BUFFALO (WBEN) - Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of George Floyd's murder, an event that sparked civil unrest and a demand for social and racial justice.
"His death has had a profound effect across the world," said former Urban League President & CEO Brenda McDuffie, who retired this past February. "In this community, what I've seen is people come together and begin to address those systemic issues of race and injustice that we have seen prevalent in this community and in communities across America."
In response to Floyd's murder, advocates, protesters and demonstrators took to the streets of numerous cities throughout the entire summer of 2020, including right here in Buffalo.
"We've seen some positive things happen in that people's awareness continues to rise, but sadly, each and every day, we see lives taken from us because people have dismissed and disregarded others," said McDuffie.
Buffalo Common Council President Darius Pridgen echoed McDuffie's sentiment, saying there's still a lot of work to be done.
Pridgen was asked if there's been sufficient progress made in regard to social justice in the Black community.
"The word 'sufficient?' No. But progress? Absolutely," Pridgen began. "I think that we have moved the ball in the right direction; however, there is still a mountain to go up."
Both McDuffie and Pridgen pointed to Cariol's Law as a tangible piece of progress. Cariol's Law essentially requires Buffalo Police officers to step in when officers act inappropriately or risk injury to others.
"In Buffalo, we ended up with Cariol's Law, and in Buffalo, no-knock warrants are limited," said Pridgen. "There are things that are being done like the Right to Know Law that we're waiting on now, in which an officer would have to identify themselves.
"Those are things that we're moving in the right direction," he continued. "Having mental health professionals on call and responding to situations that don't need police presence are things that I think people are paying attention to..."
Despite the progress, Pridgen noted that years and years of mistrust cannot simply be overcome in one year.
"One year is not going to change our world and our thoughts, but stay tuned and stay active," he said. "Stay involved; stay engaged because it was the engagement of so many hundreds of thousands of people that helped move this needle forward across the United States."
"As a society, I think we have to come to grips with the issue of race," said McDuffie. "We have to begin to take those steps, pass those pieces of legislation, but more importantly, change the hearts of people - help them understand and appreciate that no human being should be treated differently or denied rights because of their race."
