This evening I walked into the house and plopped down on the
couch to take a short break from weeding.
I stayed there for a while. My
husband was watching PBS News Hour and they were showing all the places in the
country where people are protesting and rioting following the murder of George
Floyd by police in Minneapolis. But it’s
about a lot more than that.
Watching all the videos of the violence brought me back to
the riots of 1968. I remember the day
that Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot.
Kids set fires in the garbage cans at our junior high school; they sent
us all home. I couldn’t understand why
people would use violence in response to the assassination of a non-violent
man. I am so much older now and my
understanding has changed.
After all these years, what has changed in our
country? We had riots 50+ years ago but
what have we learned? Like many other
people, of all races, I was horrified when I saw the video clip of the white
police officer kneeling on George Floyd’s neck.
Why? Why would someone do
this? So they fired the four officers
who were present. Okay good. But why weren’t they arrested? This was clearly murder. The officer who kneeled on him has been
arrested finally but what about the others?
And it was only a few months ago that another black man, Ahmaud Arbery, was murdered while jogging by two white men.
As a white woman, I know I am privileged. I am shocked and disgusted by these
events. I am learning that people of color
react somewhat differently. This is one
more violent act perpetrated on their people; it’s been happening their entire
lives. They are angry. I can empathize but I can’t truly understand
what it is like for them to live in a white dominated system that works against
them. Black parents tell their kids how
to behave around white people, especially cops.
One wrong step and they may never come home again. Activities I take for granted, that I don’t
even think about, can be risky if you have dark skin. I can’t imagine what it is like to live like
that.
Multiple cities have had peaceful protests that have erupted
into riots with fires, looting, and destruction. For some, this is pent up anger and this is
the only way they have left to get attention. Peaceful methods have failed. To make matters worse, infiltrators have been
traveling from other states to instigate violence. There are some reports that they are far
right groups, white supremacists, intent on creating chaos and breaking down
civil society.
As a non-violent person, I am distressed to see this
violence. I feel for the small businesses
who have just barely reopened during this pandemic and now their businesses are
gone. On the other hand, I feel for
people who are so oppressed that they feel they have no other option than
violence to show how they feel and to demand change.
How do we change this now?
How can we be successful when we have failed so miserably in the
past? How do we end racism? Can we change hearts and minds? What do we do?
As a progressive who lives in a very white and conservative
state, I struggle with this. First, we
need new leadership in this country. We
need to change systems in this country and it should begin with the President
and Congress. However, it seems that
much of what needs to be done is at a local level. Police departments need to be reorganized and
officers should be vetted more carefully.
We need to talk to each other. We
need to listen to each other. When I
have worked on other justice issues, I have learned to sit and listen because I
really don’t know what it’s like to walk in the other’s shoes. We can’t support people and make changes
unless we understand what they need from us.
When President Obama was elected, many of us thought we had
turned a corner—but it just brought out the racists. And now President Trump is fanning the flames
of hatred. I pray that we Americans will
have the courage and wisdom it takes to turn our country around now, before it’s
too late.
