Philonise Floyd wears a face mask referencing his brother George's killing as he and other family members speak with reporters at the White House following their meeting with President Joe Biden in Washington May 25. (CNS/Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
President Joe Biden welcomed the family of George Floyd to the White House on the one- year anniversary of his murder, and it was very moving. The family and the president both urged Congress to enact bipartisan police reforms. The president behaved with dignity. For four years, such moments were impossible to imagine, and it is good that they are back. Whatever else a president must do, calling forth the better angels of our nature is at the top of the list. It was no surprise the Floyd family acted with dignity both at the White House and later at the Capitol: They have acted with dignity throughout this year of reckoning, and they, unlike the politicians they engaged yesterday, never asked to be placed in this position. I doubt very much many of us could have done the same.