That wraps up our coverage of the anniversary of George Floyd's death. His murder by a police officer last year sparked global protests and altered perspectives on race and policing.
Events have been taking place around the US, including in Houston where Floyd was buried, and in Minneapolis where he died in an arrest last year
In Washington, members of Floyd's family met Democratic leaders, as well as President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris
Gunfire erupted at a memorial to Floyd near the Minneapolis block where he was killed. The suspected gunman sped away from the scene, police say. Shortly afterwards, a person arrived at a nearby hospital with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. No motive for the shooting has been disclosed
Vigils and demonstrations have taken place through the day, including in London, Glasgow and Edinburgh
The memorials come as a police reform bill named after Floyd stalls in Congress. Democrats say they are hopeful a bill may still be passed.
Our live coverage was provided by Ritu Prasad, Marianna Brady, Holly Honderich, Max Matza and Mal Sirat
Cortez Rice is wearing a walking cast: healing a bone bruised by a tear gas cannister in a recent protest, he says. But that doesn’t slow him down.
He hasn’t slowed down since the death of his “beloved friend” George Floyd, someone he calls a role model.
Rice believes that pressure on the streets helped secure a guilty verdict for Derek Chauvin, the police officer convicted of murdering Floyd. Now he’s focusing on using the law to change the way policing is done.
He says he joined the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) so he could familiarise himself with police reform bills.
He laughs when I suggest he’s giving himself a legal education, but agrees: “Now that’s a big change” from last year. Many lives have been changed, even if wider reforms have been slow to follow.
“We’ve just got to keep going,” says Rice.
And at a rally marking the anniversary, he steps up with his cast to carry a box representing George Floyd’s coffin, a symbolic pallbearer in a never-ending funeral.
Floyd's daughter has 'absolute ball' at White House
"He's a genuine guy," says Philonise Floyd, George Floyd's brother, after leaving a meeting at the White House with President Joe Biden and Vice-President Harris.
Floyd's daughter Gianna "had an absolute ball", says a lawyer for the family.
"Say his name," she said, as the family raised their fists and called out in unison: "George Floyd."
Meanwhile, Floyd's sister Bridgett denounced Biden for "breaking a promise" to pass a police reform bill by today. She spoke at a rally in Minneapolis surrounded by the mayor and other city officials.
Video content
Video caption: George Floyd's family speaks on the White House lawnGeorge Floyd's family speaks on the White House lawn
Reality Check
How much progress has the US made since the 1960s?
In 1963, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr led the March on Washington to demand racial and economic justice. So what's changed since then?
The black-white wealth gap was larger in 2019 than it was in 1983, when black family wealth data was first collected. There hasn't been much movement in the disparity between the wages of black and white Americans either.
But there have been some upward trends: more African Americans had completed four years of higher education by 2019 than ever before - 26% compared with just 4% in 1962.
US football player Colin Kaepernick started kneeling to protest racial inequity in 2016Image caption: US football player Colin Kaepernick started kneeling to protest racial inequity in 2016
Almost a year on from the death of George Floyd, the world of sport has seen hundreds, if not thousands of athletes protesting against racial injustice on a global scale.
But on 22 April 2021, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that acts of protest - such as taking a knee - will continue to be banned at the Olympic Games, which begin in July.
During a 10-month consultation process, the IOC asked 3,547 athletes whether its 'Rule 50' - which bans demonstrations - should change.
A total of 67% said they wanted to keep the Olympic podium free of protests and 70% were keen to avoid on-field demonstrations.
Gwen Berry, who competes in the hammer throw for the USA, responded with a powerful post on Instagram.
"I wished that Botham Jean was afforded that same choice when he was murdered in his home," she wrote, referring to a black man killed by an off-duty Dallas police officer who mistook his apartment for her own.
"Not to mention the countless individuals whose names are added to a growing list. This is my reason for not wavering. I will not shut up and throw."
'Black exhaustion' and the killing of George Floyd
Koralie Barrau
BBC News
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
A mourner at Floyd's funeral wears a shirt saying "tired"Image caption: A mourner at Floyd's funeral wears a shirt saying "tired"
Black Americans are exhausted, and the anniversary of George Floyd's murder is a reminder that with every police killing of a black person, another cycle of grief and pain is re-triggered.
Over the course of the Derek Chauvin trial, I spoke to many activists in the Minneapolis area about this constant exhaustion and how it takes a toll on their mental health continuously reliving past traumas.
For them, the death of George Floyd was one of the most brutal images of police brutality and racism, but ultimately is part of a policing system that has always targeted predominately black and brown individuals.
During the trial of Derek Chauvin, this exhaustion was on display at George Floyd Square, where Floyd was killed, with signs and graffiti saying: “I’m so tired”.
One activist, DA Bullock, told us: "We can’t have another George Floyd in a year, two years, three years…Because I can't go through another death, like that. It takes too much out of us, it really does harm us as individuals and harms us as a community."
For Deborah Watts, the cousin of Emmet Till - a black boy who was lynched over 60 years ago - time alone does not heal her wounds.
She says that with every police killing, her wound is reopened again. Much of her work in Minneapolis seeks to work with families who have lost loved ones in encounters with police.
Nearly everyone we spoke to in the city said that true justice equates to a fundamental change in the judicial system.
They believe that despite this exhaustion they feel, they must continue to fight for justice, equality, and accountability.
Video content
Video caption: Why the Chauvin trial ‘exhausts’ black AmericaWhy the Chauvin trial ‘exhausts’ black America
A black woman will lead US civil rights office for first time
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Kristen Clarke is now overseeing an investigation into Minneapolis policeImage caption: Kristen Clarke is now overseeing an investigation into Minneapolis police
The US Senate has voted to confirm Kristen Clarke as the first black woman to run the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.
The vote passed narrowly on Tuesday afternoon with only one Republican vote (Maine's Susan Collins).
Clarke is a first-generation American whose parents came to the US from Jamaica. She holds degrees from Columbia and Harvard universities.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the timing of her confirmation "particularly poignant and appropriate" given today's anniversary.
The civil rights department that she now heads is already investigating the Minneapolis Police Department after Floyd's killer was convicted last month.
They are also investigating the police in Louisville, Kentucky, for the killing of Breonna Taylor.
Reality Check
How are African-Americans treated under the law?
The figures that are available for incidents in which the police shoot and kill people show that for African-Americans, there's a much higher chance of being fatally shot relative to their overall numbers in the US population.
According to the Washington Post’s police shootings database, although African-Americans make up less than 14% of the population, they accounted for almost 24% of over 6,000 fatal shootings by the police since 2015.
BBCCopyright: BBC
Further research shows the rate that police fatally shoot unarmed black people in the US is more than three times as high as it is for white people.
Other studies have shown that black people are more likely to be pulled over in traffic stops by police.
One of the most recent, a 2020 study by Stanford University, analysed 100m traffic stops by police departments across the US and found black drivers were about 20% more likely to be stopped than white drivers.
African-Americans are also arrested for drug abuse at a much higher rate than white Americans, although surveys show drugs are used at similar levels.
BBCCopyright: BBC
Overall, African-Americans are imprisoned at five times the rate of white Americans and twice the rate of Hispanic-Americans, according to the latest data.
These rates have dropped for African-Americans over the last decade, but they still make up more of the prison population than any other race.
James Bryd Jr's murder led to the creation of a federal hate crime lawImage caption: James Bryd Jr's murder led to the creation of a federal hate crime law
Twenty-two years before the death of George Floyd, another brutal murder of a black man shocked the conscience of America and forced a racial reckoning.
WARNING THIS STORY CONTAINS DISTRESSING DESCRIPTIONS.
James Byrd Jr was killed by three white supremacists who drove him down a dark country road and beat him. Then they chained him alive to a pickup truck and dragged his body for three miles - until he was decapitated.
Two of the murderers were executed for the crime. The other is serving a life sentence.
In 2009, President Barack Obama signed a federal hate crime bill into law which is named after James Byrd Jr (as well as Matthew Shepard, who was murdered in 1998 because he was gay).
My colleague Angélica Casas and I visited the Texas town of Jasper this month to find out how Byrd's family is coping two decades after such an unspeakable crime.
His daughter, Jamie, told us how she had reacted to his murder.
"I was numb, I was in denial. I was 16-years-old, so love and forgiveness were no part of my thought process at that moment."
Jamie says she still feels angry but chooses to channel it into positive actions. Now a police officer in Houston, she draws a connection between the murders of her father and George Floyd.
"My dad did not get killed at the hands of a police officer, but in today's world, that is what we're seeing.
"We're seeing a lot of brutality by the hands of officers, unfortunately."
She says it was a challenge to put on the uniform after George Floyd's murder as protests against police brutality and racism spread across the world.
Ultimately, she decided it was more important to keep serving her community.
"I want to be that officer, just be there in solidarity, and say 'hey, I know what you're going through'.
You can watch our film about James Byrd Jr on the BBC News website on Friday.
How ‘Palestinian Lives Matter’ gained ground in the US
Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter
The latest clashes between Israel and the Palestinians have revealed exactly how much the political centre of gravity in the Democratic Party has moved on the conflict in recent years, and especially after civil rights protests sparked by George Floyd’s murder.
In a recent column, Jewish-American Senator Bernie Sanders paid tribute to the rise of "a new generation of activists".
"We saw these activists in American streets last summer in the wake of the murder of George Floyd," he writes. "We see them in Israel. We see them in the Palestinian territories."
His final words lift a direct line from the Black Lives Matter movement: "Palestinian lives matter".
Sanders is noting what has become obvious during clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians over the past two weeks. Americans who found their political voice during last summer's activism in US cities are now turning their focus, and their rhetoric, on what they see as similar unchecked oppression in the Middle East.
Reality Check
How does US police training compare?
More people are killed by police in the US than in any other developed country. Among these killings, black Americans are killed at a higher rate compared with the percentage of the population they represent.
Most are shot dead. Part of this is to do with gun culture, but there are also growing calls for improved police training to reduce the use of lethal force.
On average, US officers spend around 21 weeks in training before they go on patrol.
That is far less than in most other developed countries, according to a report by the Institute for Criminal Justice Training Reform (ICJTR).
BBCCopyright: BBC
US police academies also spend far more time on firearm training than on de-escalating a situation - 71 hours against 21, on average.
Prof Maria Haberfeld at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, says: "This is why you see officers very rapidly escalating from initial communication to the actual physical use of force, because this is how they train."
BBC Reality Check has looked into how the training requirements in the US compare with other countries.
Activists continue to demand root and branch change of what they say is a brutal, racist policing system. But this past year has also been hard on police.
Mylan Masson, a former Minneapolis police trainer, says she’s never seen morale so low. The department has lost more than 200 officers to early retirement, transfer or medical leave for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). There is confusion over competing proposals for reform, and a backlash from citizens.
"The officers don't know what the community feels about them,” she said. “What should we be doing? Everything we do, is it going to be judged? Is everything we're doing going to be put through scrutiny that we've never had before? We have things that we need to discuss with the community and make them feel comfortable with us again.”
The department has come under federal investigation and Mylan says there are problems that need to be fixed. But the focus on bad cops is wearing. “We try to... do the best we can and all of a sudden you see something else just horrible happen,” she says. “And it's traumatic.”
Biden demands action after Floyd family meeting
Joe BidenCopyright: Joe Biden
Joe Biden speaks at the White House earlier this monthImage caption: Joe Biden speaks at the White House earlier this month
We heard moments ago from George Floyd's family about their meeting with the president and vice-president, and now Biden's released his own response, praising the family for their "extraordinary courage".
Floyd's murder "launched a summer of protests", Biden said in a statement, which "peacefully unified people of every race and generation to collectively say enough of the senseless killings".
Biden also called for action, writing that real change will be delivered only when there is accountability in the nation's law enforcement.
"The negotiations on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in Congress are ongoing," he said. "It's my hope that they will get a bill to my desk quickly."
"We have to act," he said.
Floyd family: Meeting with Biden 'an honour'
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
George Floyd's family spoke to reporters briefly after a private hour-long meeting with President Joe Biden and Vice-president Kamala Harris.
In quick succession, several members of Floyd's family made comments, many of them thanking Biden and Harris for the meeting.
His brother Rodney Floyd said the family was grateful for the concern the president and vice-president showed.
"Being here today is an honour," said another brother, Terrence. "I feel it was a very productive conversation and I'm grateful for it."
The family also addressed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which they called for Congress to pass. Biden has so far failed to push the bill through, missing his own deadline of today.
The president is waiting for the "right" bill to be passed, Floyd's nephew Brandon said, instead of rushing one through.
"We just want this George Floyd Policing Act to be passed in the future," said brother Philonise Floyd. "If you can make federal laws to protect the bird, the bald eagle, you can make federal laws to protect people of colour."
There was also a moment of levity during the meeting, the family said. Joe Biden interacted and played with Gianna Floyd, George's 7-year-old daughter.
"She had an absolute ball," a family lawyer said.
How is Biden doing on race?
According to a recent NPR poll, 51% of Americans approve of Democratic President Joe Biden’s handling of race relations.
But the numbers break down as expected along party lines. Among Democrats, about 85% say they approve. About half of independents and only 14% of Republicans approve.
About one-third of Americans say they think things will improve under Biden, while another third say race relations will stay the same.
That’s an uptick from Donald Trump’s presidency when a majority of Americans said they expected race relations to worsen.
BreakingFloyd family speaks after White House meeting
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Family members of George Floyd are outside the White House now, speaking to reporters after a private meeting with President Joe Biden.
The meeting was "great" said Philonise Floyd, George Floyd's brother.
Floyd's sister skips Biden meeting over stalled legislation
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Bridgett Floyd speaks at a rally this past summer in WashingtonImage caption: Bridgett Floyd speaks at a rally this past summer in Washington
While several of her family members are in Washington to meet with President Biden, George Floyd's sister Bridgett stayed in Minneapolis, where she is attending a rally for her brother.
She said she had passed on the White House meeting because the president has not yet managed to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act through Congress - which Biden had said would be done by today. Democrats first proposed the police reform bill last June.
"He broke his promise, but I am going to give him a couple more weeks," Bridgett said, according to local media.
And she added this message for the president: "Get your people in order."
This is a marathon, says Martin Luther King III
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Martin Luther King III said police brutality was continuing (file photo)Image caption: Martin Luther King III said police brutality was continuing (file photo)
Martin Luther King III, human rights advocate and son of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr, has told the BBC he fears that not enough has changed one year on from George Floyd's murder.
"This is a marathon," he says.
"People's emotions around the world were evoked to see a public servant whose job is to
protect and serve, being judge, jury and executioner all in one," he adds, referring to the actions of white police officer Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes during his arrest last May.
"Although
one might say a year later it has subsided, the fact of the matter is that
there are still demonstrations going on, and part of it is because [police]
shootings have not stopped.
"So the incidents continue, there has been no
movement or transition".
If you're just joining us...
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Welcome to our live coverage of the anniversary of George Floyd's murder.
President Joe Biden is currently meeting with members of Floyd's family. Earlier today, the president wrote on Twitter that they had shown "extraordinary courage" in the year since George Floyd died.
Demonstrations and marches are happening across the country to commemorate the day. People have taken to the streets in New York, Los Angeles, Portland and Houston.
And much like the demonstrations sparked by Floyd's death last year, today's memorial is global.
Demonstrators have gathered in Edinburgh, Glasgow and London, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marked the day, calling Floyd's death a "tragedy" and a reminder that anti-black racism and injustice persists.
The memorial in Minneapolis at George Floyd Square was briefly interrupted by reports of shots fired though there was only one report of a possible injury from the incident.
Stay with us as we bring you more updates from the day.
Student reads heartfelt poem at vigil
BBCCopyright: BBC
Medical student Mikaela Loach read a poem at the vigil in EdinburghImage caption: Medical student Mikaela Loach read a poem at the vigil in Edinburgh
Here's more from the vigil we reported has been taking place outside the Scottish Parliament
at Holyrood in Edinburgh.
Medical
student and activist Mikaela Loach wrote and read a poem at the gathering.
It included the lines: "I want to be me, fully. To be loved, fully. To breathe in
deep, to fill my lungs, feels like an act of rebellion in a world that wants me
to suffocate."
Loach told BBC Scotland: "I feel that writing helps me take the stuff that is
bubbling up within and express it.
"The
stress of living in a world that doesn’t want you to exist in the fullness of
who you are, that harms you."
Live Reporting
Edited by Ritu Prasad and Marianna Brady
All times stated are UK
-
Events have been taking place around the US, including in Houston where Floyd was buried, and in Minneapolis where he died in an arrest last year
-
In Washington, members of Floyd's family met Democratic leaders, as well as President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris
-
Gunfire erupted at a memorial to Floyd near the Minneapolis block where he was killed. The suspected gunman sped away from the scene, police say. Shortly afterwards, a person arrived at a nearby hospital with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. No motive for the shooting has been disclosed
-
Vigils and demonstrations have taken place through the day, including in London, Glasgow and Edinburgh
-
The memorials come as a police reform bill named after Floyd stalls in Congress. Democrats say they are hopeful a bill may still be passed.
EPACopyright: EPA 
BBCCopyright: BBC Video caption: George Floyd's family speaks on the White House lawnGeorge Floyd's family speaks on the White House lawn 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images US football player Colin Kaepernick started kneeling to protest racial inequity in 2016Image caption: US football player Colin Kaepernick started kneeling to protest racial inequity in 2016 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images A mourner at Floyd's funeral wears a shirt saying "tired"Image caption: A mourner at Floyd's funeral wears a shirt saying "tired" Video caption: Why the Chauvin trial ‘exhausts’ black AmericaWhy the Chauvin trial ‘exhausts’ black America 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images Kristen Clarke is now overseeing an investigation into Minneapolis policeImage caption: Kristen Clarke is now overseeing an investigation into Minneapolis police 
BBCCopyright: BBC 
BBCCopyright: BBC 
BBCCopyright: BBC James Bryd Jr's murder led to the creation of a federal hate crime lawImage caption: James Bryd Jr's murder led to the creation of a federal hate crime law 
BBCCopyright: BBC Byrd's daughter, Jamie, says Floyd's killing deeply impacted herImage caption: Byrd's daughter, Jamie, says Floyd's killing deeply impacted her 
BBCCopyright: BBC 
Joe BidenCopyright: Joe Biden Joe Biden speaks at the White House earlier this monthImage caption: Joe Biden speaks at the White House earlier this month 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images Bridgett Floyd speaks at a rally this past summer in WashingtonImage caption: Bridgett Floyd speaks at a rally this past summer in Washington 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images Martin Luther King III said police brutality was continuing (file photo)Image caption: Martin Luther King III said police brutality was continuing (file photo) 
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images 
BBCCopyright: BBC Medical student Mikaela Loach read a poem at the vigil in EdinburghImage caption: Medical student Mikaela Loach read a poem at the vigil in Edinburgh
Latest PostThanks for joining us
That wraps up our coverage of the anniversary of George Floyd's death. His murder by a police officer last year sparked global protests and altered perspectives on race and policing.
Our live coverage was provided by Ritu Prasad, Marianna Brady, Holly Honderich, Max Matza and Mal Sirat
Remembering the loss of a 'beloved friend'
Barbara Plett Usher
BBC News, Minneapolis
Cortez Rice is wearing a walking cast: healing a bone bruised by a tear gas cannister in a recent protest, he says. But that doesn’t slow him down.
He hasn’t slowed down since the death of his “beloved friend” George Floyd, someone he calls a role model.
Rice believes that pressure on the streets helped secure a guilty verdict for Derek Chauvin, the police officer convicted of murdering Floyd. Now he’s focusing on using the law to change the way policing is done.
He says he joined the Minneapolis chapter of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) so he could familiarise himself with police reform bills.
He laughs when I suggest he’s giving himself a legal education, but agrees: “Now that’s a big change” from last year. Many lives have been changed, even if wider reforms have been slow to follow.
“We’ve just got to keep going,” says Rice.
And at a rally marking the anniversary, he steps up with his cast to carry a box representing George Floyd’s coffin, a symbolic pallbearer in a never-ending funeral.
Floyd's daughter has 'absolute ball' at White House
"He's a genuine guy," says Philonise Floyd, George Floyd's brother, after leaving a meeting at the White House with President Joe Biden and Vice-President Harris.
Floyd's daughter Gianna "had an absolute ball", says a lawyer for the family.
"Say his name," she said, as the family raised their fists and called out in unison: "George Floyd."
Meanwhile, Floyd's sister Bridgett denounced Biden for "breaking a promise" to pass a police reform bill by today. She spoke at a rally in Minneapolis surrounded by the mayor and other city officials.
Video content
Reality Check
How much progress has the US made since the 1960s?
In 1963, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr led the March on Washington to demand racial and economic justice. So what's changed since then?
The black-white wealth gap was larger in 2019 than it was in 1983, when black family wealth data was first collected. There hasn't been much movement in the disparity between the wages of black and white Americans either.
But there have been some upward trends: more African Americans had completed four years of higher education by 2019 than ever before - 26% compared with just 4% in 1962.
We've looked at six measures, including poverty, education, wages and congressional representation to answer the question: How far have African Americans come since the 1960s?
How athletes fought for change
Miriam Walker-Khan
BBC Sport
Almost a year on from the death of George Floyd, the world of sport has seen hundreds, if not thousands of athletes protesting against racial injustice on a global scale.
But on 22 April 2021, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that acts of protest - such as taking a knee - will continue to be banned at the Olympic Games, which begin in July.
During a 10-month consultation process, the IOC asked 3,547 athletes whether its 'Rule 50' - which bans demonstrations - should change.
A total of 67% said they wanted to keep the Olympic podium free of protests and 70% were keen to avoid on-field demonstrations.
Gwen Berry, who competes in the hammer throw for the USA, responded with a powerful post on Instagram.
"I wished that Botham Jean was afforded that same choice when he was murdered in his home," she wrote, referring to a black man killed by an off-duty Dallas police officer who mistook his apartment for her own.
"Not to mention the countless individuals whose names are added to a growing list. This is my reason for not wavering. I will not shut up and throw."
Read the full story: How sport joined the fight for change
'Black exhaustion' and the killing of George Floyd
Koralie Barrau
BBC News
Black Americans are exhausted, and the anniversary of George Floyd's murder is a reminder that with every police killing of a black person, another cycle of grief and pain is re-triggered.
Over the course of the Derek Chauvin trial, I spoke to many activists in the Minneapolis area about this constant exhaustion and how it takes a toll on their mental health continuously reliving past traumas.
For them, the death of George Floyd was one of the most brutal images of police brutality and racism, but ultimately is part of a policing system that has always targeted predominately black and brown individuals.
During the trial of Derek Chauvin, this exhaustion was on display at George Floyd Square, where Floyd was killed, with signs and graffiti saying: “I’m so tired”.
One activist, DA Bullock, told us: "We can’t have another George Floyd in a year, two years, three years…Because I can't go through another death, like that. It takes too much out of us, it really does harm us as individuals and harms us as a community."
For Deborah Watts, the cousin of Emmet Till - a black boy who was lynched over 60 years ago - time alone does not heal her wounds.
She says that with every police killing, her wound is reopened again. Much of her work in Minneapolis seeks to work with families who have lost loved ones in encounters with police.
Nearly everyone we spoke to in the city said that true justice equates to a fundamental change in the judicial system.
They believe that despite this exhaustion they feel, they must continue to fight for justice, equality, and accountability.
Video content
A black woman will lead US civil rights office for first time
The US Senate has voted to confirm Kristen Clarke as the first black woman to run the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.
The vote passed narrowly on Tuesday afternoon with only one Republican vote (Maine's Susan Collins).
Clarke is a first-generation American whose parents came to the US from Jamaica. She holds degrees from Columbia and Harvard universities.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called the timing of her confirmation "particularly poignant and appropriate" given today's anniversary.
The civil rights department that she now heads is already investigating the Minneapolis Police Department after Floyd's killer was convicted last month.
They are also investigating the police in Louisville, Kentucky, for the killing of Breonna Taylor.
Reality Check
How are African-Americans treated under the law?
The figures that are available for incidents in which the police shoot and kill people show that for African-Americans, there's a much higher chance of being fatally shot relative to their overall numbers in the US population.
According to the Washington Post’s police shootings database, although African-Americans make up less than 14% of the population, they accounted for almost 24% of over 6,000 fatal shootings by the police since 2015.
Further research shows the rate that police fatally shoot unarmed black people in the US is more than three times as high as it is for white people.
Other studies have shown that black people are more likely to be pulled over in traffic stops by police.
One of the most recent, a 2020 study by Stanford University, analysed 100m traffic stops by police departments across the US and found black drivers were about 20% more likely to be stopped than white drivers.
African-Americans are also arrested for drug abuse at a much higher rate than white Americans, although surveys show drugs are used at similar levels.
Overall, African-Americans are imprisoned at five times the rate of white Americans and twice the rate of Hispanic-Americans, according to the latest data.
These rates have dropped for African-Americans over the last decade, but they still make up more of the prison population than any other race.
Read the full story here:
How are African Americans treated under the law?
'My father, the George Floyd of the 1990s'
Chelsea Bailey
Digital producer, BBC News
Twenty-two years before the death of George Floyd, another brutal murder of a black man shocked the conscience of America and forced a racial reckoning.
WARNING THIS STORY CONTAINS DISTRESSING DESCRIPTIONS.
James Byrd Jr was killed by three white supremacists who drove him down a dark country road and beat him. Then they chained him alive to a pickup truck and dragged his body for three miles - until he was decapitated.
Two of the murderers were executed for the crime. The other is serving a life sentence.
In 2009, President Barack Obama signed a federal hate crime bill into law which is named after James Byrd Jr (as well as Matthew Shepard, who was murdered in 1998 because he was gay).
My colleague Angélica Casas and I visited the Texas town of Jasper this month to find out how Byrd's family is coping two decades after such an unspeakable crime.
His daughter, Jamie, told us how she had reacted to his murder.
"I was numb, I was in denial. I was 16-years-old, so love and forgiveness were no part of my thought process at that moment."
Jamie says she still feels angry but chooses to channel it into positive actions. Now a police officer in Houston, she draws a connection between the murders of her father and George Floyd.
"My dad did not get killed at the hands of a police officer, but in today's world, that is what we're seeing.
"We're seeing a lot of brutality by the hands of officers, unfortunately."
She says it was a challenge to put on the uniform after George Floyd's murder as protests against police brutality and racism spread across the world.
Ultimately, she decided it was more important to keep serving her community.
"I want to be that officer, just be there in solidarity, and say 'hey, I know what you're going through'.
You can watch our film about James Byrd Jr on the BBC News website on Friday.
How ‘Palestinian Lives Matter’ gained ground in the US
Anthony Zurcher
BBC North America reporter
The latest clashes between Israel and the Palestinians have revealed exactly how much the political centre of gravity in the Democratic Party has moved on the conflict in recent years, and especially after civil rights protests sparked by George Floyd’s murder.
In a recent column, Jewish-American Senator Bernie Sanders paid tribute to the rise of "a new generation of activists".
"We saw these activists in American streets last summer in the wake of the murder of George Floyd," he writes. "We see them in Israel. We see them in the Palestinian territories."
His final words lift a direct line from the Black Lives Matter movement: "Palestinian lives matter".
Sanders is noting what has become obvious during clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinians over the past two weeks. Americans who found their political voice during last summer's activism in US cities are now turning their focus, and their rhetoric, on what they see as similar unchecked oppression in the Middle East.
Reality Check
How does US police training compare?
More people are killed by police in the US than in any other developed country. Among these killings, black Americans are killed at a higher rate compared with the percentage of the population they represent.
Most are shot dead. Part of this is to do with gun culture, but there are also growing calls for improved police training to reduce the use of lethal force.
On average, US officers spend around 21 weeks in training before they go on patrol.
That is far less than in most other developed countries, according to a report by the Institute for Criminal Justice Training Reform (ICJTR).
US police academies also spend far more time on firearm training than on de-escalating a situation - 71 hours against 21, on average.
Prof Maria Haberfeld at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, says: "This is why you see officers very rapidly escalating from initial communication to the actual physical use of force, because this is how they train."
BBC Reality Check has looked into how the training requirements in the US compare with other countries.
Read more here:
How US police training compares with the rest of the world
Police feel the 'backlash'
Barbara Plett Usher
BBC News, Minneapolis
Activists continue to demand root and branch change of what they say is a brutal, racist policing system. But this past year has also been hard on police.
Mylan Masson, a former Minneapolis police trainer, says she’s never seen morale so low. The department has lost more than 200 officers to early retirement, transfer or medical leave for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). There is confusion over competing proposals for reform, and a backlash from citizens.
"The officers don't know what the community feels about them,” she said. “What should we be doing? Everything we do, is it going to be judged? Is everything we're doing going to be put through scrutiny that we've never had before? We have things that we need to discuss with the community and make them feel comfortable with us again.”
The department has come under federal investigation and Mylan says there are problems that need to be fixed. But the focus on bad cops is wearing. “We try to... do the best we can and all of a sudden you see something else just horrible happen,” she says. “And it's traumatic.”
Biden demands action after Floyd family meeting
We heard moments ago from George Floyd's family about their meeting with the president and vice-president, and now Biden's released his own response, praising the family for their "extraordinary courage".
Floyd's murder "launched a summer of protests", Biden said in a statement, which "peacefully unified people of every race and generation to collectively say enough of the senseless killings".
Biden also called for action, writing that real change will be delivered only when there is accountability in the nation's law enforcement.
"The negotiations on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in Congress are ongoing," he said. "It's my hope that they will get a bill to my desk quickly."
"We have to act," he said.
Floyd family: Meeting with Biden 'an honour'
George Floyd's family spoke to reporters briefly after a private hour-long meeting with President Joe Biden and Vice-president Kamala Harris.
In quick succession, several members of Floyd's family made comments, many of them thanking Biden and Harris for the meeting.
His brother Rodney Floyd said the family was grateful for the concern the president and vice-president showed.
"Being here today is an honour," said another brother, Terrence. "I feel it was a very productive conversation and I'm grateful for it."
The family also addressed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which they called for Congress to pass. Biden has so far failed to push the bill through, missing his own deadline of today.
The president is waiting for the "right" bill to be passed, Floyd's nephew Brandon said, instead of rushing one through.
"We just want this George Floyd Policing Act to be passed in the future," said brother Philonise Floyd. "If you can make federal laws to protect the bird, the bald eagle, you can make federal laws to protect people of colour."
There was also a moment of levity during the meeting, the family said. Joe Biden interacted and played with Gianna Floyd, George's 7-year-old daughter.
"She had an absolute ball," a family lawyer said.
How is Biden doing on race?
According to a recent NPR poll, 51% of Americans approve of Democratic President Joe Biden’s handling of race relations.
But the numbers break down as expected along party lines. Among Democrats, about 85% say they approve. About half of independents and only 14% of Republicans approve.
About one-third of Americans say they think things will improve under Biden, while another third say race relations will stay the same.
That’s an uptick from Donald Trump’s presidency when a majority of Americans said they expected race relations to worsen.
BreakingFloyd family speaks after White House meeting
Family members of George Floyd are outside the White House now, speaking to reporters after a private meeting with President Joe Biden.
The meeting was "great" said Philonise Floyd, George Floyd's brother.
Floyd's sister skips Biden meeting over stalled legislation
While several of her family members are in Washington to meet with President Biden, George Floyd's sister Bridgett stayed in Minneapolis, where she is attending a rally for her brother.
She said she had passed on the White House meeting because the president has not yet managed to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act through Congress - which Biden had said would be done by today. Democrats first proposed the police reform bill last June.
"He broke his promise, but I am going to give him a couple more weeks," Bridgett said, according to local media.
And she added this message for the president: "Get your people in order."
This is a marathon, says Martin Luther King III
Martin Luther King III, human rights advocate and son of civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr, has told the BBC he fears that not enough has changed one year on from George Floyd's murder.
"This is a marathon," he says.
"People's emotions around the world were evoked to see a public servant whose job is to protect and serve, being judge, jury and executioner all in one," he adds, referring to the actions of white police officer Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes during his arrest last May.
"Although one might say a year later it has subsided, the fact of the matter is that there are still demonstrations going on, and part of it is because [police] shootings have not stopped.
"So the incidents continue, there has been no movement or transition".
If you're just joining us...
Welcome to our live coverage of the anniversary of George Floyd's murder.
President Joe Biden is currently meeting with members of Floyd's family. Earlier today, the president wrote on Twitter that they had shown "extraordinary courage" in the year since George Floyd died.
Demonstrations and marches are happening across the country to commemorate the day. People have taken to the streets in New York, Los Angeles, Portland and Houston.
And much like the demonstrations sparked by Floyd's death last year, today's memorial is global.
Demonstrators have gathered in Edinburgh, Glasgow and London, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marked the day, calling Floyd's death a "tragedy" and a reminder that anti-black racism and injustice persists.
The memorial in Minneapolis at George Floyd Square was briefly interrupted by reports of shots fired though there was only one report of a possible injury from the incident.
Stay with us as we bring you more updates from the day.
Student reads heartfelt poem at vigil
Here's more from the vigil we reported has been taking place outside the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood in Edinburgh.
Medical student and activist Mikaela Loach wrote and read a poem at the gathering.
It included the lines: "I want to be me, fully. To be loved, fully. To breathe in deep, to fill my lungs, feels like an act of rebellion in a world that wants me to suffocate."
Loach told BBC Scotland: "I feel that writing helps me take the stuff that is bubbling up within and express it.
"The stress of living in a world that doesn’t want you to exist in the fullness of who you are, that harms you."