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Protests have erupted worldwide following the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old, who was a blue-collar worker, mentor at his church, and a contributor to the hip-hop scene in Houston, was suffocated to death by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chuavin and three others May 25.

Floyd鈥檚 death was, as Ruby Read (鈥�23) said, the 鈥渂reaking point,鈥� and the latest in a line of thousands of African Americans murdered by law enforcement officers in the U.S.听

Footage of officer Chauvin pressing his knee into Flodys鈥檚 neck has prompted outrage on social media. The footage showed Floyd lying on the ground, handcuffed as he groaned for help, with his last words being, 鈥減lease, I can鈥檛 breathe.鈥澨�

Eva Noel (鈥�21) said that, when she first saw the video on social media, she wanted to cry.听

鈥淚 was just utterly astonished with the treatment that he was given,鈥� she said.听

Noel said that the 鈥減olice officer kneeling on his neck essentially seemed proud of what he was doing, and it鈥檚 so disappointing that people like this still exist and that they鈥檙e proud of what they are doing and don鈥檛 see the fault in it.鈥澨�

Additionally, Caleb Henok (鈥�23) said that Floyd was adhering to the orders and remained respectful towards the officers.听

鈥淚 was so upset because he wasn鈥檛 doing anything wrong and they just arrested him based on suspicion,鈥� he said. 鈥淗e wasn鈥檛 making any problems, yet they still felt the need to kill him.鈥澨�

Henok said that the possibility of something like Floyd鈥檚 murder occuring to him is worrisome.听

听鈥淚 keep on processing the situation, and the scariest thing to take in is the fact that, as a person of color, it could have been me,鈥� he said.听听

听According to the , Chauvin was charged with second-degree murder May 29, and 鈥渢he three other former officers who were involved in the killing are facing charges of aiding and abetting murder.鈥�

Read said that she wonders if these charges would have been enforced if it wasn’t for the hundreds of thousands of people protesting for justice.

The protests began May 27 in Minneapolis, Minnesota and have since proliferated across all 50 states in the U.S. and 18 other countries.听

Noel, who is originally from Minneapolis, was shocked to see the extent of the effects the protests had.听

鈥淚t was surreal to see the place that I grew up burning in flames,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t is not something that is easy to wrap your head around.鈥澨�

Looking back at the city she grew up in, she said that there is a distinct contrast between the type of people with whom she grew up with and the officers who are supposed to be protecting and representing her city.听听听

鈥淚 remember growing up in an environment that was extremely diverse, and I鈥檝e always been used to seeing a diverse amount of people in my neighborhood,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 expecting this type of treatment to occur in Minneapolis.鈥澨�

An article published by June 8 said that the different forms of protests have been taking place across the world. Some protesters have stood in silence for almost nine minutes 鈥� the amount of time that Floyd struggled to breathe while the officers detained him.

Read said that she participated in one of the protests in London and said that she was happy that these protests are occurring worldwide.听

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鈥淭aking part in the protests was so powerful, from every single angle you could see that there are people who are truly fighting for justice and for the black community,鈥� she said.

As a mixed individual, Read said that her lighter complexion comes with a certain privilege that she should use to fight for and stand by the Black Lives Matter movement.听

鈥淚鈥檓 mixed, but I鈥檝e grown up in white communities,鈥� she said. 鈥淎lthough I don鈥檛 face the forefront of racism as often as black people do, I will use my privilege and fight for them.鈥�

Henock said that the protests were necessary and brought more attention to the movement.听

鈥淚t is good that people are coming together and spreading awareness for different causes so that people that are ignorant to this situation can learn what’s going on,鈥� he said.听

However, according to an article published by the May 31, although most of the protests began peacefully and stayed peaceful, 鈥渋n a large number of cases, demonstrators clashed with police, set police cars on fire, vandalised property or looted shops.鈥澨�

Noel looks back at Minneapolis and doesn’t recognize the city that she once grew up in.

鈥淚t’s definitely sad to see a city that I once was so proud of to be [a part of] in just total craziness,鈥� she said.

However, Noel said that, although some of the riots are scary, it has gotten to a point where fighting for change is necessary.

鈥淲ith great change comes great sacrifice, and if people just remain silent, that means that they are agreeing with the racism,鈥� she said.听听

Furthermore, Read said that people shouldn’t make statements about the rioting without fully understanding the anger behind it.听

鈥淭he rioting is reasonable in the sense that there was a cause for it, a reasoning that could have been prevented for decades but hasn’t been,鈥� she said.

However, Read said she doesn’t fully support the looting and the violence and destruction it has caused on many businesses.

鈥淚 don’t support the looting just because I know there are some black families who have business that have suffered from it, but then again there is a reason for it and this just shows that there’s always like two sides of the story,鈥� she said.

Henock said that although the looting and rioting has negatively impacted communities, he said that it is essentially what brought the movement to the attention of the government.听听

鈥淣othing else has worked before,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he idea of just spreading awareness on social media is great but it has not brought change. These riots are forcing change from the government, and although it may not be the best answer, right now it seems to be the answer that’s the most effective.鈥澨�

Noel said that, although we live thousands of miles away from where Floyd鈥檚 death took place, racism occurs worldwide and that there are various resources for individuals to get involved in the movement.听

鈥淚 understand that it is hard to activate as we are so far away, but signing petitions, donating, texting phone numbers and calling can do so much more than people think,鈥� she said.

Read said that, although social media support is beneficial in certain ways she said that it is slowly turning into a trend.

鈥淪ocial media support is great, but there are always going to be people not taking it seriously and posting black squares which will not lead to change,鈥� she said.

Henock agrees with Read and said he hopes that this will not just be a trend that will die out.听

鈥淲e have the attention from governments all around the world, this needs to keep going as long as possible,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f it dies out, this just shows that it’s just a trend where people post to conform.鈥澨�

Read said that change will only happen if justice is served in the law enforcement system.听

鈥淧olice brutality plays an immense role in racism and a sense of humanity needs to be established, such as the ban of rubber bullets and other weapons that the police have used to abuse their power,鈥� she said.

Similarly, looking forward, Noel said that the officers who murdered Floyd need to face the consequences that they deserve.

鈥淭he only way to bring peace back to Minneapolis is if the officer involved gets charged with first-degree murder, otherwise the city will lose trust with police and it will be a lot harder to feel safe in a neighborhood where police treat individuals in such a way and get away with it,鈥� she said.

Finally, Read said that, as a school community, more people need to step up and speak out for what’s right.

鈥淚t is not good enough to be not a racist in a racist society,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou have to be anti-racist and be able to get out of your comfort zone and stand up for what’s right.鈥澨�