Greater Boston PSR Statement on George Floyd June 4, 2020

Greater Boston PSR mourns the death of George Floyd, who repeatedly stated he could not breathe while a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck, and then died so publicly and tragically. Our organization works against the twin species-level threats to public health of runaway climate change and nuclear weapons. But our larger mission — to create a healthy, just and peaceful world — can only come about when we all recognize the humanity and the dignity of all people. We thus stand with health professionals who work against violence and racism wherever they appear — these, like climate change and nuclear weapons, are also among the gravest of public health matters. We ask protesters who are righteously upset by systemic racism to remember the proud traditions and non-violent principals of our nation’s most successful civil rights movements, most notably as led by Dr. Martin Luther King. We ask law enforcement to remember its solemn obligation to protect every citizen, to de-escalate conflict and to prevent violence whenever it can, and to treat all equally under the law. And we urge our political leaders to resist the temptations of a presidential election year, and to appeal only to the better angels of our national nature.

Matt Bivens, MD, Chair
on behalf of Greater Boston PSR