Over a dozen mayors in North Carolina have signed onto a letter condemning the actions of the Minneapolis police officers involved in the death of George Floyd and supporting the peaceful protests organized in the wake of Floyd’s death.

Read the complete statement below:

As mayors of cities in North Carolina, we have come together to express our abhorrence of the horrific murder of George Floyd, an act of unspeakable violence, cold inhumanity and racism. The photographic evidence of this act speaks for itself. Mr. Floyd was suffocated to death by a Minneapolis police officer while pleading for his life as three other officers knelt or stood by and did nothing to help him, even as he called out, “I can’t breathe.” As a society, we cannot tolerate this kind of police violence rooted in systemic racism. As mayors, we work closely with the police leadership in our cities, and we know that they will also not tolerate this kind of police violence and racism within their forces. Such acts not only harm innocent people, but they also deeply erode trust in our police forces, despite the good work of so many officers every day — officers who themselves abhor the racism and violence so evident in the death of George Floyd. Our hearts go out to Mr. Floyd and his family. We support Mayor Jacob Frey of Minneapolis in his call for justice and accountability. We expect a full and fair trial of the police officers involved. We also support the rights of those who are peacefully protesting and honoring the memory of George Floyd and countless others who have been victims of systemic racism and police violence. Let’s work together to ensure that protests remain peaceful and stay focused on building equitable and just cities for all in North Carolina. And we pledge to make every effort within our power to fight systemic racism within our police forces, cities and this nation.

Among the mayors who signed onto the letter were Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger, Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle and Hillsborough Mayor Jenn Weaver.

The actions of the Minneapolis police officers were captured on video and have since been widely shared on social media since Floyd’s detainment on Monday. Footage showed one police officer holding his knee against Floyd’s neck and pinning him to the pavement. Floyd repeatedly said he could not breathe before becoming unresponsive.

Derek Chauvin — the officer who knelt on Floyd’s neck in the viral video — was arrested Friday morning and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. 

Saturday evening saw many protests across the country, including those in downtown Raleigh and Durham. The mayors of Raleigh and Durham — Mary Ann Baldwin and Steve Schewel — both signed onto the letter supporting peaceful protests.

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