George Floyd’s Family Come Out In Support Of Tim Walz For VP Despite Backlash Over 2020 Riots

The endorsements just keep pouring in....

George Floyd’s ex-girlfriend and mother of his daughter, Gianna Floyd, is supporting Democratic Vice President nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, despite the backlash he’s facing over the riots following the police filling of George Floyd, TMZ reports.

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin killed Floyd after kneeling on his neck for more than eight minutes on May 25, 2020. Outrage led to Black Lives Matter movement protests, with some gatherings escalating into rioting, which prompted former President Donald Trump to apply pressure for Walz to deploy federal forces to the city. However, as a 24-year Army National Guard veteran, Walz said sending the National Guard to the city would be an “abject failure.”

Roxie Washington isn’t buying into the sudden scrutiny of Walz over the rioting four years ago because she doesn’t understand what people expected him to do. She feels if anyone should be blamed for the protests getting out of hand, it should be Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. Washington believes it was Frey’s responsibility to protect the city. When riots erupted just three miles from where Floyd was killed, Washington believes Frey could have done more to address the unrest.

Since the governor was announced as the vice presidential pick, his decision from 2020 is again facing backlash. However, Washington thinks there are other things Walz has done that should be highlighted and celebrated, including the support of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

Other members of Floyd’s family share similar sentiments; according to NBC News, his brother, Philonise Floyd, also believes Harris made the right choice in Walz and credits Walz’s compassion and dedication to police reform, making him worthy of a chance at being the next vice president of the United States. “He’s built for this,” Floyd said.

“He’s built for this fight that he’s going to go through and I think he can do it.”

His endorsement of Walz comes just one week after his selection as a vice presidential running mate. However, Floyd says he has been a fan of Walz for quite some time. He believes Walz’s decision to appoint state Attorney General Keith Ellison helped lead to Chauvin’s prosecution. The 43-year-old called the move a “justice-defining moment that ultimately led to convictions against all four officers involved.” “At first, he was just a regular governor, just looking like a politician. Then, he stood up and he put Keith Ellison in place as the prosecutor, and that showed a lot of people he was not playing. He was serious,” Floyd said.

“If it wasn’t for Gov. Walz, we would not be able to walk around and say that we got some accountability.”

He also put the spotlight on how Walz supported the family of Daunte Wright, who was also killed at the hands of a Minnesota police officer, saying, “I can’t say anything bad about him.”

As the city of Chicago prepares for the first day of the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 19, Floyd says he is ready to assist in any way possible for the Harris-Walz team to secure the White House. “I would jump in on anything concerning what’s going on with them,” he said.