In the evening hours of February 26, 2012, seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin was returning to his father’s fiancée’s home in Sanford, Florida from a nearby convenience store when he was fatally shot by George Zimmerman, a member of the community watch unit, who thought Trayvon represented a threat to the neighborhood. Zimmerman was eventually tried but acquitted of the murder. In response to his acquittal, three black women – Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi said “enough” and started on the path of creating a movement they would later call #BlackLivesMatter (BLM).

The movement is described as “an ideological and political intervention in a world where Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. BLM is an affirmation of Black folks’ humanity, our contributions to this society, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression” (“Herstory”). 

The hashtag quickly grew in popularity. People demanded justice for those who were unfairly profiled and murdered due to their race. The names of victims of police brutality--Tamir Rice, Tanisha Anderson, Mya Hall, Walter Scott, Sandra Bland, and countless others--soon sparked discussions around the epidemic of police brutality in the United States. While this grassroots movement gained ground, Black men and women continued to suffer injustice in the hands of police officers.

The real collision happened in May 2020, despite the strides made by the #BlackLivesMatter movement, when George Floyd was murdered by a white Minneapolis police officer. There were many reasons for this, one being that the murder was recorded and it was shocking and gruesome. His last words: “I can’t breathe” installed a feeling of anguish and heartbreak among many. Another reason George Floyd’s death had such a dramatic impact on the public consciousness is because it occurred in the middle of a pandemic when people were at home, often with little to do, facing skyrocketing unemployment rates. The murder of George Floyd was ‘the last straw’ for many who were already tired and disillusioned with race relations in America. To make matters worse, the social and economic inequality that has plagued lower and middle class Americans for decades was only being worsened by the pandemic. The horrifying 9-minute video of Floyd’s murder at the hands of a police officer simply for using a counterfeit $20 dollar bill incensed an already discontent American public. Many decided to take to the streets to protest police brutality, and surprisingly enough of the protesters were very racially diverse.

On the day they are born, Black people are involuntarily recruited for the fight against racial injustice. After George Floyd’s death, suddenly many White Americans joined the cause. A sense of unfairness vibrated throughout America and led to one of the most racially diverse protests in the country.

The role social media played was also crucial – George Floyd’s death led to many demonstrations across the world. George Floyd’s death prompted protests and discrimination in their own society and culture.

The background of the rise of BLM in England, France, and Belgium is similar to its rise in the U.S. Xenophobia and racism are inheritances of self-labelled ‘progressive’ countries. These behaviors date back to colonial empires, times when European colonists took and spread their racist ideologies wherever they traveled. Colonialism was not just about exploiting people that couldn’t defend themselves but also making a profit from overworking them. It is said global capitalism began with the trade of cotton, tobacco and sugar and all three relied on a tremendous exploitation of the colonized population. Centuries after colonization and the abolition of slavery, the effects are still felt to this day. This is one of the reasons why, when the murder of George Floyd occurred, many people in such European countries felt the need to protest and open up the conversation. Their leaders were condemning what was occurring in the US, while at the same time ignoring what was happening in their own country, and this hypocrisy outraged people.

The countries outside the US that were impacted the most by the murder and subsequent BLM movement were countries that have seen their own issues of systemic discrimination. Countries such as Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Ireland, Poland, Denmark, Holland, Israel, Sudan, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, New Zealand, and Australia still have their own work to do to set the stage for candid dialogue around the treatment of minorities.

In the UK, protestors reacted to George Floyd’s death by gathering in Trafalgar Square to kneel in solidarity. In Germany, Ireland, and Poland, crowds assembled outside the US Embassy. In Poland, people left signs and flowers paying their respects to George Floyd at the US Consulate General. There was a protest in Warsaw with thousands of people, as well as protesters kneeling outside the US Embassy with their fists raised. In Denmark, thousands joined a peaceful march against police brutality. They walked from the US Embassy to the Danish Parliament building and took a knee in solidarity with all protesters around the world.

Similarly, an estimated 10,000 people gathered in Dam Square in the Netherlands in solidarity with the fight against police brutality and the murder of George Floyd. Graffiti artists sprayed Floyd’s portrait on the Berlin Wall. In New Zealand, approximately 2000 people marched to the US Embassy in Auckland, another 500 gathered in Christchurch, and a vigil was held at the Parliament building in Wellington. The reason some gathered in Christchurch was to also bring to light what happened in March 2019 – a white supremacist killed 51 people in mosques in the area.

Floyd’s death prompted citizens around the world to reckon with their own histories of racism and discrimination towards minorities. For Canadians, the death of George Floyd resurfaced the death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet, who fell from her balcony and died as police were investigating a domestic incident in her building. Protesters used their voices as an attempt to secure justice for her as well as Floyd. In the UK, Floyd’s death brought back memories of unjust deaths that had occurred in the country. A large group of demonstrators went to Hyde Park and marched from there to Victoria Station, holding up signs demanding justice for many people like Belly Mujinga, a railway worker that died after being spat on by a man claiming to have coronavirus. Many other signs were being held for kids that were bullied and killed due to their religion. In France, Floyd’s death prompted citizens to call for justice for many deaths caused by racist police throughout the years. The most recent public death was Adama Traoré so his name was used to represent all victims. He was a 24-year-old black man who shared his last words with George Floyd – “I can’t breathe”. The protests ranged from peaceful kneeling and raised fists to torched scooters, reports of arson and tear gas used by police. In Italy, protests in Milan and Rome gathered peacefully, with many chanting “I can’t breathe” and kneeling as a sign of protest along with squeezing their necks using their hands symbolizing what Derek Chauvin did to George Floyd. In Brazil, Brazilians came together and walked to the square in the state government building to protest the government of President Bolsonaro as well as the crimes committed against people of color in the favelas. Police used tear gas to disperse the crowd. As far away as Tel Aviv, hundreds of people reacted to Floyd’s death by exclaiming their discontentment with the treatment of police towards people of color. In Sudan, Floyd’s death fell near the anniversary of the 2019 clash between citizens and security forces that led to the deaths of 241 people in Khartoum following pro-democracy protests. To commemorate the anniversary of this horrific event and show their solidarity with protesters in the U.S., Sudanese marched peacefully to bring attention to all unjust deaths caused by police. Floyd’s death sent shockwaves as far as Australia where Floyd’s death prompted national reflection on the fact that over 400 Indigenous Australians died in police custody since 1991 with no consequences for the police officers. In 2015, similar to Adama and George, David Dungay – an Aboriginal man – said “I can’t breathe” 12 times while police were restraining him.

The death of George Floyd was a catalyst that sparked protests and social unrest around the world in the middle of a pandemic. It is unsurprising that a global health crisis and the ensuing economic crisis provided the backdrop for the overwhelming international response to Floyd’s death. In a June 2020 interview with the BBC, Frank Leon Roberts, an activist who teaches a course on the Black Lives Matter movement at New York University, explained that "history changes when you have an unexpected convergence of forces.” Floyd’s death occurred during a time of stay at home orders, store closures, and the highest unemployment rate since the Great Depression. As Roberts noted, “you have a situation where the entire country is on lockdown, and more people are inside watching TV... more people are being forced to pay attention - they're less able to look away, less distracted." Indeed, finally, the world paid attention.

The goal for many of the international protests was to raise awareness and apply pressure on governments to stop discriminating and start treating their citizens equally. George Floyd wasn’t just George Floyd. He was Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Adama Traoré, Trayvon Martin, Atatiana Jefferson; he was everyone that has lost their life due to unfair police brutality, anyone that has been discriminated against, he was every person of color in the world and that is the reason why the fight isn’t and won’t be over for a long time.

#BlackLivesMatter. "Herstory." #BlackLivesMatter, blacklivesmatter.com/herstory/. Accessed 26 Apr. 2021.

Cheung, Helier. "George Floyd Death: Why US Protests Are So Powerful This Time." BBC News, 8 June 2020, www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52969905. Accessed 26 Apr. 2021.