Much more to do after guilty verdicts

Views from around the world. These opinions are not necessarily shared by newspapers.

The conviction of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin marks a welcome end to a criminal trial that has riveted this nation as few others in recent years. And while many will find solace, relief and even joy in the guilty verdicts, this must not mark an end to the important work that the unconscionable murder of George Floyd has advanced across the country.

We can all breathe a collective sigh of relief that the verdicts won’t provoke disillusioned and angry protests. And we can all applaud the words of police officials who broke from the usual pattern of closing ranks around a fellow officer and assured us that Mr Chauvin’s actions would never be tolerated in their own departments.

But we must do so much more. The guilty verdicts won’t repair the underlying distrust. They certainly won’t eliminate the culture that allows bad apples to keep wearing a badge and carrying a gun. What they can do is help us create the constructive atmosphere in which that tenuous relationship can be healed.

Charleston has already begun this process, with the city council’s 2018 apology for slavery, an audit of the city police department’s interactions with the minority community and an ambitious citizens commission. It is tragic that Mr Floyd died the way he did. It will be unspeakably worse if we allow him to have died in vain.