MANKATO, Minn. – Ahead of the trial over the death of George Floyd, Governor Tim Walz encouraged nonviolence when racially charged crowds assemble Monday as expected outside the Minneapolis courthouse. Walz cited the message of rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. when he spoke in the 1960s at Mankato West High School, where Walz himself was delivering his annual State of the State message. Walz said that King’s call for change must be heeded again – nonviolence as a strategy and tactic. “Please, Minnesotans, make your voices heard,” Walz said. “Practice your First Amendment right, but please heed Dr. King’s advice that nonviolence is the only way to truly move hearts and create change.” The trial of Minneapolis police officer has Minneapolis on edge.
