The protests continue to occur without a real solution or de-escalation in place. People are grieving, hurt, dejected, and tired with no real leadership to look up to. We’re on day 8 for the protests and it’s been disheartening to see the events and actions that are taken place. I know I haven’t been in the right headspace since this started.
What the people are looking for is action and acknowledgment from the leaders that we’ve voted to office. We’re looking up to these people to provide actions and solutions to help deescalate the situation. Not make it worse.
Donald Trump made his public remarks yesterday and did not acknowledge the situation for what it is. He did not say “BLACK LIVES MATTER!” He stuck to his guns (literally) and called mayors and governors to put forth more aggression and force to bring down the protests. He also had the entire block of protesters teargassed so that he can take a picture with the historic church. Why aren’t leaders speaking out? Is it because its an election year?
I love this quote from Martin Luther King Jr as it has the answer to our problems. “Only light can” drive out the darkness. There needs to be more love.
Donald Trump is using force against force and hoping that things die down. What he doesn’t realize is that he is adding more fuel to the fire. I genuinely believe that there are incredible police officers out there in the nation that truly care about the people that they are protecting, but what’s happening right now is only causing that perception of the police to erode even more.
Trump has not shown that he is doing anything to solve this problem outside of using more force. Would he rather see beautiful American cities burn to the ground than creating solutions to help reform police officers?
There will be everlasting impacts on people and their perception of the police because of this moment. Will people even feel safe around police officers in the future? The force used is not only magnifying the issues but also introducing actors like Antifa to mobilize and cause even more trouble for the American people.
I don’t know when this will end and I may not have all the answer, but what I do know is that we need the following:
- Sentencing all four police officers that were involved (you can sign the petition here – https://www.change.org/p/change-org-the-minneapolis-police-officers-to-be-charged-for-murder-after-killing-innocent-black-man)
- Federal task force to re-look at police reform nationally
- Giving people the space to speak their mind and express themselves as they grieve the death of George Floyd
- Investigate groups like Antifa that are using this protest for their agenda
- Every leader acknowledging that BLACK LIVES MATTER and sharing love vs force/hate
I came across one of the most well-thought-out thread on police reform tweeted by Black Activist Samuel Sinyangwe that I wanted to share with you all. It’s a set of fantastic research on what works and doesn’t work for police reform.
#BLACKLIVESMATTER
The link below is a great aggregate of all the different links to take action on this cause