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'Overwhelming Sense Of Hopelessness': Pastor Reflects On Minneapolis 2 Years After George Floyd's Murder

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- George Floyd's murder reopened old wounds about policing in Minneapolis, and it left the city with new scars after nights of unrest and rioting.

Two years later, the city is still working toward healing.

"I think there is depression, there is despair, and people don't know it's depression, they don't even know it's despair," said The Rev. Brian Herron of Zion Baptist Church in north Minneapolis. "I think one of these things is this overwhelming sense of hopelessness that is permeating our community right now that nothing is going to get better."

MORE: Community Members Reflect On What's Changed Since George Floyd's Death

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Herron says those feelings boiled over after Floyd's murder in May of 2020, leading to an uprising in the street, a collective cry for justice. In the aftermath, his sanctuary has become a place of healing from the storm.

"It became clear to me that we could be out on the block and have an impact and make a difference, and we can do the protest and things, but were do people come to be well and to process their pain and to process their grief," Herron said.

The pastor believes that two years after George Floyd's murder some things have changed while others remain the same.

"I think we are still dealing with the trauma, but let's go to the other side also, this has created some activism and an expression of optimism from a lot of our young people, that they can make a difference, that they can change things," Herron said.

He says people can get help processing their feelings and even get professional help. However, they must want to heal in order for true change to happen.

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