Feature: African Americans in Minneapolis disappointed by lack of progress in rooting out racism

MINNEAPOLIS, United States, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Kevin Brown, an African American and part-time employee of a supermarket in Minneapolis, Minnesota, says he experiences racism every day.

"The sad part about it is sometimes we don't understand that we all have something in common," he said during a recent interview with Xinhua near the site where white police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee on African American man George Floyd's neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds during a street arrest two years ago.

The horrific policing practice which led to Floyd's death set off nationwide demonstrations against police brutality and racism in the United States in the summer of 2020.

After learning about the "graphic" nature of the encounter, Brown attended the protests in Minneapolis, saying what Floyd experienced "just takes the air out of you."

To his disappointment, not much has changed regarding racism and bias against African Americans in the United States since Floyd pleaded "I can't breathe" in apparent agony under Chauvin's knee.

The intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in south Minneapolis, where Floyd lost his life, has recently been named "George Perry Floyd Square."

"I know him as Perry, where in the world you all call him George Floyd, which was something I had to like get used to," Angela Harrelson, Floyd's aunt, told Xinhua.

Floyd moved to Minneapolis for a fresh start several years ago. Harrelson revealed that Floyd "was having a rough time because he lost his mother" before the tragedy descended on him.

"He relapsed, and it was an emotional rollercoaster for him going back and forth. He didn't bounce back like as easy like he normally did," the aunt recalled. "When he lost his mom, that was a hard hit. That was extremely difficult. It's like he became very isolated. He became very withdrawn."

Tall and athletic with a life filled with obstacles, Floyd "wasn't perfect" but "always wanted to better his life," according to Harrelson, who said she turned numb upon learning of her nephew's suffering.

"I don't know if it was shocking in denial because nothing made sense to me," she said.

Medical examiners have concluded the cause of Floyd's death was "cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual restraint and neck compression."

All four involved Minneapolis officers were fired and found guilty of different charges. Chauvin is serving a sentence of 22 years and six months in prison after being convicted of murdering Floyd.

"It's never gonna be justice. You can't have justice for a person that's dead," Minneapolis civil rights activist and African American Marquis Bowie told Xinhua. "We want accountability, but you can never have justice because he can't go home and hug his daughter or his other kids. So it'll never be justice."

Less than two weeks before the second anniversary of Floyd's murder, a white shooter stormed a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, in a racially motivated hate massacre, killing 10 people and injuring three others, 11 of them African Americans.

"Racism is real in America. It has always been. Xenophobia is real in America. It has always been," U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said recently in response to the Buffalo shooting.

According to a new Washington Post-Ipsos poll, three-quarters of African Americans are worried that they or someone they love will be attacked because of their race. The survey also found that more than half of African Americans believe the problem of racism will get worse in their lifetimes.

Harrelson stressed the fight for African Americans to seek equality in the United States is far from over, adding that "no one should have a membership to equality. Equality is a birthright. It's not an option."

"The message is 'no more.' We are going forward," she continued. "We are not taking 'no' for an answer."