I have not one idea of where to begin. There are no words to cover times like this, probably because there never should be times like this. We, the whole country, witnessed a murder on television. There is no doubt about that. Like many, and I hope most, I was not happy, or even relieved to see the officers involved arrested. Nothing about this whole situation should make anyone happy. I'm not sure what I was. Surprised, maybe? Because the murder of innocent black people has been going on for so long it was not a "given" that justice would be served. Of course, it still hasn't been served. That remains to be seen. But at least there is the semblance by those in authority that Mr. Floyd's life mattered. How much it mattered is becoming more obvious each day.
Those who took advantage of the legitimate protests to loot, and destroy, and fill their own pockets (and they were both black and white) damaged but did not destroy the message. Violence is not the answer. It never has been and it never will be. But I can certainly understand the rage, or I can say that I will do my best to understand the rage. No one who hasn't felt the weight of decades or centuries of daily discrimination in big and small ways can begin to really understand.
Stupidly, I who was in high school during the 60's and remember well the death of Dr. King and so many others, thought we had made so much progress since then. People who had never changed would make jokes about "having to be politically correct" and what an annoyance that was, but they wouldn't dare come out and speak of the hatred that was in their hearts for anyone who didn't mirror back their own image. Any difference was seen as a challenge, an attack on who they were and what they thought. There were repercussions for saying what they really felt.
Then there was a change in tone. White Supremacy was a "thing" again. And African Americans were not the only targets. Suddenly it seemed as though we had gone back 50 or 150 years, and Jews and Asians and Latinos, and anyone who was immediately identifiable as "not one of them" also had reason to be afraid. The hatred between races, between political parties, between the US and other countries has been exhausting sane people for too long. Enough already. We've had enough. We've had so much, people of every color and party and religion are willing to come out and march in the middle of a pandemic to express their grief and rage and hunger for justice. I wish they'd all worn their masks, but that's another essay. This has to stop. Now and forever.
There is no "bright side" in any of this. My heart aches for Mr. Floyd's family, and for my African-American friends who are not the least bit surprised by any of this. I called several the other day and had nothing to say except "I love you". That's all I had to offer. I don't know what it's like to live with this fear, this knowledge of being hated for no reason, every day of your life. How could I? But I am hopeful, seeing the depth of the pain and disgust we are feeling these days, that many more people will at least be making more of an attempt. Donate to social justice groups. Donate to Black Lives Matter, or anyone you like, to help level the playing field. Do some homework on black history, and not just in February. Read. Learn. Help. And for the love of God and of one another, VOTE. That's how we can begin to change this. That's how we can honor George Floyd.
Those who took advantage of the legitimate protests to loot, and destroy, and fill their own pockets (and they were both black and white) damaged but did not destroy the message. Violence is not the answer. It never has been and it never will be. But I can certainly understand the rage, or I can say that I will do my best to understand the rage. No one who hasn't felt the weight of decades or centuries of daily discrimination in big and small ways can begin to really understand.
Stupidly, I who was in high school during the 60's and remember well the death of Dr. King and so many others, thought we had made so much progress since then. People who had never changed would make jokes about "having to be politically correct" and what an annoyance that was, but they wouldn't dare come out and speak of the hatred that was in their hearts for anyone who didn't mirror back their own image. Any difference was seen as a challenge, an attack on who they were and what they thought. There were repercussions for saying what they really felt.
Then there was a change in tone. White Supremacy was a "thing" again. And African Americans were not the only targets. Suddenly it seemed as though we had gone back 50 or 150 years, and Jews and Asians and Latinos, and anyone who was immediately identifiable as "not one of them" also had reason to be afraid. The hatred between races, between political parties, between the US and other countries has been exhausting sane people for too long. Enough already. We've had enough. We've had so much, people of every color and party and religion are willing to come out and march in the middle of a pandemic to express their grief and rage and hunger for justice. I wish they'd all worn their masks, but that's another essay. This has to stop. Now and forever.
There is no "bright side" in any of this. My heart aches for Mr. Floyd's family, and for my African-American friends who are not the least bit surprised by any of this. I called several the other day and had nothing to say except "I love you". That's all I had to offer. I don't know what it's like to live with this fear, this knowledge of being hated for no reason, every day of your life. How could I? But I am hopeful, seeing the depth of the pain and disgust we are feeling these days, that many more people will at least be making more of an attempt. Donate to social justice groups. Donate to Black Lives Matter, or anyone you like, to help level the playing field. Do some homework on black history, and not just in February. Read. Learn. Help. And for the love of God and of one another, VOTE. That's how we can begin to change this. That's how we can honor George Floyd.
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