Today, a jury convicted Gregory McMichael, Travis McMichael and William "Roddie" Bryan for the murder of Ahmaud Arbery. The verdict was necessary and is long overdue, but the fact remains that there is still much social justice work to be done.
The three white men jumped into a truck and chased Arbery, a Black man who was jogging through a Georgia neighborhood, and shot him. Following the gruesome video release of this incident, public outcry grew across the nation. Ahmaud Arbery's death was not necessary and should never have occurred. But it served as mounting evidence of the racial divide our nation faces as well as deeply embedded culture of discrimination in urban, suburban, and rural settings.
The PHRC continues its quest to pursue justice for the citizens of Pennsylvania and to eradicate hate and discrimination across the Commonwealth. However, incidents like the killing of Ahmaud Arbery and many others are proof that legislators, community leaders and citizens of all races and creeds need to step up and set the necessary changes into motion. As a Commonwealth and a nation, we can do better.
PHRC stand in solidarity with the Arbery family and its community of supporters and celebrates the guilty verdict that is a step in the right direction and a just verdict for the Arbery family.