Strike Me Down and I Shall Become More Powerful Than You Can Possibly Imagine
George Perry Floyd (October 14, 1973 - May 25, 2020) was a 46-year-old Black American man who was murdered by former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin after Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly 9 minutes in the Powderhorn neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 25, 2020. Floyd’s murder sparked an international movement for Black Lives Matter, the largest civil rights movement of the century. On March 12, 2021, the city of Minneapolis agreed to pay $27 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Floyd's family. On June 25, 2021, Chauvin was sentenced to 22.5 years in prison for his crimes.
Three avatars of George Floyd as Obi Wan Kenobi from Star Wars Episode IV.
The first is Floyd wearing Kenobi's hood in blue. It has a white background and black text, "STRIKE ME DOWN" and "I CAN'T BREATHE."
The second is a color-inverted version of the first, with different text and a purple hood. "I SHALL BECOME MORE POWERFUL" and "JUSTICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD."
The third is like the first, with a red hood and "THAN YOU CAN POSSIBLY IMAGINE" and "REST IN POWER."
Kenobi's death in the film gave Luke Skywalker a renewed purpose in his revolt against the empire. See UAM-GF_0647 for photograph of this same mural on a different date.
Urban Art Mapping Research Project
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-06-06">2020-06-06</a>
SE
Photograph by Froukje Akkerman
2880 Hennepin Ave, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Strike Me Down
Three repeated images of George Floyd wearing a shroud. Text says 'Strike Me Down/I Shall Become More Powerful/Than You Can Possibly Imagine/I Can't Breathe/Justice for George Floyd/Rest in Power."
The quote and imagery references Obi Wan Kenobi's final words before he is killed in Star Wars Episode IV.
Urban Art Mapping
<a href="/items/browse?advanced%5B0%5D%5Belement_id%5D=40&advanced%5B0%5D%5Btype%5D=is+exactly&advanced%5B0%5D%5Bterms%5D=2020-06-06">2020-06-06</a>
HS
Minnesota
UAM-GF_0060
Near Calhoun Square, Hennepin Avenue