Activists Rally To Honor George Floyd, Local Victims of Police Violence

One year after George Floyd’s life was taken by a Minnesota police officer, Atlanta residents rallied to mourn his death and honor his legacy by focusing on justice issues locally.

The inaugural “My Daddy Changed The World” Memorial Rally on Tuesday evening in Atlanta included speeches and a march to the state capitol. The event was named after a quote from Floyd’s daughter, Gianna.

Speakers included members of Floyd’s family, local activists, and Georgia mothers who have lost loved ones to police violence.

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George Floyd's godparent, Stephen Jackson Jr., gestures with local activist Whitney Rose during an Atlanta rally May 25, 2021, one year after Floyd's death.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB

Civil rights attorney Mawuli Davis represents the sisters of Matthew Zodok Williams, who was killed by Georgia police in his home April 12. He said that sometimes it’s easier to rally for an issue that doesn’t affect your community.

“When you have to go over to DeKalb County, or go down here to City Hall, or go out to Cobb County, it’s a little different,” Davis said. “You have to stand face-to-face with the people who have taken the lives of someone that you know, someone that you loved, and someone that you cared about.”

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Georgia Moms United co-founder Tammie Featherstone speaks about the impact of police brutality on local families during a May 25, 2021 rally.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB

Dalphine Robinson is a co-founder of Georgia Moms United a group of women who have lost family members to police violence. Her son Jabril Robinson was killed by police in 2016, and the ongoing police brutality is what inspired her to start the group.

“Unfortunately, a lot of these families didn’t get the luxury of having their loved ones murdered on video,” Robinson said. “So we have to come out and stand and speak for our loved ones. This is why Georgia Moms United came about.”

Robinson says Georgia Moms United started as a place for them to gather and cry, but now they’re working to make sure every mom gets justice.

Tammie Featherstone is another co-founder and she has watched the group continue to grow.

“It’s happening every day; every single day,” Featherstone said. “As it happens, I talk to more and more mothers and the first thing they say is ‘I didn’t think this would happen to me’ or ‘I didn’t know that it was that bad in Georgia.’”

The officer who killed Floyd has since been convicted of murder, with his sentencing slated for next month. But local activists emphasized that prosecuting police officers is only part of the solution, and true justice will be when there are no more victims' names to chant at all.