Refresh for updates Hollywood and the Beltway praised the “guilty, guilty, guilty” murder and manslaughter verdicts against former Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin in the killing of George Floyd today: “Relieved—and emotional in ways I didn’t expect,” Oprah said on Instagram. “I cried tears of joy as each verdict was read. I’m grateful to the witnesses and their testimonies. Grateful to Darnella Frazier. Grateful to every Juror for seeing and acknowledging what the world saw on that tape. Thank you God for real! #GeorgeFloyd.”
“GUILTY! As it should be!!” tweeted Oscar winner Viola Davis.
Writer-director-producer Ava DuVernay tweeted a simple “3!,” while actor-producer Kerry Washington noted that “this fight for justice is not over, ” and that “we have a lot of work to do.”
Read the reactions below.
“Today, a jury in Minneapolis did the right thing,” said former president Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama in a statement. “But if we’re being honest with ourselves, we know that true justice is about much more than a single verdict in a single trial.”
“Equity joins with Black voices to demand structural policing reforms, in Minneapolis and nationwide, to prevent deadly acts of racist violence,” said Actors’ Equity president Kate Shindle and executive director Mary McColl in a statement supporting the verdicts.
“Justice was served in this case,” added Memphis’s National Civil Rights Museum in a statement. “Justice prevailed. But the justice we need is bigger than the verdict of this one case. Hopefully, this case will set a precedent for the verdicts to come for the many other victims of unjust police killings. We thank the jury for bravely doing the right thing. Our heart is with George Floyd’s family who has endured the devastation of his death.”
Deadline will update this story as more reactions come in.
ACCOUNTABILITY
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 20, 2021
Today, a jury did the right thing. But true justice requires much more. Michelle and I send our prayers to the Floyd family, and we stand with all those who are committed to guaranteeing every American the full measure of justice that George and so many others have been denied. pic.twitter.com/mihZQHqACV
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) April 20, 2021
Guilty on all counts!!!!!
— Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) April 20, 2021
Guilty on all counts.
Accountability, finally.
But justice will take far more work, and far greater change.Prayers up to the family.
Gratitude to the activists on the ground who have put everything into moving the needle more and more toward progress.#chauvinverdict— Sophia Bush (@SophiaBush) April 20, 2021
Justice. The moral arc of the universe has finally bent toward it.
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) April 20, 2021
Justice.
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) April 20, 2021
“Today’s guilty verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin is a resounding victory for everyone who has spent the last year trying to heal from the terrible events of last summer and fighting for accountability and justice. As a company firmly committed to diversity and human rights, it is my hope that today’s decision will be a harbinger of greater unity and lasting change.
“Following the tragic deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and the recent wave of intolerance and violence aimed at the AAPI community and others, we have worked hard to amplify and build upon our efforts to address bias and support social justice organizations through Sony Pictures Action. This worldwide racial equity and inclusion initiative has tremendous momentum. Their work has never been more important, and it will continue with the full support of SPE leadership.”
— Tony Vinciquerra, Sony Pictures chairman & CEO
While I'm encouraged by today’s verdict, George Floyd’s murder is part of a larger crisis of systemic racism against Black Americans — and a reminder of the work we all must do to improve our society. We owe it to future generations to do that work and build a better future.
— Charles H. Rivkin (@CharlieRivkin) April 20, 2021
Thank you God! Thank you jurors. Thank you witnesses for the prosecution. Love to the Floyd family.
— Patricia Arquette (@PattyArquette) April 20, 2021
YES!!
In handcuffs!
Now on to the work!.
All of us demand an end to white supremacy and white privilege.
How many innocent black and brown ppl are in prison? Free them all! Arrest all police who break the law. Remove all racist cops. End policing as we know it. It doesn’t work.— Michael Moore (@MMFlint) April 20, 2021
Today is a day we will all remember.
Prayers for George Floyd and his family. https://t.co/YYvvupqUXg— Daniel Dae Kim (@danieldaekim) April 20, 2021
#RIPGeorgeFloyd pic.twitter.com/W9LCHsvYcB
— Will Packer (@willpowerpacker) April 20, 2021
Guilty. Hell yeah.
— LLCOOLJ (@llcoolj) April 20, 2021
A reminder that victory would be George Floyd being alive. Every day Black Americans worry if they will be next is another day without justice.
— Amanda Gorman (@TheAmandaGorman) April 20, 2021
Derek Chauvin: guilty on all 3 counts
Now let’s do the entire system of policing in this country.
— W. Kamau Bell (@wkamaubell) April 20, 2021
We still have to fight for justice yall. Remember that “we voted Obama in yay racism is gone!” feeling? Yeah…let’s learn from that. I’m happy for the Floyd family tho. Especially his daughter. But there is still a slew of mountain to climb.
— B.R.O.theR. ?uestion (@questlove) April 20, 2021
Accountability.#JusticeForGeorgeFloyd
— Ray Fisher (@ray8fisher) April 20, 2021
A message from Kate Shindle, president, & Mary McColl, executive director of Actors’ Equity:
“We hope that this verdict brings George Floyd’s loved ones a sense of justice… that this conviction carries forth the message that #BlackLivesMatter, and George Floyd’s life mattered.” pic.twitter.com/8g06gOkFA7— Actors' Equity (@ActorsEquity) April 20, 2021
History should remember the incredibly 17 year old Darnella Frazier who had the strength and composure to capture the murder of #georgefloyd on video. Without her video there may never have been #justice.
— Valerie Jarrett (@ValerieJarrett) April 20, 2021
Relief. #GeorgeFloydverdict
— Lupita Nyong'o (@Lupita_Nyongo) April 20, 2021
That a family had to lose a son, brother and father; that a teenage girl had to film and post a murder, that millions across the country had to organize and march just for George Floyd to be seen and valued is not justice.
And this verdict is not a substitute for policy change. https://t.co/tiDkhl9Dk4
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) April 20, 2021
All we know now is that the frontier for sadistic brutality by a police officer and the cost of overpolicing people of color exists somewhere around the eight-minute-mark of a knee to a man's neck. That's horrifying and doesn't address most of what matters. But we could be worse.
— David Simon (@AoDespair) April 20, 2021
George Floyd's family and community deserved for his killer to be held accountable.
Today, they got that accountability.
Always and forever, Black lives matter.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) April 20, 2021
“We must understand that justice is a practice, not an end.” – Eddie S. Glaude Jr. (@esglaude)
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) April 20, 2021
Indeed. Mixed emotions.
Elation. Sadness. Joy. Bittersweet disbelief.
It's all so tragic. It won't bring him back. So many things still need to change. And yet… Today was a victory.
Staying with that for now.
#ChauvinIsGuilty #JusticeForGeorgeFloydDelivered https://t.co/xLnoKs6pSz— Rosie Perez (@rosieperezbklyn) April 20, 2021
FOUND GUILTY ON ALL THREE CHARGES.
Rest In Peace, George Floyd. You have changed the world. #verdict
— Alyssa Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) April 20, 2021
GUILTY!!!! As it should be!! Now….Rest In Peace George Floyd. Rest. You and your family have been vindicated. ❤❤👊🏿 #SayHisName
🎨@4NIKKOLAS pic.twitter.com/DgVFG7UVPF— Viola Davis (@violadavis) April 20, 2021
A guilty verdict. 🙏🏼 Rest in love George Floyd. Sending love to his family and friends. ❤️❤️❤️⛅️ pic.twitter.com/Vwmde3A618
— o l i v i a (@oliviamunn) April 20, 2021
A murderer found guilty of murder.
— George M Johnson (@IamGMJohnson) April 20, 2021
A guilty #verdict. But this fight for justice is not over. We have a lot of work to do. There is more fight ahead of us. But RIGHT NOW please take CARE of yourself. And let’s take care of each other. Prayers and love to the family of #GeorgeFloyd.
— kerry washington (@kerrywashington) April 20, 2021
✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿
— Don" 't stop believing" Cheadle (@DonCheadle) April 20, 2021
Guilty Guilty Guilty… No one wins.. George Floyd is still gone..and finally someone was responsible… Derek Chauvin
— Whoopi Goldberg (@WhoopiGoldberg) April 20, 2021
This verdict is justice served—but it is not justice for George Floyd. True justice would be a country where George Floyd would still be alive today. True justice demands action—it demands change & that we do everything we can to stop this from happening again & again & again.
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) April 20, 2021
You don’t applaud a fish for swimming and you don’t applaud the justice system for providing justice.
But thankfully, today, we can breathe a sigh of relief. #GeorgeFloyd
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) April 20, 2021
GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS. As everyone saw with their eyes.
Now we need to CHANGE THE SYSTEM so it doesn't require a man being murdered on camera and a year's worth of protests, to hold police accountable for criminal policing.#ChauvinIsGuilty
— Debra Messing✍🏻 (@DebraMessing) April 20, 2021
To the black kids watching,
you matter. you are invaluable, you are loved .
— Debra Messing✍🏻 (@DebraMessing) April 20, 2021
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) April 20, 2021
A beginning.. a small grain of hope for our future.
— Mariah Carey (@MariahCarey) April 20, 2021
Guilty. Guilty. Guilty.
— dan levy (@danjlevy) April 20, 2021
This verdict does not bring back Mr Floyd. But justice is truth.
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) April 20, 2021
3! 👊🏾
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) April 20, 2021
George Floyd’s murder was another horrific reminder of our country’s broken law enforcement system and the damage it has inflicted on the Black community. Today’s verdict, though a beginning, will never be enough, but we hope his family can find peace. #BlackLivesMatter
— Full Frontal (@FullFrontalSamB) April 20, 2021
This verdict is just the first step in a long line of injustice against the Black community, often with no consequences. The work is not nearly done. While there are many more families waiting for justice, my heart is with George Floyd’s family right now. #PoliceReformNOW @NAACP
— Justin Timberlake (@jtimberlake) April 20, 2021
Come thru Justice!
🎨: Shirien Creates pic.twitter.com/kUW29RXcU7
— Jada Pinkett Smith (@jadapsmith) April 20, 2021
The evidence of our eyes met at last by accountability in the eyes of justice. #DerekChauvinTrial
— Stacey Abrams (@staceyabrams) April 20, 2021
And this isn’t even a celebration. #GeorgeFloyd was still murdered before our eyes. He’s gone. His family will never be made whole.
And how many #DerekChauvin’s are there in the world & on the police force. There’s more than ONE bad apple.
But this enough for this moment. ❤️
— yvette nicole brown (@YNB) April 20, 2021
Justice. Sending love to George Floyd’s family and friends.
— Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) April 20, 2021
Guilty on all three counts! Justice has been served. Thank god.
— Paul Feig (@paulfeig) April 20, 2021
Thank you to the jurors. #ChauvinIsGuilty 🇺🇸
— Elizabeth Banks (@ElizabethBanks) April 20, 2021
Finally. Finally. Finally. We we keep on marching. We keep on moving the needle. We keep raising our voices. We keep loving. We keep believing. Let’s keep on keeping on. Justice. Justice. Justice.
— Colman Domingo (@colmandomingo) April 20, 2021
Guilty. Guilty. Guilty. Thank god. Thank you to the jurors for doing their job and helping to enact some semblance of justice in this case. Praying for George Floyd and his loved ones. #BlackLivesMatter
— Mandy Moore (@TheMandyMoore) April 20, 2021
Guilty on all three counts. The beginning of #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd thank you jurors.
— Mira Sorvino (@MiraSorvino) April 20, 2021
.#justice. It’s a start…#RIPGeorgeFloyd 🙏🏽 #BlackLivesMatter
— Keala Settle (@kealasettle) April 20, 2021
This isn’t proof the system works. It’s proof of how broken it is. Because it took us this long, and this much attention. Until we have a world where our communities can thrive free from fear, there will be no justice.
— Black Lives Matter (@Blklivesmatter) April 20, 2021
Bail revoked guilty on all counts
– Derek chauvin is just a start
The George Floyd police reform act that law must pass.
The insurrectionist in gop including Donald trump -who are as much of a white supremacist must face justice –— John Cusack (@johncusack) April 20, 2021
Today, justice was served for George Floyd.
His loved ones can hopefully sleep easier.
The time to collectively examine the treatment of Black people, in particular Black boys/men, by some law enforcement is long overdue.
The path to healing must begin. #BlackLivesMatter
— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) April 20, 2021
rest in JUSTICE George Floyd ♥️
— KATY PERRY (@katyperry) April 20, 2021
Thank God. #BlackLivesMatter
— Nicola Coughlan (@nicolacoughlan) April 20, 2021
Today our thoughts, prayers, & condolences remain with George Floyd’s family, & others that have recently been devastated by violence. The Dodgers will continue to support and encourage awareness and commit resources in the effort to address systemic inequity & social injustice.
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 20, 2021
Timberwolves statement after former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murder in the death of George Floyd: pic.twitter.com/c014Q77615
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) April 20, 2021
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