George Floyd – the name that recalls public anger, fear over police violence, and the pain that Black Americans have to bear under systemic racism. His tragic death sparked the biggest protest wave across the US during the summer of 2020 – a chaotic period that Americans can hardly forget.
Until now, the aftershock of his death is still vivid. People everywhere still mourn for him, and the hashtag ‘’Rest In Peace George Floyd’’, ‘’Black Lives Matter’’, ‘’Enough is Enough’’ remains more relevant than ever.
To know more about this man, we will give you some of his background information, including George Floyd net worth, life story, justice journey, and his great brother – Philonise Floyd.
Table of Contents
Who is George Floyd?
George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man at the time he died, was living in Minneapolis when he was arrested for suspicion of using a fake $20 bill on May 25th, 2020. Derek Chavin – a white police officer kneeled on his neck on the street for nine minutes and 29 seconds and caused him to die.
George Floyd’s death immediately ignited the largest protest movement in US history and a worldwide wave for justice on racism and police brutality. Demonstrators chanting “Black Lives Matter”, ”Rest In Peace George Floyd”, and “I Can’t Breathe” took to the streets and police departments, even though it was during the toughest time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
How Was George Floyd Like Before His Death?
George Perry Floyd, Jr grew up in Houston, Texas, and moved to Minnesota several years ago to find work, according to his close friend, Christopher Harris. He was best known to his acquaintances as ”Big Floyd” – a gentle giant with a formidable athlete and basketball talent, which he hoped would help to get him out of his poor town.
Unfortunately, dreams did not work out as Floyd was trapped in the clutches of drug crime and put in jail for several years. However, when he was released from prison, he served as a mentor in his religious community where he campaigned against violence, posted anti-violence videos on social media, and mentored young men.
George Floyd Net Worth
Getting a decent job was a struggle, especially when Floyd had five children and needed to pay their bills. Floyd moved to Minneapolis in the hope of starting a new chapter. He worked as a security guard at the Salvation Army Harbor Light Center — the city’s largest homeless shelter.
After about a year, Floyd left and went for training to drive trucks as well as a bouncer at a club called Conga Latin Bistro.
However, Covid came, forcing clubs to close. He was out of work. Even though George Floyd net worth is unknown, we can estimate that it was not much (under $500,000), and Floyd struggled a lot to sustain his finances.
His siblings all grew up in a poor neighborhood with a low income. Philonise Floyd – George’s brother – has the same financial struggle and Philonise Floyd net worth is also under $500,000.
However, there was never a day when they let that affect their daily living – said Vaughn Dickerson – a childhood friend.
Philonise Floyd And The Justice Pursuit For His Brother
Philonise Floyd is the youngest of the three siblings in George Floyd’s family. Before his brother’s death, Philonise worked at a burger stand with not much income.
After all of the tragic loss that his family suffered, Philonise realized that he must do something for his brother and the Black community.
He launched a Gofundme page hoping to raise money to pay for the funeral, the legal, and travel expenses. The donation accumulated more than $13,400,000 from 125 countries.
He together with the family, gathered all the support and pleaded for justice for George in front of the court, the UN Human Rights Council, and the US Capitol. Eventually, the city of Minneapolis agreed to pay the family a record $27 million to settle the lawsuit.
Philonise Floyd also founded Philonise & Keeta Floyd Institute For Social Change to eliminate the impacts of police brutality on the Black community.
Justice For George Floyd
On the evening of Memorial Day, Floyd was with two other friends when the store clerk accused him of paying for cigarettes with a fake $20 bill and called the police. Less than an hour later, Floyd breathed his last breath.
Floyd’s young daughter Gianna said to President Biden that ”Daddy changed the world.” The global cry showed how right she was.
Crossing continents and cultures from Europe to New Zealand, protesters sought not only justice for Floyd but called for the defunding of police and reallocating law enforcement funding.
Enough is enough. Stop killing us. Justice for George Floyd. Rest in Peace George Floyd. Black Lives Matter. These chantings have resonated worldwide, a symbol of the fight against injustice and intolerance Black people have been bearing in their home country. For example, they are labelled with bad reputations, such as being loud and having to constantly deal with daily microaggression at work.
Until now, many activities to commemorate George Floyd and rally against police brutality in the US are still going on.
Big brands donate millions of dollars to provide resources for the Black community. More civil rights organizations addressing police accountability and racial justice have been established, for example, The George Floyd Memorial Foundation.
Artists created illustrations, murals, graffiti honoring George Floyd across the US. On commemoration day, people gather for a rally in front of a memorial for this man. Even famous politician Charlie Kirk raised his voice on how Americans are tired of the hypocrisy and toxicity of BLM Inc in this matter.
If you want to have a George Floyd memorial good to keep for yourself, we have a few recommendations on Amazon for you:
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The Final Thought
Even though George Floyd net worth was not much, he lived with an attitude of a ‘’giant gentle’’, a ‘’mama boy’’ and gained the favor of his acquaintances. This pattern of his life doubled the tragedy of his death.
Even though what happened to him has provoked global awareness of racial injustice, yet black people still live in fear and trauma of police brutality every day.
Justice is not something that we can do one time and just stop.
Therefore, never forget George Floyd is never to forget that racial injustice still exists, and the world needs to fight against this systemic issue.
