Astrology of the Murder of George Floyd

On Monday evening, May 25, 2020, Memorial Day, police were called to a small shop in Minneapolis, Minnesota following a report of a man trying to pass a counterfeit twenty-dollar bill. Four officers took a black man matching the description of the suspect into custody, handcuffed him, then laid him down in the street, where one white officer held him prone with a knee on his neck for almost nine minutes, while he begged for air and called out to his deceased mother, and the other officers watched or assisted.

Passersby and EMTs pleaded with the officer to relax his stance, but he persisted, for almost three minutes after the man beneath him became unresponsive. Taken to Hennepin County Medical Center, EMTs worked to revive him for almost an hour before he was pronounced dead at 9:25 PM CDT.  Protests began the night after the incident, escalating to violent confrontations with police and looting over the ensuing four nights, as demonstrations spread to urban centers across the country.  All four officers were terminated from their employment with MPD the following day, and four days later the arresting officer was himself arrested and charged with third degree murder and manslaughter.

I haven’t mentioned the names of those involved up to this point, because similar scenes have played out in America far too many times, and this could have been any of millions of black men, and any of thousands of white officers, in any of hundreds of incidents.  But the man who lost his life for allegedly using counterfeit money was George Floyd, 46, and the officer who killed him was Derek Chauvin, 44.

We’ll be looking at the chart for Floyd’s death, and Chauvin’s birthdate.  Unfortunately, as of this writing (May 30), no date of birth was available for the victim.  Asteroids include George; Copland and Polizzi (for the police generally); Black, Brown, Maron, Negron and Schwartz (for racial issues); Chauhan (closest to surname Chauvin) and three Derek composite asteroids, Dereknelson, Derekshannon and Derekwoo (all for first name of the officer charged).

BREAKING!!!!  We now have a birth date for George Floyd; don’t miss the Addendum following this article!

The chart for George Floyd’s official time of death (TOD) shows 14 Sagittarius rising, with the Sun at 5 Gemini having just set on the 14 Gemini Descendant, an appropriate solar placement for any passing, with the West signifying death, the dying of the light. With the Sun are asteroids Atropos at 8 Gemini (named for the mythic Greek Fate who severs the thread of life at death), Polizzi (cognate with German Polizei and Italian Polizia, “police”) at 9 Gemini, and Karma at 10 Gemini (indicating a fated circumstance). Death was in the air, with Sun/Atropos, and linked to police, via Polizzi.

These form a T-Square with Mars at 8 Pisces, significator of violent death, conjoined asteroid Requiem, named for the funeral mass for the dead, at 13 Pisces; and asteroid Nemesis, indicating ruin, downfall or undoing, at 13 Virgo, conjoined asteroid Brown at 12 Virgo. In addition to its status as a death indicator generally, Requiem also carries a connotation of a memorialized passing, one which is commemorated publicly in some fashion. In this instance that would include the nights of peaceful and violent protests which would follow Floyd’s murder. The exact opposition to Nemesis suggests, not only the demise of Floyd, but also the self-undoing of Officer Chauvin, brought low by his actions related to the death, while asteroid Brown here denotes the racial component inherent in the tragedy.

Asteroid George at 8 Capricorn conjoins asteroid Osiris at 11 Capricorn, named for the ancient Egyptian god of the dead, and these oppose asteroid Black at 2 Cancer as well as the Moon at 14 Cancer (though these are too far wide to be conjoined each other). Black again identifies the race of the victim, while the Moon opposed Osiris and George suggests the public (Moon) death (Osiris) of Floyd (George). Some might question the use of asteroid Chauhan as a celestial stand-in for the surname Chauvin, but asteroid Chauhan’s appearance at 16 Cancer, closely conjoined the Moon, seems to support this usage (this is further supported by having asteroid Chauhan at station in Chauvin’s birth chart, trine the Sun, indicating a greater-than-typical influence in his life). This opposition becomes a T-Square with the addition of centaur Chiron, which at 8 Aries exactly squares George, with his death reopening the seemingly incurable wound (Chiron) of race relations in America.

Similarly, some may doubt the utility of so-called “compound” or “composite” asteroids, those run-together PNAs which include first and last names, but these can be separated into their component parts and used for either. In this instance, asteroid Derekwoo at 26 Cancer is an exact match for asteroid Copland, another police indicator, identifying Derek Chauvin as the officer in question most central to the incident. In Chauvin’s nativity, Derekwoo conjoins the Sun, establishing this as a valid substitute for him personally.

Asteroid Negron, a form of the Spanish for “black”, nearby at 24 Cancer reiterates the racial issue, and all three opposed Pluto at 24 Capricorn establishes the fatality itself and its subsequent legal classification, with Pluto the modern lord of death as well as the planetary ruler of homicide.   Jupiter also here at 27 Cap alludes to the political nature of the death and the subsequent protests.

A second compound asteroid relating to Chauvin is Dereknelson, which at 13 Leo conjoins asteroid Lachesis, named for the Fate who determines the span of life, a role which Chauvin actualized with George Floyd.  Lachesis exactly opposes asteroid Maron, French for “brown”, at 16 Aquarius, and also opposes asteroid Schwartz at 21 Aquarius, German for “black”, once again linking the racial issues.  In his birth chart, Chauvin has Dereknelson at 27 Aries, conjoined Osiris at 24 and Jupiter at 28 Aries, suggesting some degree of fame (Jupiter) for Chauvin (Dereknelson) related to a death (Osiris).  Dereknelson’s trine to the Galactic Center at 27 Sagittarius indicates that this death could garner global attention and notice.

Reiterating that theme is transit asteroid Derekshannon, the third composite asteroid for Chauvin’s first name, which at 27 Pisces exactly squares the GC, granting that universal notice, as well as squared Mercury at 26 Gemini, putting Chauvin in the news. This T-Square incorporatess TNO Ixion at 29 Sagittarius, named for the first murderer in Greek myth. Natal Derekshannon in Chauvin’s chart appears at 11 Pisces, conjoined asteroid Polizzi at 15 Pisces, propelling him into a career in law enforcement, and also conjoins Mercury at 16 Pisces, representing the naming function, a common placement for one’s own PNAs. Derekshannon/Polizzi is also in a T-Square with Atropos at 10 Gemini (conjoined exactly by transit Karma for Floyd’s death) and a Neptune/Rip pairing at 13 and 17 Sagittarius, which suggests the videotaping (Neptune) of the death (Rip as the acronym “RIP”, “Rest In Peace”, a common tombstone inscription). Neptune/Rip also aligns with the 14 Sagittarius Ascendant of Floyd’s official TOD.

Finally, a pairing of asteroid Anubis at 5 Taurus with Uranus at 8 Taurus, exactly trined George, indicates an unexpected (Uranus) death (Anubis, named for the ancient Egyptian deity governing funerary rites) for Floyd (George), as well as the resulting controversy and rioting (both Uranus).

Derek Chauvin’s arrest booking indicates his birth date as 19 March 1976.  We have already seen how his PNA referents depict their connectedness to himself and the potential for an incident of this type.

In addition to asteroid Chauhan at 21 Scorpio being stationary at his birth (it turned retrograde six days prior), we should also add that Chauhan squares a pairing of Copland and Damocles at 22 and 24 Aquarius, suggesting a doom hanging unseen overhead (Damocles) related to his work as a police officer (Copland).  Also stationary and exerting heightened influence in the life are asteroid Lachesis, ruling lifespan, and Saturn, ancient lord of death, as well as ruling police and career.  Lachesis at 5 Leo turned direct 5 days after his birth, with Saturn following suit from 26 Cancer three days later.

Note that degree—it’s exactly where transit Copland/Derekwoo were at George Floyd’s murder. Moreover, natal Saturn exactly opposes natal George at 26 Capricorn, accompanied by asteroids Schwartz (“black”) and Nemesis at 27 and 24 Capricorn, prefiguring the death (Saturn) of a black man (Schwartz) named George, in Chauvin’s official capacity (Saturn), leading to the ruin (Nemesis) of his own career (Saturn also).  Note also that Nemesis was exactly conjoined by transit Pluto and Schwartz by transit Jupiter for the incident, with natal potential energized for all points in the pattern. And to top it off, this opposition becomes a T-Square when the stellium of Osiris, Derekshannon and Jupiter is factored in, from 24, 27 and 28 Aries.

Squaring Lachesis is a remarkable grouping of asteroids Negron, Requiem, Uranus and TNO Ixion at 1, 5, 6 and 10 Scorpio. This spells out the controversial (Uranus) death (Requiem) of a black (Negron) man, ruled a murder (Ixion). Even more remarkable, this becomes a T-Square with the inclusion of asteroid Black conjunct Atropos, at 9 and 10 Taurus (in itself suggestive of the passing of an African American), which was conjoined by Uranus/Anubis at the death (that sudden, unexpected, controversial fatality). Often the cosmos prefers to beat us mere humans over the head with its symbolism, wanting to be sure we get it right.

Also of note, natal Pluto at 10 Libra in square to transit George/Osiris for the murder, and natal Tantalus, representing the commission of heinous acts, exactly squared the transit Sun from 5 Pisces.  And there’s a new TNO in town, Gonggong, which dwarf planet expert Sue Kientz relates in part to “lack of compassion” in its negative application. Transit Gonggong was coming to station at 4 Pisces, aligned with Chauvin’s Tantalus and the transit Sun, at the time. I feel that kneeling on an already subdued man’s neck for nine minutes, in response to passing a counterfeit bill, while he begs for air and then expires, fits the definition of “lack of compassion” rather well.

And putting the cosmic bow on the ribbon of racial animosity which this death portrays, Chauvin’s natal asteroid Maron (“brown”) at 7 Cancer exactly T-Squares the MC/IC axis of the murder, at 7 Libra/Aries.

Formal charges of third degree murder and manslaughter were filed against Derek Chauvin at 1:07 PM CDT on May 29 in Minneapolis. The MC/Sun conjunction at 7 and 8 Gemini highlighted Chauvin’s natal Atropos at 10 Gemini, placing his connection to the death on full display, with Mars exactly on the 11 Pisces Descendant an exact match for natal Derekshannon, bringing the charge of murder home to roost.

As a veteran of many such stories, I am very confident that, were George Floyd’s birth date to emerge, the particulars of his chart would also dovetail perfectly with the moment of his death and the chart of his killer.  Sadly, that’s how this all works.

[Author’s Note:  For what it’s worth, and for those interested in phonetic stretches for asteroid matches, there are two which might play into the excess of rioting and disorder which accompanied some of the protests of George Floyd’s death. These are asteroid Lutan (closest phonetic match to ‘looting’) and Flammeus (for ‘flames’). Lutan at 11 Aquarius squares Uranus, known for volatility, revolt and rebellion. Flammeus at 26 Capricorn conjoins Jupiter and Pluto, with Pluto indicating destruction and devastation, and Jupiter known for inflating or exacerbating a situation, in this case, throwing fuel on the literal fire. Flammeus’ potency is further enhanced by its stationary status—it turned retrograde on May 31, six days after Floyd’s death, at the height of the protests. Flammeus also squares asteroid Fireman at 27 Aries, which conjoins TNO Eris at 24; Fireman were certainly involved in quenching the flames, while Eris brings strife and discord and represents disrespected, marginalized, angry populations, such as those who lit the fires.]

ADDENDUM 5/31/20

Many thanks to poster Jane, who sought out George Floyd’s birth date using police arrest records in Texas, Floyd’s former home. Unfortunately, there was a discrepancy in year of birth among several filings. The date was given as 14 October, either 1973 or 1974. Of course, with his age being universally given in the media as 46, that points to the 1973 date, as he would not have attained his 47^th birthday until the autumn.  But news outlets are notoriously lax in some matters, and the internet mindlessly propagates these errors; if you just do the simple math subtracting 46 from 2020, that yields 1974 as the birth year.

So I looked at both charts, and while there are certainly substantial points to be said for each, based on the interaction with Derek Chauvin’s chart and the transits in effect at the time of his death, I do believe 1973 to be the correct year.

Principally, in1973 we see asteroid Derekshannon at 21 Libra conjoined the 20 Libra Sun, with asteroid Chauhan (as you recall, our stand-in for “Chauvin”) exactly squared the Sun from 20 Capricorn. This would be consistent with an individual who exerts a huge influence on the life of the native, and certainly being the cause of one’s death would qualify there.  Moreover, the Solar Eclipse prior to Floyd’s death fell at 20 Capricorn, exactly conjunct Chauhan and exactly squared the Sun, bringing out latent natal potentials and actualizing them.

Another standout feature was Floyd’s natal asteroid Dereknelson at 16 Leo, which is exactly where transit Lachesis was for his murder by Derek Chauvin. That seems fairly conclusive to me, with Lachesis being the Fate who determines the span of life.  Natal Dereknelson is also accompanied by natal Nemesis at 12 Leo (making a “Derek” the agent of Floyd’s ruin or undoing), which is a close match for transit Dereknelson at 13 Leo for his death. This also means that Floyd was about to experience a “Dereknelson Return” when he was killed, another “reset” period where natal potential gets a fresh opportunity to reassert itself.

The third “Derek” referent, asteroid Derekwoo, appears at 23 Leo, accompanied by asteroid Copland at 29 Leo, establishing a police officer named Derek in Floyd’s life, though without defining the circumstance. That may be understood by transit Damocles, representing the doom hanging unseen overhead, which exactly opposed Copland from 29 Aquarius when Floyd died.

So we have four hits out of four with our Derek Chauvin referents, which is convincing evidence to me that we have the right date.

Since this event is a death chart, we’d also expect to see activations of natal death indicators. Do we find them with the 1973 chart? Howdy!  The Moon is the fastest-moving celestial in the chart, and the TOD (Time of Death) chart has it at 14 Cancer exactly squaring Floyd’s natal asteroid Atropos at 14 Libra, named for the Fate who severs the thread of life at death.  The Moon is also about to oppose natal asteroid Requiem (funeral mass for the dead) at 15 Capricorn.

We also have transit Uranus and Anubis (sudden, unexpected, controversial death) at 8 and 5 Taurus conjoined Mars (violent death) at 5 Taurus, squaring asteroid Rip (“Rest In Peace”) at 7 Leo and opposing natal TNO Ixion (murder) at 6 Scorpio; the transit Sun at 5 Gemini exactly trine natal Osiris (Egyptian god of the dead) at 5 Libra, also trine natal Pluto (modern lord of death, planetary ruler of homicide) at 4 Libra; Transit George at 8 Capricorn squared Pluto/Osiris and also opposed natal Saturn (ancient lord of death) at 4 Cancer; transit Dereknelson/Lachesis at 13 and 16 Leo squared natal Anubis (funerals) at 13 Scorpio; and the TOD Ascendant of 14 Sagittarius squared natal asteroid Lachesis at 13 Pisces.

If you’ve been keeping track, that makes 10 out of 10 natal death indicators all active at once! Yeah, we’ve got the right chart. This type of (literal) overkill is quite common in TOD charts, though perhaps not to this extreme degree.

Lastly we want to look at how Derek Chauvin’s chart intersects George Floyd’s. Let’s start with the last-named above, with Floyd’s natal Lachesis at 13 Pisces conjoined by Chauvin’s natal Derekshannon and Polizzi (police) at 11 and 15 Pisces; this clearly establishes a cop named Derek as the arbiter of Floyd’s lifespan. Reiterating the “police death” theme is Floyd’s natal Polizzi at 28 Cancer, which conjoins Chauvin’s natal Saturn at 26 Cancer and the TOD Copland/Derekwoo exact conjunction at that same degree.

Floyd’s natal Saturn/Pluto square is T-Squared by Chauvin’s natal Derekwoo at 2 Aries (as well as his Sun, out-of-Sign from 29 Pisces); again personalizing death energies to someone named Derek. And Chauvin’s stunning natal T-Square of Black/Anubis at 9/10 Taurus, Lachesis at 5 Leo and Negron/Requiem/Uranus/Ixion at 1/5/6/10 Scorpio is overlaid by a T-Square in Floyd’s chart, of Mars at 5 Taurus, Rip at 7 Leo and Ixion at 6 Scorpio.

This type of connectivity makes it easier to understand transit Pluto’s upcoming station in October, which at 22 Capricorn exactly conjoins George Floyd’s natal asteroid Karma. This is what Fate looks like, folks.

Alex Miller

Alex Miller is a professional writer and astrologer, whose website AlexAsteroidAstrology.com offers a trove of info on the role of asteroids in personal and mundane astrology. He is the author of The Black Hole Book (available on Amazon.com) and The Urban Wicca, former editor of “The Galactic Calendar,” and past president of The Philadelphia Astrological Society. His pioneering work with Black Holes in astrological interpretation began in 1991, when his progressed Sun unwittingly fell into one. Alex’s books and writings are available on his website. Alex can also be reached for comment or services at .