Family, friends, state officials and celebrities gathered at North Central University in downtown Minneapolis for a moving memorial service for George Floyd.
The June 4 service was at once a rallying cry for justice, as well as an opportunity for healing and personal reflections about the man whose death at the hands of Minneapolis police on Memorial Day has rocked the nation.
Perhaps the most memorable part of the service came when Rev. Al Sharpton, after offering a soaring eulogy, asked everyone to stand for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the time of the video that showed former police officer Derek Chauvin with his knee on Floyd’s neck.
They had enough time to correct their behavior, Sharpton said of the officers involved, three of whom sat in Hennepin County jail not far from where the service was held.
The answer to that question was found right outside the North Central chapel—and many cities across the nation—as protesters continued to take to the streets and demand justice for Floyd, as well as police reforms to root out systemic racism and brutality.
