Minneapolis renames intersection to honor George Floyd
MINNEAPOLIS — The intersection where George Floyd died at the hands of Minneapolis police officers was renamed in his honor Wednesday, among a series of events to remember a man whose killing forced America to confront racial injustice.
Floyd's brother Terrence was among family members to attend as a commemorative street sign marked the corner of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue as "George Perry Floyd Square" on the two-year anniversary of his death.
Floyd thanked hundreds of people who turned out to honor his brother, singing songs as they marched a block-long stretch to finish at the intersection.
The renaming was followed by a candlelight vigil at a nearby ceremony.
The intersection quickly became known informally as George Floyd Square soon after Floyd's death, with a large sculpture of a clenched fist as the centerpiece of memorials.
"Today we honor two years since George Floyd was murdered by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin," Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said in a statement earlier Wednesday. "Each day since, we have remembered George Floyd's life and legacy as a friend, father, brother, and loved one. His name has been heard in every corner of our world."
Colten Muth, 32, visited the intersection Wednesday ahead of the vigil to "make sure I'm paying homage because his sacrifice made a huge impact on the world."
A gloomy evening Wednesday might mirror the somber reality that what started as an arrest of Floyd, and ended with his murder two years ago, according to CBS affiliate WCCO in Minneapolis.
But what came of his death gives visitors at the intersection hope. Many stopped just to reflect. Other left flowers at the artwork roundabout at the center of the intersection, WCCO reported.
"Two years ago, we said that we were gonna get justice for George Floyd. We put boots on the ground, thousands of people," said Elizer Darris, an activist who gave many impassioned speeches at the intersection in the days following Floyd's killing. "Hundreds of thousands of people literally flooded the entire world at a time in which we had a pandemic that had everyone shuttered in. But what we saw dictated that we had to get out and that we had to demand justice."
