Multifaith Statement on Derek Chauvin Verdict

April 20, 2021

By Rabbi M. Bruce Lustig, Washington Hebrew Congregation; Imam  Mohamed Magid, All-Dulles Area Muslim Society (ADAMS) Center; and Pastor Jim Eaton, Mosaic Church

“Justice, justice shall you pursue…”

    – Deuteronomy 16:20

Today, justice was served with a verdict of guilty on all three counts in the murder of George Floyd.

Justice has all too often been denied Black and Brown people throughout the history of our nation. Today’s verdict expands the window of hope. It is a time to exhale, to breathe, to rest, and replenish after an exhausting year. However, it is not a time to desist from the pursuit of justice!

For justice today was not full. Full justice restores the aggrieved. The Floyd family will never see their loved one this side of heaven. We have a great cause ahead of us to make justice complete and full for all who languish in the oppressive spaces of whataboutism and gaslighting, symptoms of systemic injustice that still hang in the air of America.

But while justice is not complete today, it is something. A ray of holy light piercing the facade of white supremacy. A reminder that God rules in the affairs of humankind, that God does not accept injustice, that God’s teachings realized can overturn the status quo and bring hope to the weary, to all who long for the beloved community.

We, the leaders of the DC area multifaith community, re-commit ourselves to God and to one another in our pursuit of justice, solidarity, friendship, and love.

“But let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” -Amos 5:24

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