Statement on the guilty verdict of the murder of George Floyd

Today, a jury found a former Minneapolis police officer guilty on all three counts of murder. We know that this verdict does not erase the traumatic event we all witnessed on May 25th. It also does not bring back George Floyd and for that our hearts go out to the Floyd family who will not get to hug their son, brother, or father. However, we hope that today’s verdict can be a step forward in bringing meaningful change for those who have experienced institutional racism, systemic violence, and racial trauma in our country.

Now that the trial is over, we must resist the urge to go back to the norm of silence. We must continue our work to fundamentally change a system that continues to threaten, harm, traumatize, and kill our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community members. We know that this is only a start and that there is still much work to be done. To our BIPOC community, the Ames Community School District remains committed to being critically conscious leaders in promoting impactful change within our system. You deserve that from us.