George Floyd’s death has sparked outrage and protests. Floyd was murdered and it was captured on camera. Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin had his knee pinned against Floyd’s neck for close to eight minutes.
George Floyd with girlfriend Courteney Ross. Pic: Courteney Ross |
People heard a haunting repetition of the words “I can’t Breathe.” Floyd cried out for his deceased mother and called out for his children as he desperately clung to life. Officer Derek sat there, smug, hand in his pocket, with little regard for the man dying underneath the pressure of his knee.
After the brutal murder, the Minnesota National Guard has arrived in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and surrounding areas. Minneapolis has imposed a weekend curfew. Community leaders and residents demand the arrest of the three other officers involved.
Hundreds of people protested for the second day in downtown Louisville, Kentucky with some demonstrators breaking into the city’s Hall of justice and starting a fire inside.
The crowd rallied in different parts of the city, with some chanting “Prosecute the police” and “I can’t breathe”.
Demonstrators funneled their anguish in cities like Atlanta, New York, and Washington into chants, signs, and outbreaks of violence, smashing windows and setting vehicles ablaze.
In Minneapolis, roughly 1,000 people marched peacefully along the city's major freeway Interstate 35, hours after a curfew went into effect. One black man held a sign that read, "Am I next?
Brian P Kempt, governor of the state of Georgia, declared a state of emergency in Fulton County and ordered the deployment of 500 national security guard troops as protests turned violent in Atlanta.
Some protesters clashed with police in downtown Houston, Texas, with officers deploying tear gas or pepper spray to disperse crowds.
As the US reels from the impact of the global coronavirus pandemic, protesters defied lockdown rules by gathering in different parts of the country after Floyd’s death. According to a report by NBC, several fights broke out between police and protesters in New York on the 29th of May, when over 100 people gathered at Union Square. More than 40 people were arrested, as per reports.
Racism in America is not new
Racial and ethnic inequalities loom large in American society. People of color face structural barriers when it comes to securing quality housing, healthcare, employment, and education. Racial disparities also permeate the criminal justice system in the United States and undermine its effectiveness.
More than 150 years after the 13th Amendment abolished slavery in the United States, most U.S. adults say the legacy of slavery continues to have an impact on the position of black people in American society today.
According to a pew research center survey, More than four in ten say the country hasn’t made enough progress toward racial equality, and there is some skepticism, particularly among blacks, that black people will ever have equal rights with whites.
Opinions about the current state of race relations – and President Donald Trump’s handling of the issue – are also negative. About six-in-ten American (58%) say race relations in the U.S are bad and of those, few see them improving. Some 56% think the president has made race relations worse; just 15% say he has improved race relations and another 13% say he has tried but failed to make progress on this issue.
In addition, roughly two-thirds say it’s become more common for people to express racist views since Trump became president,
Blacks are particularly gloomy about the country’s racial progress. More than eight in ten black adults say the legacy of slavery affects the position of black people in America today, including 59% who say it affects it a great deal. About eight in ten blacks 78% say the country hasn’t gone far enough when it comes to giving black people equal rights with whites, and fully half say it’s unlikely that the country will eventually achieve racial equality.
Americans see disadvantages for blacks and Hispanics in the U.S. A majority of all adults (56%) say being black hurts people’s ability to get ahead at least a little, and 51% say the same about being Hispanic. In contrast, 59% say being white helps people’s ability to get ahead. Views about the impact of being Asian or Native American are more mixed.
Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians are more likely than whites to say being white helps people’s ability to get ahead at least a little. Among whites, those who are more educated, as well as those who identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, are particularly likely to see advantages to being white.
The nationally representative survey of 6,637 adults was conducted online Jan. 22-Feb. 5, 2019, in English and Spanish, using Pew Research Centre’s
In addition to exploring the public’s views about the state of race relations and racial inequality in America, the survey also looks at personal experiences with racial and ethnic discrimination and the role race plays in people’s lives. Among the report’s key findings:
Most Americans say it’s now more common for people to express racist or racially insensitive views; more than four-in-ten say it’s more acceptable
Most Americans (65%) – including majorities across racial and ethnic groups – say it has become more common for people to express racist or racially insensitive views since Trump was elected president. A smaller but substantial share (45%) say this has become more acceptable.
Democrats and those who lean Democratic are more likely than Republicans and Republican leaders to say it has become more common and more acceptable for people to express racist and racially insensitive views since Trump was elected president. Among Democrats, 84% say this is now more common and 64% say it’s more acceptable; fewer than half of Republicans say it has become more common (42%) and just 22% say it has become more acceptable for people to express these types of views.
Blacks are more likely than other groups to say their race has had a negative impact on their ability to get ahead; whites are the most likely to say their race helped them
About half of black adults (52%) say being black has hurt their ability to get ahead at least a little, with 18% saying it has hurt a lot. About a quarter of Hispanics and Asians (24% each) and just 5% of whites say their race or ethnicity has had a negative impact. In turn, whites are more likely than other groups to say their racial background has helped them at least a little.
Among blacks, those with at least some college experience are more likely than those with less education to say being black has hurt their ability to get ahead.
Education is also linked with whites’ perceptions of the impact their race has had on their ability to get ahead. Small shares of whites across educational levels say their racial background has hurt their ability to succeed, but those with a bachelor’s degree are more likely than those with less education to say being white helped them at least a little.
Across all racial and ethnic groups, more point to their own hard work than to any other attribute, including their race, their gender, the people they know, or their family’s financial situation, as something that helped them get ahead.
Majorities of black and white adults say blacks are treated less fairly than whites in dealing with police and by the criminal justice system
Black and white adults have widely different perceptions of how blacks are treated in America, but majorities of both groups say blacks are treated less fairly than whites by the criminal justice system (87% of blacks vs. 61% of whites) and in dealing with police (84% vs. 63%, respectively).
About six-in-ten blacks or more – but fewer than half of whites – say blacks are treated less fairly than whites in hiring, pay, and promotions; when applying for a loan or mortgage; in stores or restaurants; when voting in elections; and when seeking medical treatment. In each of these realms, whites tend to say blacks and whites are treated equally; very small shares say whites are treated less fairly than blacks.
Cross these different areas, there are gaps ranging from 39 to 53 percentage points in how white Democrats and white Republicans see the treatment of blacks in the U.S. About half or more white Democrats say blacks are treated less fairly than whites in dealing with the police (88% vs. 43% of white Republicans); by the criminal justice system (86% vs. 39%); in hiring, pay and promotions (72% vs. 21%); when applying for a mortgage or loan (64% vs. 17%); in stores or restaurants (62% vs. 16%); when voting in elections (60% vs. 7%); and when seeking medical treatment (48% vs. 9%).
In some of these areas, black and white Democrats express similar views, but larger shares of black Democrats say black people are treated less fairly than whites in employment situations (86%), when applying for a loan or mortgage (78%), in stores or restaurants (73%), and when seeking medical treatment (61%).
Trump’s reaction
President Donald Trump spoken to the family of George Floyd, unarmed black man who died at the hands of a police officer. Trump said – “I want to express our nation’s deepest condolences and most heartfelt sympathies to the family of George Floyd, “Trump said during a roundtable event at the White house.
He added that he’s ordered the justice department to expedite a federal investigation into this matter.
Trump remarked- it’s a local situation but we are also making it into the federal situation and it’s a terrible thing. We all saw what we saw and it’s very hard to even conceive of anything other than what we did see. It should never be allowed to happen, a thing like that.
The president also said that while there were “good people” protesting in Minnesota, however, the actions of violent protestors “did a great disservice to their state.
The looters should not be allowed to drown out the voices of so many peaceful protesters they hurt so badly, what is happening, and it so bad for the state and their great city.
How does one live in such a time?
For those African-Americans who have lost loved ones and their jobs, who find themselves in long lines at food banks, who have to deal with the ongoing stress of a virus that can strike at any moment, how do you manage the trauma of loss and the terror of seeing another Black person killed by the police?
It’s part of a ritual practice, a way the nation manages its racist sins. People declare their outrage. They, mostly white people, wonder how this could happen in today’s America. They cry out for justice. Or, as in the past, the victimizing screeds of people who refuse to take personal responsibility. They defend the police. They condemn the violence. Wash. Rinse. Repeat. And nothing changes.
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