We’re sharing our experiences, thoughts, and uncensored opinions during lockdown, quarantine, and self-isolation. For some of us, it’s DAY 77.
Almost speechless
RafifJ, #Malaga, #Spain
The tragic events over the past week have left me almost speechless. I’m still not sure I can express my sorrow at what has happened in America. Any progress People of Color thought they had made over the centuries has been undone, not just by the murder of #GeorgeFloyd, but all the senseless killings, human rights abuses, and other injustices that Whites have not had to suffer, not like this. By the disenfranchisement and marginalization of people because their skin is a different shade. Because of fear, ignorance, and hatred – all perpetuated, today, right now, by a racist in the White House. That he was elected is further proof of the utter imbalance of justice, morality, ethics, human values, and power in America. And this insidious, virus – which I’ll call Trump – continues to pour gasoline on the fire.
Why do people riot? Because they’ve been left with no other choice. Never forget the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “A riot is the language of the unheard.”
America should have been better than this. So many of us grew up with the notion that this was the land of liberty, the one place where “equal” and “opportunity” were part of the deal. Our Black brothers and sisters have known all along about America’s evil side. And today, right now, the rest of the world knows it, too. Today, right now, we need to take a stand: We can no longer un-see images or videos of innocents being murdered because they are Black. We can no longer un-hear the statements of White supremacists. #BlackLivesMatter.
We can no longer look away, or hope this will blow over. Today, right now, no amount of “land of the free” or “home of the brave” or waving of flags can be enough for us to go back to complacency and silence. Dr. King taught us that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”
Silence equals acceptance. Now go out and make some noise.
What is happening?
Norma B. Wallace, Bend, #Oregon
I am hanging my head – part of me wants to bury my head in the sand – what happened in Minneapolis and the aftermath can’t be happening in my country. My country stands for Freedom for All and Liberty and Freedom and and…. Well, it is happening in my country, we can’t look the other way, we can’t pretend it is an isolated case, we can’t blame others, it happened right here.
I have reposted two posts from my community, one from the police chief and one from my pastor on my Facebook page. They both said it better than I could – I am proud that my leaders in Bend are committed to service to those historically oppressed. Unfortunately, even in this community where there is an attempt, even pride, that we are inclusive – I know of instances where we have not been. Where People of Color have been afraid to walk on the street in an area that prides itself on being inclusive and inviting diversity. There is a lot of work to be done everywhere, and we can only start where we are and move forward.
I was in college in the Sixties and there were many race riots, police brutality, and injustices. That was 55 years ago. I naively thought those days were over. I have seen lots of advancements – but today we took a giant step back. If this is going to be behind us, we need to fix the cause and change the system so that the inequities of opportunity do not exist. Then we will be able to hold our head up high.
In keeping with the purpose of the blog, I must relate to the #Covid-19 virus. The Virus of Racism is worse. Those who are using the masks that are supposed to be protecting others from the Covid virus, but are using them to disguise themselves, are no better than the KKK wearing white sheets. Those who are coming into cities to agitate, loot, destroy on the pretext of protests should be dealt with for what they are. Those who are truly grieving for George Floyd and for the injustices towards him and trying to do so peacefully, should be protected.
I hope that I can someday hold my head up with pride again in My Country.
Breach of contract
Wayne Wallace in McLean, #Virginia
It shouldn’t take a video. We should do the right thing always. Evil should be punished universally, not just when there’s a camera recording the evildoer. You would think that the panopticon enabled by universal cellphone cameras and social media would make this type of tragedy anomaly, rather than then all too frequent event that it is.
We were told to always act as though our mothers could see what we were doing. If we followed this advice, or at least acted as if the camera was always rolling on our actions, tragedies like the Amy Cooper “swatting” of a black man, the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, and the public murder of George Floyd would not have happened.
As Trevor Noah says in his brilliant analysis, the social contract is broken. We are all asked to behave in a certain way, live by certain values. What good are those values when they don’t apply to Law Enforcement? We are asked to live by a code of conduct that applies only to some. Society, and our social contract, are designed to protect those who live by the rules. We’ve learned, over and over, that protection does not apply to People of Color.
And justice does not apply to White law enforcement officers. How can we expect anyone to uphold the social contract or their end of the agreement, when those who represent the law are above the law? How do we not expect lawlessness when our contract offers lawlessness?
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