Senate Democrats Thursday stood silent in the Capitol for eight minutes and 46 seconds to mark the amount of time a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into the neck of George Floyd, killing him.
“May we honor those dead by protecting all who are alive,” Sen. Cory Booker, a New Jersey Democrat, said.
Only Democrats participated in the moment of silence, and several lawmakers knelt on the floor.
The death of Floyd, who is black, sparked protests and rioting in cities across the country. Booker named two other black people killed recently: Ahmaud Arbery of Georgia and Breonna Taylor of Kentucky.
An unarmed Arbery was chased down, shot, and killed by two white men. Taylor died when police stormed her home at night and shot her while she was lying in her bed.
Lawmakers in both parties are weighing legislation to reform law enforcement and increase accountability.
“This is not the end of the conversation,” Sen. Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, tweeted ahead of the event. “It is the beginning. We will honor their lives with action and reform.”
