Colin Kaepernick on police use of force against people of color
"As police officers continue to terrorize black and brown communities, abusing their power and then hiding behind their blue wall of silence and the laws that allow them to kill us with virtual impunity…"Powerful words from Colin Kaepernick.#BlackLivesMatter #RightsNow
Posted by Amnesty International USA on Monday, June 1, 2020
The recent public outrage and demonstrations on display in Minneapolis, Chicago, Atlanta, Louisville, et. al. is not solely about the murder of George Floyd up in Minnesota and not the first time in American history there has been “civil disorder” at the same time in cities across America. During summer 1967, festering tensions went ignored by Whitey in Newark and the city boiled over. Detroit, Newark, Plainfield, NJ (the town from which George Clinton and Parliament sprouted), Atlanta, and others followed.
In the aftermath, President Lyndon Johnson wanted to know what happened, why did it happen, and what could be done? Otto Kerner, Governor of Illinois, chaired the U. S. Commission on Civil Disorders, which is commonly referred to as “The Kerner Report.” In the report’s preface, the President wrote:
“The only genuine, long-range solution for what happened lies in an attack – mounted at every level- upon the conditions that breed despair and violence. All of us know what those conditions are: ignorance, discrimination, slums, poverty, disease, not enough jobs. We should attack these conditions – not because we are frightened by conflict, but because we are fired by conscience. We should attack them because there is simply no other way to achieve a decent and orderly society in America.”
The report identified so many of the ills that fared the land 50 years ago that remain today. Policing, health conditions, disadvantaged and segregated neighborhoods, poverty, judicial injustice, income inequality, and the list continues.
Back to Minneapolis where George Floyd was murdered on camera last week by a police officer with fellow officers observing in broad daylight. The murder occurred close to the intersection of Lake Street and Minnehaha Parkway. My parents lived two miles from that intersection for over 25 years. The mall that had a Target, Aldi, and Cub stores that were seriously damaged and regularly frequented by my Mom. I have driven past that intersection countless times, and recognized all of the buildings during the live video coverage of the outrage. Since there was one building between the burning police precinct building and one building between Minnehaha Liquors and the residential area, I went to bed praying the fires would not spread.
“Riots are the voice of the unheard,” said Martin Luther King, Jr. I heard a fantastic interview with Professor Clifford Stott from Keele University who has co-written several books on the psychology of riots. Yes, the rooted structural and systemic problems were the underlying causes in 1967 and continue to exist in 2020.
Lyrics from Slayer’s song, “Snuff,” from their release, World Painted Blood, at least in my mind, best captures the moment. “The camera never lies” and themes of endless suffering, apathy, and despair relate to the fact that African Americans have had the weight of the white man’s boot (or knee) on their neck then and now. “Do you understand NOW!!??!!??,” NBA legend LeBron James recently tweeted.
– Mark Erickson
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW?
DO YOU UNDERSTAND NOW? pic.twitter.com/Cl2q2qXWFF— allan crawshaw (@allan_crawshaw) May 29, 2020
Saints’ Drew Brees draws backlash for ‘disrespecting the flag’ comment
Pete Carroll’s word means nothing unless Seahawks sign Colin Kaepernick
