story was originally published April 22, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
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