Protests continue in Minneapolis following the death of a 46-year-old black man named George Floyd at the hands of police.
Video footage showed a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeling on Floyd’s neck during an arrest, while Floyd said “I can’t breathe,” as other officers stood nearby. Shortly after the incident, Floyd was pronounced dead at a local hospital.
Chauvin has been arrested in connection with the event.
YouGov conducted a poll of more than 5,600 Americans on May 28 and 29, shortly before Minnesota officials announced Chauvin had been arrested. Data from this survey found that almost four in five Americans (78%) believed he should be arrested.
Democrats (90%) were more likely than Independents (76%) and Republicans (68%) to say they believed the Minneapolis officer should be arrested.
Additional data from YouGov reported earlier this week finds that four in five black Americans (80%) say police officers use excessive force in their work. Most Asian Americans (60%), Hispanic Americans (58%), Mixed race Americans (57%), and Native Americans (54%) say police officers generally use too much force.
Fewer than half of white Americans (46%) say that police officers tend to use too much force in their interactions.
While Chauvin was the only officer arrested, all of the officers who were on the scene have been dismissed from the Minneapolis police department.
Related: How black and white Americans view police brutality
Methodology: 5,674 US Adults were asked: “Based on what you have read, seen, or heard about the death of George Floyd in a police-involved incident, do you think the officer responsible for his death should or should not be arrested?” The responding sample is weighted to provide a representative sample of the United States and has been weighted for age, education, race, gender, and region. The survey was conducted May 28 – May 29, 2020.
Image: Getty
