Celebrating the Derek Chauvin Verdict

Derek Chauvin’s conviction was merely an exception to the rule - the rule that police officers exist in a state of immunity from the laws of society. It doesn’t mean that the system is really any less defective, it means that in one in a thousand times, it does the bare minimum a year later. Breonna Taylor, Daunte Wright, Tamir Rice, and countless other names that haven’t been broadcasted all over social media as part of a likely trend still haven’t received the bare minimum. This recalls the term “ACAB,” which circulated around social media in the past year in particular. ACAB - All Cops Are Bastards - asserts that not all individual cops are bad, but the system is bastardized and reinforced by all police officers who uphold the flawed values of American policing. The shocked and celebratory response to the verdict of yesterday’s trial only emphasizes this point. The policing system in the U.S. is so dismal in actually upholding criminal justice, the very purpose that it exists for, that there is reason to be impressed when a murderer in a blue uniform and badge faces charges.

Nancy Pelosi’s response in the immediate aftermath of the verdict was shockingly tone-deaf. Regardless of the well-intentioned nature of her statement, by saying, “Thank you, George Floyd, for sacrificing your life for justice,” she reflected a disappointing and widely-held American sentiment. American systemic racism largely exists because of the fact that the U.S. views black bodies as dispensable.

Perhaps more optimistically, the verdict provided much needed precedent in the criminal justice system. This precedent was that police officers can be on the other side of criminal justice, not just the ones inflicting punishment, but those who are punished when they are murderers. It suggests that the U.S. might eventually reach the bare minimum more often than in exceptional cases.