Kerry Washington is “praying for a world where we all matter”.

Kerry Washington

Kerry Washington

The 44-year-old actress marked one year since the death of George Floyd – who was killed in Minneapolis when former police officer Derek Chauvin held him down by the neck with his knee for more than nine minutes – on Tuesday (25.05.21) with a moving post on Instagram which called for unity and “justice”.

She wrote: “Seeing all the attention around the one year anniversary of #GeorgeFloyd’s murder is so emotional. Yes, because of the loss of George Floyd. But also because it is a painful reminder that for many of you, this issue has mattered for one year. For others of us, Black Lives have never NOT mattered. I pray for a world where we all matter to each other all the time and forever more. Can’t stop, wont stop. Justice is not a fad. If you are new to this, happy one year awakening. Stay in the fight. If you are not new to this, sending love. Today and always. (sic)”

The ’Scandal’ star wasn’t the only celebrity to mark the anniversary of George’s death either, as former First Lady Michelle Obama also posted a lengthy message on Instagram.

Part of her post read: "It’s been a year since those horrifying 9 minutes and 29 seconds stole George Floyd’s life and shook up so many of us. And it’s easy, after everything that’s happened, to focus primarily on the pain and the grief, the past traumas that came rushing back, the protests, the difficulty of reliving it all during a trial. It’s been a lot—a heavy, exhausting year in so, so many ways.

“But today, I can’t help but think of this clip of George’s daughter, Gianna. This was not just a national tragedy, but a human one. This little girl lost her father. And every time I watch this video, I see someone who loved her dad, who’s been forced to grow up a lot faster, and who probably had a lot of moments this past year that weren’t quite as joyful as this one. (sic)”

While Oprah Winfrey also wrote her own post, in which she said George’s name will be “forever etched” into people’s memory.

She wrote: "A year ago today we didn’t know his name, but now it’s forever etched in our consciousness: George Floyd (sic)”

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