Roxie Washington, mother of George Floyd’s daughter, Gianna, speaks publicly for first time since Floyd’s death
by Rob Taylor Jr.
Courier Staff Writer
When former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin made the obviously uncivilized and deadly decision to place his knee on George Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes during an arrest, May 25, he took away the ability for a 6-year-old named Gianna to ever see her father alive again.
On Tuesday, June 2, Gianna’s mother, Roxie Washington, addressed the media for the first time. Gianna was by her side.
“At the end of the day, they (the officers) get to go home and be with their families. Gianna does not have a father. He will never see her grow up, graduate; he will never walk her down the aisle. If it’s a problem she’s having and she needs her dad, she does not have that anymore,” Washington said, speaking in Minneapolis.
“I want justice for him (George) because he was good, no matter what anybody thinks, he was good, and this is the proof (Gianna) that he was a good man.”
Stephen Jackson, a former NBA player who considered Floyd a brother, then said: “Y’all in here with cameras for a reason, to record what’s here so you can have it for later, so you can have proof of what happened today…and when you post that footage on your news station, you expect people to believe what you posted…was real. Why is it not that simple when somebody’s getting video-ed and getting murdered? Why is it not that simple? Why do we have to see her (Roxie Washington) pain? Why do we have to see a daughter getting raised without her father?”
Jackson added: “Floyd might not be here, but I’m here for her, I’m here to get justice and we will get justice for my brother…I’m telling you, we’re not leaving, we’re demanding justice.”
The state of Minnesota on June 2 filed a civil rights charge against the Minneapolis Police Department. “The investigation will review MPD’s policies, procedures and practices over the last 10 years to determine if the department has utilized systemic discriminatory practices towards people of color,” Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said.
Also on June 2, the Minneapolis City Council—all 12 members—issued a statement urging the state “to use its full weight to hold the Minneapolis Police Department accountable for any and all abuses of power and harms to our community and stand ready to aid in this process and full partners.”
The Minneapolis mayor, Jacob Frey, who has been lambasted by President Donald Trump for being “weak,” among other things, said in a June 2 statement that “for years in Minneapolis, police chiefs and elected officials committed to change have been thwarted by police union protections and laws that severely limit accountability among police departments. I welcome today’s announcement because braking through those persistent barriers, shifting the culture of policing, and addressing systemic racism will require all of us working hand-in-hand.”
ROXIE WASHINGTON, the mother of George Floyd’s daughter, Gianna, left, speaks at a press conference in Minneapolis, June 2.
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