Governor Walz Orders Moment of Silence Tuesday in Honor of George Floyd

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minnesota Governor Tim Walz issued a proclamation Tuesday morning asking for a moment of silence in Minnesota to honor the life of George Floyd.

According to the proclamation, the moment of silence will take place at 11:00 a.m. and will last for eight minutes and 46 seconds “to honor the life of George Floyd and the lives of every person cut short due to systems of racism and discrimination in Minnesota.”

Floyd died on May 25 after Officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee on the handcuffed black man’s neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds, ignoring his “I can’t breathe” cries and bystander shouts even after Floyd stopped moving. His death has set off protests around the world.

Gov. Walz wrote in his proclamation, “The world watched in horror as George Floyd’s humanity was taken away from him. We will not wake up one day and have the disease of systemic racism cured; we must do everything in our power to come together to deconstruct generations of systemic racism in our state so that every Minnesotan – Black, Indigenous, Brown, or White – can be safe and thrive.”