Tiger Woods took to Twitter to speak out for the first time since the death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man who died in police custody last week.
Police officer Derek Chauvin, who is white, was arrested and charged with third-degree murder after pressing his knee on the neck of Floyd, an African American, for more than eight minutes. Chauvin was also charged with second-degree manslaughter.
“I have always had the utmost respect for our law enforcement,” Woods, 44, wrote late Monday night. “They train so diligently to understand how, when and where to use force. This shocking tragedy clearly crossed that line.”
Floyd’s death on May 25 ignited protests in Minneapolis and around the United States that have continued for more than a week, with some growing violent.
Woods, who grew up in Southern California, said he learned from the Los Angeles riots in 1992 that “education is the best path forward.”
“We can make our points without burning the very neighborhoods we live in,” Woods said. “I hope that through constructive, honest conversations we can build a safer, unified society.”
–Field Level Media
