It's been a week.
Unless you've buried your head for the past couple months,
you should have some idea what I'm referring to.
Not much inspiration, and I don't feel it's appropriate.
I'm gonna lecture you instead.
More black Americans have died at the hands of police,
or at the hands of civilians on a power trip within the past 4 weeks.
Breonna Taylor, who was shot in her own home, by
officers looking for a person who didn't even live in her building.
Ahmaud Arbery, out for a jog, was shot to death by two civilians,
while a third recorded it on video.
Christian Cooper, a birdwatching in Central Park, who, while
not killed, was basically threatened by a woman who felt the
dog leash laws didn't apply to her, and decided that a well-meaning
black person wasn't going to tell her what do to.
Cooper was lucky. He walked away.
The spark on the powder keg was the daylight murder of
George Floyd, who on March 25, 2020 was killed by an officer kneeling
on his neck in front of witnesses and police officers
who watched it happen without attempting to intervene).
After 2 months of pandemic isolation, millions of people losing their jobs,
with minority Americans hit especially hard, and a seeming rise in
police and citizen brutality and violence against people of color, it
seems inevitable that Minnesota would be on fire.
If you had told me three years ago that the end of Trump's term would look like this,
with over 100,000 dead (coronavirus), escalated police brutality, murder hornets,
millions out of work, and an economy on the verge of a nosedive, I would
have believed you. Yeah, that sounds flippant, but we seem to be right on
track to where I thought we'd be, as a country, after nearly four years with
this trainwreck of an administration.
I try not to be too topical on this blog, but it's my blog and I can say what I want to.
Police brutality isn't new. I'ts been a part of this country for decades.
Look up the sad tale of Emmett Till.
I've read books. Stuff on history and civil rights.
But what made it click, really click, was an incident that happened in 2016.
Terrence Crutcher, a 40 year old black man, was killed by police when his
car stalled on a roadway. The man was unarmed. He just needed help with his car.
And they killed him.
I can't imagine how distressing it is to live your life this way.
Constant awareness of how you appear to others, worrying about
how you will be treated in a routine traffic stop, being aware that
even if your intentions are without malice, just one phone call
can put your very existence in jeopardy.
As a woman, I know what it feels like to constantly be aware of
surroundings and people around you who may want to take advantage
of you and do harm.
Adding the layer of skin color and prejudice makes that all the more saddening.
There are so many layers to what is happening now.
Police brutality needs to be addressed and it needs to be handled
in a way that holds bad cops accountable. Which is something that, in most
precincts in this country, is sorely lacking.
People need to be taken to task for their comments and actions.
If there was one thing I learned at Camp Anytown a gazillion years ago,
when I was a camper in high school, is that racist comments and jokes
should not be tolerated. I've tried to hold this ideal, but it's good to have
a reminder. We all need a boost.
Being aware of dog whistles and systemic issues is a step in the right direction.
Gentrification, red-lining, voter disenfranchisement, outright discrimination.
Be alert and aware. And, if it is safe to do so, say something.
And, let's start easy. If you are so moved, make a donation to
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