Three white men being found guilty for slaying a Black man while he went jogging in a Georgia neighborhood shows that “Black lives do matter,” activists said after the highly anticipated verdict on Wednesday.
But the triple guilty murder verdict is not justice because Ahmaud Arbery is not alive, others said following the trial that “indicates progress” in the fight for racial justice in America.
Arbery will “now rest in peace,” said Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones.
“I never saw this day back in 2020,” she said outside the courthouse. “I never thought this day would come, but God is good.”
Arbery will go down in history, added the Rev. Al Sharpton.
“A jury of 11 whites and one Black in the Deep South stood up in the courtroom and said that, ‘Black lives do matter,'” he said, adding, “we got a lot more battles to fight, but this was an important battle today.”
The killing of Arbery was recorded on video, a bombshell piece of evidence for the prosecution in the case.
“But yet, because of the deep cracks, flaws and biases in our systems, we were left to wonder if we would ever see justice,” said civil rights attorney Ben Crump. “Today certainly indicates progress, but we are nowhere close to the finish line.”
Arbery should be here today, celebrating the holidays with his mother and father, President Joe Biden said.
“Nothing can bring Mr. Arbery back to his family and to his community, but the verdict ensures that those who committed this horrible crime will be punished,” Biden said.
“While the guilty verdicts reflect our justice system doing its job, that alone is not enough,” the president added. “Instead, we must recommit ourselves to building a future of unity and shared strength, where no one fears violence because of the color of their skin.”
Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley wrote that Arbery “was hunted down for simply jogging while Black.”
“This verdict isn’t justice — justice would be Ahmaud alive today,” Pressley tweeted. “The verdict answers our calls for accountability, but our Work for a more just legal system continues. I pray the Arbery family finds peace & healing.”
“Today we hold him & his loved ones in our hearts,” Wu tweeted. “Though we saw some measure of accountability today, the fight to build the country we deserve continues.”
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey tweeted, “Sending all my love to the Arbery family, and all Black families that live in fear when their children step out into the world. Ahmaud Arbery should be alive today, but grateful that justice was served.”
Congresswoman Katherine Clark tweeted, “Today, we breathe relief. Tomorrow, we continue our fight for justice for all.”
The defense attorneys outside the courthouse said they planned on filing an appeal.
“This is a very difficult day for Travis McMichael and Greg McMichael,” defense attorney Jason Sheffield said. “These are two men who honestly believe that what they were doing was the right thing to do. However, the Glynn County jury has spoken. They have found them guilty and they will be sentenced, and that is a very disappointing and sad verdict for myself and for Bob (defense attorney Robert Rubin) and for our team.”
A jury found three Georgia men guilty of murder in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man whom the trio pursued and confronted after seeing Arbery running in their neighborhood in 2020. (AP Graphic)
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