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The Morning Mile is a daily column written by Culture Editor Ryan Shepard and published at 9 a.m. CT. The views of Ryan Shepard do not necessarily reflect those of Def Pen writers, editors and staff.
NOTE: This column was originally written on June 12, 2020.
George Floyd is the first Black American to have a funeral. In the wake of Martin Luther King Jr.’s murder, riots ate the city of Boston whole, but the Celtics and 76ers continued to play the NBA Finals as scheduled. The Rodney King riots started on April 29, 1992 and nearly 20% of the U.S. population tuned into watch The Cosby Show finale the next day. Kobe and Gigi Bryant died on the eve of the 2020 Grammys. Billie Eilish was on stage within 12 hours. Black lives have been left to rot in the Tallahatchie River and neglected in Louisville apartments. Millions of Black Americans have been buried, but none have truly gotten the funeral they deserve, until now. America has never mourned a Black life until it had to.