News Flash

NEWS RELEASE
Office of the Mayor
June 1, 2020

Mayor Allen Joines joined 15 other North Carolina mayors in issuing the following joint statement on the death of George Floyd: 

“As mayors of cities in North Carolina, we have come together to express our abhorrence of the horrific murder of George Floyd, an act of unspeakable violence, cold inhumanity and racism.

“The photographic evidence of this act speaks for itself. Mr. Floyd was suffocated to death by a Minneapolis police officer while pleading for his life as three other officers knelt or stood by and did nothing to help him, even as he called out, ‘I can’t breathe.’ 

“As a society, we cannot tolerate this kind of police violence rooted in systemic racism. As mayors, we work closely with the police leadership in our cities, and we know that they also will not tolerate this kind of police violence and racism within their forces. Such acts not only harm innocent people, but they also deeply erode trust in our police forces, despite the good work of so many officers every day—officers who themselves abhor the racism and violence so evident in the death of George Floyd. 

Our hearts go out to Mr. Floyd and his family. We support Mayor Jacob Frey of Minneapolis in his call for justice and accountability. We expect a full and fair trial of the police officers involved. We also support the rights of those who are peacefully protesting and honoring the memory of George Floyd and countless others that have been victims of systemic racism and police violence. 

Let’s work together to ensure that protests remain peaceful and stay focused on building equitable and just cities for all in North Carolina. And we pledge to make every effort within our power to fight systemic racism within our police forces, cities and this nation.”

Also issuing the statement are Mayor Steve Schewel of Durham, Mayor Mary Ann Baldwin of Raleigh, Mayor Vi Lyles of Charlotte, Mayor Nancy Vaughan of Greensboro, Mayor Mitch Colvin of  Fayetteville, Mayor Esther Manheimer of Asheville, Mayor Bill Saffo of Wilmington, Mayor Ian Baltutis of  Burlington, Mayor Pam Hemminger of Chapel Hill, Mayor Lydia Lavelle of Carrboro, Mayor Jenn Weaver of Hillsborough, Mayor Dontario Hardy of Kinston, Mayor TJ Cawley of Morrisville, Mayor Karen Alexander of Salisbury and Mayor Bill Dusch of Concord.