In this July 2020 interview, Kim Peterson reflects on the murder of George Floyd and its broader implications for racial bias, police brutality, and equity in business. She describes her visceral reaction—shock, incredulity, and deep empathy—as she recounts witnessing the harrowing video of Floyd’s death, emphasizing its visibility, length, and callousness. Peterson connects this moment to a pattern of racial violence, referencing Ahmaud Arbery and earlier cases in Missouri, and argues that the unarmed, non‑threatening status of the victims underscores a systemic injustice that cannot be excused. The conversation shifts to how such societal inequities intersect with entrepreneurship, urging recognition of Black lives, historical context, and the need for genuine equity and equality in professional settings. Throughout, she calls for acknowledgment, valuing Black individuals, and integrating these principles into business practices.
Chapters
Foreign. See me, value me, value my life. Value our history. Acknowledge, you know, fact. Bring equity and equality to the occasion. Do not see me as less than.
First of all, I want to thank you for doing this interview again because we spoke. What was that, two months ago, maybe?
No, it was probably just about a month ago.
Was a month ago. It was right before George Floyd was murdered, I believe.
Yeah, like three weeks. Well, yeah, you're right.
What was your impression of that when. That. When you heard the news that George Floyd was murdered?
It was really hard for me. My impression was I was incredulous.
It reminded me of. I'm. I cannot remember the names in Missouri. I don't remember who was murdered, but same thing. Police brutality and a black man was murdered. There was protests and unrest. Something's different this time. I mean, it's been funny for me saying that something's ever. Clearly, something's very different this time. What's your. What's your thoughts? Why?
Well, it was horrifying. It was a horrifying act. And one thing I know to be true is we actually saw it. We were all witness to it. We saw it. We saw the callousness. We saw the last breaths leaving. We saw. Please. We saw a begging for mercy. We saw defenselessness. We saw someone who was no threat. And I saw a man crying out for his mama. That really rocked me. All of it rocked me. But the fact that this is a grown man, you know, your mama is someone who protects you. Your mama's gonna go be mama bear and fight your fight for you. His mom wasn't even alive. She died a couple years ago, and he's crying out for his mother. So what makes it different? I think it was so visible and it was so long, and it was so callous, and nobody could help. I mean, you had bystanders who were even pleading for him, and nobody was going to be able to intervene. I think it also was just on the heels of Ahmaud Arbery, who got shot for, you know, running through a neighborhood. I mean, what is that? You know, whether. You know, regardless of what any of that backstory is, the point is, is this for me? You know, whether you have a criminal record, whether you did some crime, you committed some crime, there is never any excuse, especially if you are not a threat and you are unarmed, to be shot and killed.
Right.
Or in George's murder, his case, to be murdered, by the way he was.
Yeah. Almost. Not. Almost torturous. You know, I wanted to bring you on because you and I met. We were in Seattle. We ended up sitting next to each other during dinner and was just so impressed by, first of all, your entrepreneurial journey. I love entrepreneurship.
