The conclusion of the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who was found guilty on murder and manslaughter charges for the killing of George Floyd, produced a sense of hope and relief among students, faculty members and college leaders across the country. After a year of anger and outrage, accusations and recrimination, bridge building and bridge burning, calls for accountability and promises of change -- played out mostly remotely and on social media as Americans hunkered down while in the throes of the pandemic -- the verdict Tuesday was largely viewed as a welcome development and a symbol of possibilities for positive change for the country -- and perhaps on American college campuses.

From coast to coast, scholars reacted with a sense of relief over the conviction of Derek Chauvin—the former police officer who murdered George Floyd in Minneapolis last May—but cautioned that the fight for racial justice continues. “[I feel] relief that Chauvin was found guilty. [It’s] far from a sure outcome despite the obvious mountain of evidence, despite what we all saw. But this is just one case – police who killed Breonna Taylor and Tamir Rice and Michael Brown and Eric Garner haven’t been held accountable said Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries, an associate professor of history at The Ohio State University and an expert on the Civil Rights and Black Power Movement. “And as the prosecution said, the police were not on trial – one officer was. But hopefully, the police were put on notice. Hopefully, they’ll stop killing people. If history is any indication, they won’t. But the future isn’t written. Time will tell.”