At first, I was reluctant to write an article about the current issue of the George Floyd protests, because I thought I was not informed enough to have an opinion. I therefore paid extreme attention to the unfolding events and what different activists and people at the fore front of these protests had to say and I was able to see what the media is missing yet is very important.
First of all, the media is tainting the protests as violence filled protests. Which is not entirely the case and it is very disturbing that this is what the media is focusing on.
Are they looting? Yes. Are they damaging property? Yes. All this can be replaced, they can and will rebuild, but unfortunately the same cannot be done for George Floyd’s life.
In fact, the police are the ones being violent towards the protesters with these so called rubber bullets, that are supposedly not harmful, leaving people missing some body parts.
But these protesters go ahead to protect some stores from some people who are taking advantage of the situation. These protesters that are accused of being violent are the ones protecting some cops from other people who are taking advantage of the protests.
Secondly, the act of looting is definitely not okay, but let's take a deep dive under the surface of this subject in terms of Black America. Acknowledging the wealth inequality in America in terms of race, the black community ranks 4/4 in the median household income in the United States by race and ethnicity and Native American tribal grouping (as of 2015), according to the United States Census (Mixed race and mixed ethnicity categories are not listed).
Martin Luther King’s words wrote a letter to the American Psychological Association saying that looting comes from the deprived negro and allows them to take hold of consumer goods with the ease that a white man does by using his purse and that often the negro doesn’t want what he takes but wants the experience of taking.
People in high position and even other curious souls are wondering what needs to be done in order to put an end to these protests. Most people think that the officers involved in the murder of George Floyd should be convicted for the protests to end.
Well, accountability is certainly necessary and it is sad to think that people have to first protest for someone in wrong to take responsibility for their actions. But let’s be able to differentiate ACCOUNTABILITY from JUSTICE. The posters clearly say "No Justice No Peace" or "Justice for George Floyd."
Now I can tell you what is needed for this to end. Justice it is. Because with this in place there would definitely be no need for protests.
There would not be trauma to cause the protests. Ask me again what is needed to end the protests and I will tell you, the institution and policies governing the United States should change and favor all races because one thing for sure, they don’t favor our black brothers and sisters. Anything beside this is only a band aid, not a way forward.
Finally, the protests are not only to attain justice in the matter of police brutality, but also other problems bothering the black community, like racism, exclusion from the social contract, lack of diversity in different areas, progressive policies, you name it. The media should know and let others know there is a bigger picture.
These occurrences, the media is certainly not showing you. Now you know.
