George Floydβs death affected Jawann McClellan on multiple levels.
Like millions of others, the former Arizona Wildcats guard watched the video of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pressing his knee into the back of Floydβs neck until he died, an act that has led to global protests and vows to change the system.
McClellan reacted with a mixture of sadness and frustration. As a police officer in his hometown of Houston, McClellan said he knew what Chauvin did was inexcusable.
βAs police, weβre not trained like that,β McClellan said. βObviously, when you put someone in handcuffs, thatβs a wrap. It doesnβt matter if he shot your mom or whatever the case may be. When heβs in handcuffs, the fight is over with and it doesnβt matter what he did. β¦ The video, from a police perspective, was all wrong and there is no way to justify it.β
Then thereβs this: McClellan knew Floyd. They grew up as sports standouts in Houstonβs Third Ward, though Floyd was 12 years older. Both played college sports, Floyd at Texas A&M-Kingsville and McClellan at the UA.
McClellan, 34, was dispatched to work protests throughout Houston following Floydβs death, and was on patrol Wednesday when Floydβs casket was taken to the cemetery.
McClellan joined the Starβs Wildcast podcast this week to share his thoughts on police brutality in the United States, his relationship with Floyd and experiences with law enforcement. His responses have been lightly edited for context and clarity:
As a police officer, how would you assess the events that took place in the U.S. over the last few weeks?
A: βItβs been very difficult. β¦ When that video came out of George with the police officer in Minneapolis, it was clearly a modern day β as you would call β lynching that was caught on camera. The difference with this one is, unlike the other ones, he died very slowly and you could witness him losing his life. It really touched me, because he is my O.G. Weβre from the same neighborhood, so I knew George from the time I was 4 or 5 years old. He went to Yates High School and that was the school I was supposed to go to, but I went to another school for obvious reasons, because youβre trying to get away from all that going on. So that really hurt.
βBut like I said, the thing about policing, there are bad seeds in every job you do β whether itβs playing at the University of Arizona and thereβs a bad teammate, or youβre in a law firm and thereβs a bad person there. The difference between our bad seeds is theyβre taking African-American lives right now.β
What was Floyd like growing up?
A: βGeorge was (Rob Gronkowski) before there was a βGronk.β In high school, George was about 6-6, 225 (pounds), and I tell everybody, if he had my parents, then β¦ he was a walking millionaire. Thatβs what we used to call him, βwalking millionaire.β He didnβt have the guidance that everyone from a two-parent household came from (had). George was very poor. I remember it like it was yesterday, his unit number, his project number. He stayed adjacent to where my house was. His project, which is called Cuney Homes here in Houston, he stayed adjacent and parallel β I could see his window. He was a very funny guy, he liked to crack jokes all the time and thatβs just what he was. He never really messed with anybody even though he could with that size. He wasnβt a bully and, you know, we all have our flaws and whatnot; heβs not perfect, Iβm not perfect, nobodyβs perfect. But he was far from, what you would say, a criminal.β
What goes through your mind when fellow Houston native and former NBA player Stephen Jackson continues to use his platform to lead the charge to get justice for Floyd?
A: ββStackβ is the man right now. Heβs one of the main people pushing the movement, if not the main person pushing the movement. This awakened everybody and we appreciate all the athletes and entertainers using their platform. Itβs just sad that someone had to lose their life for everyone to wake up. βStackβ is one of the reasons why I went to the University of Arizona, because I looked up to him β¦ and everyone knew Stephen Jackson was gonna come to the University of Arizona had he got (a high enough) SAT score back in the day. But βStackβ is really leading the movement. Heβs for the people β but heβs not just for black people, heβs for whatβs right and for all the people.
βThatβs what people need to understand: All lives do matter, but until black lives matter, then all lives canβt matter. We have to get everyone on the same accord. β¦ Unfortunately, you have people born in the (1940s) and β50s, and I donβt know how you could change their mind, because you canβt change the way I was raised or you canβt change the way you were raised. Your way of thinking is already embedded in you. I donβt know the answer to how we can cause change. β¦ Hopefully we can all get to a place where we can all just love each other and move on, because this is sad. Whether George was black or white β or anything, it didnβt matter what color he was β nobody should get brutalized by the police like that.β
Growing up in Houston, what was your experience with police?
A: βMy mom and dad always taught me the rules and regulations of dealing with police. Actually, itβs a little different now, which is scary to think. People arenβt scared of police now like we were back in the day. I can remember when a police officer would walk in my direction, I would turn around and just go the other direction, because you didnβt know if you were doing something wrong at the time.
βNow, people arenβt scared of police, but more fearful of a traffic stop. If you got pulled over for a traffic stop, then maybe youβd get a little scared. β¦ I was raised by two parents who grew up during the Jim Crow laws and theyβre from the Deep South in Arkansas, so their take on a lot of stuff is obviously a lot different than some of the stuff I came up with, because I was a high-level athlete. I never experienced (much) racism because of what I could do with a basketball. β¦ When that ball stops, then you could see what people really think about you.
βI think Iβve only experienced racism twice in my life, and one of them was at the University of Arizona. My freshman year, we were at a party and I donβt even know what happened, but something happened at the party and I wasnβt even in the party, I was standing outside. β¦ I was handcuffed and stuffed in the back of a police car for four hours and wasnβt charged or arrested, but I couldnβt leave. I still canβt figure that one out, but it happened.β
What was going through your mind when you sat in the back of the police car?
A: βI thought my career was over. We had just lost to Illinois (in the 2005 Elite Eight) a week or two before that, so here I am thinking my career is over with. In the back of my mind, thereβs so many people whoβve been to prison that didnβt do anything (wrong) and get falsely convicted, so thatβs where my mindset was at. (The officer) kept telling me I wasnβt charged or arrested, but I couldnβt leave the back of the police car and I just sat back there with handcuffs on. Obviously, I was released four hours later, but that was the scariest moment of my life.β
What made you want to pursue criminal justice?
A: βI wanted to try and make a change, honestly. And not just with police brutality, but in my own neighborhood. We dealt with the protests so itβs been a long week for me, and I heard people of my color call me a (racial slur) or words that you know donβt have anything to do with you, because Iβm from the same neighborhood as you are. My people are hurting right now and they donβt know how to express it when they see people of their color with the other team. Iβm trying to tell them, βIf you want change, come join.β Thatβs the only way thatβs going to help.
βIf we join, we canβt point the finger and say this and this and that. I tell people, βHey, if we werenβt on the force, what do you think would be going on?β I did it for change and I didnβt have to do it for the money. The money is good, but itβs not why I got into it. Honestly, I thought it was my calling. It was either that or coaching for me, and in the coaching ranks, you deal with a little racism, too. As you know, the black coach is looked at as the recruiter; he goes and gets the kids. The black coach is looked at as the token guy and the recruiter. When the black coach gets all the kids, he doesnβt get a job. β¦ Weβre still dealing with it and weβre nowhere close to where we want to be. Iβm not saying all black coaches are great or all black police officers are great β or all black people are great, because we have bad seeds in every race. But just because youβre a bad seed, itβs not left up to us to judge your fate. We all just need to get along and be cordial.β
When you saw the video of Floyd, did you think itβd have the impact it had?
A: βI did not. (Michael Brownβs 2014 killing in Ferguson, Missouri) was probably the closest thing to it, but it was only in Ferguson. I didnβt think it was going to be more than nationwide. Weβre talking about London, Israel, China, things like that outside of the United States. You see people marching and George Floydβs mural hanging everywhere. I didnβt know it was going to impact like that. What got me that it could have the impact like that was the last three minutes when you could just tell his body was lifeless. β¦ The video from a police perspective was all wrong, and there was no way you could justify it.β
This year has been troubling for a number of reasons, but what do you believe will be the positive outcome when we look back on this?
A: βI donβt know if you and I will be alive to see it. This is going to take time and this is a 20- or 30-year (process). Keep building, right? Weβve been dealing with this for 400 years and now itβs 2020. I donβt think this discussion or topic will go away anytime soon. β¦ I donβt get into politics, but I want the people at the top to do what is right for all people. I just hope we get to a place where we can all get along and figure this thing out. This is going to be an ongoing thing.β