TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Student advocates at Florida State say the first day of Derek Chauvin's trial, is a reminder of why they called for change last summer and the work still left to be done.
"Students for Democratic Society Demands justice for George Floyd and accountability toward Derek Chauvin and his crimes," said one speaker at FSU's
Students for Democratic Society "The People vs. Derek Chauvin" march on Monday.
Marching from Florida State's Integration Statue to FSU police department headquarters.
Police say Floyd died after Chauvin put his knee on his neck for more than 8 minutes.
"We need to show support nationally, even if we're in Florida and the trial is going on somewhere else," said student advocate Valentina Beron.
Concerns following three deadly officer-involved shootings in 2020 have brought about some change in the city.
With the establishing of FSU's anti-racism task force and the City of Tallahassee's Police Citizens Review Board.
While that's a start, students say they want more.
"The more symbolic victories are very important but we also want very concrete material changes like instituting a police accountability council for FSU-PD," said Anthony Suarez.
While they work towards change in their community their hearts are in Minneapolis.
Students also protested against HB-1, known as the anti-riot bill that passed last week.
They say protesting is what sparked changed in the case of George Floyd and other incidents in our communities.
