George Floyd case must be ‘catalyst for change’ in Scotland, says campaigner

A guilty verdict handed to the former US police officer, who stood trial over the death of George Floyd, has been welcomed across the world – but what does it mean for the fight against racial injustice here?

Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murder after kneeling on the black man’s neck for nine minutes in Minneapolis last May.

Tobe Amamize, a Scottish campaigner for black history education, has told GS News that the ruling felt ‘bittersweet’.

She said: “I would have loved to have said that justice has been served, but in reality, I guess it hasn’t.

“I think the fact that we were anxiously awaiting the verdict of the trial tells us everything we need to know about the level of trust people have in the criminal justice system.

“We all saw George Floyd being murdered, but we were all still unsure if the correct verdict was going to be reached, and that’s very telling.”

George Floyd’s death sparked a worldwide movement that called for an end to racial injustice, but Ms Amamize says the fight for equality is far from over.

She said: “Although we can celebrate this rare occasion – it stands to remain a rare occasion.

“I think this verdict has the ability to be the catalyst we need for much-needed change – not only in the US but in Scotland – but whether it will be used as such is a different story.

“I think what we now need to do is be wary of people switching the narrative because people can easily say ‘you see the right verdict has been reached so you can trust the system.’

“If the system was so good – the best verdict would not have been ‘guilty’ – it would be George Floyd being alive.”

“We all saw George Floyd being murdered, but we were all still unsure if the correct verdict was going to be reached, and that’s very telling”

Tobe Amamize, scottish black history campaigner

The Black Lives Matter movement has seen people of black and ethnic minority backgrounds sharing their experiences of racial injustice, and Ms Amamize believes education is key.

She previously launched a petition calling on black history to be taught in Scottish schools in the wake of George Floyd’s death.

She said: “It seems to me that we need to look and we need to learn something from America.

“We must start with education because racism thrives on ignorance.

“What children can’t learn at home – they must be taught in the classroom – so we have to start from the bottom and work our way up.

“If people cannot even understand the context of racism – how are we meant to fight it? You can’t fight what you don’t know.”