America is Burning (ASSIGNMENT 2)
BY FARHIRA FARUDIN
(Assignment 2)
The death of George Floyd has spread massive protests all over America. The protests, some prefer to call them as riots, may come across as shocking to the rest of the world especially in times of a global pandemic that has yet to found its cure, what more in a country that has recently reached its 100,000th death. [1]But it is not shocking to the American black communities who have long fallen as the victims of the racial injustice and police brutality in the country which has its own ugly past with racism.
(Assignment 2)
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| Photo credit: Vox |
The death of George Floyd has spread massive protests all over America. The protests, some prefer to call them as riots, may come across as shocking to the rest of the world especially in times of a global pandemic that has yet to found its cure, what more in a country that has recently reached its 100,000th death. [1]But it is not shocking to the American black communities who have long fallen as the victims of the racial injustice and police brutality in the country which has its own ugly past with racism.
Floyd was a 46-year-old black man who allegedly used a
counterfeit $20 bill in a convenient store in Minneapolis[2],
leading to four police officers to arrest him. One police officer, in
particular, Derek Chauvin, knelt on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds,
causing Floyd to suffer from asphyxiation, which led to his death. The video of
the incident was spread across social media and people were outraged and
started protesting, demanding justice for Floyd’s death. The protest first
began in Minneapolis as a peaceful one, but it later turned violent as police
departments were burnt and stores around the state were damaged and looted.
Several other states have joined in the protest under the hashtag of
#BlackLivesMatter[3], a
movement started due to the increasing deaths of black people under the hands of
police authorities. The four police officers were fired the following day, but
in a country where police brutality and racism against black people coexist
brutally for decades, the people of America demanded more than the firing and
the apologies from the authorities. They wanted a change in the system.
Racism against black people in America is no breaking news. The country after all has been known to its horrifying history with slavery and the Segregation era. And yet, many decades later, the racism against black people is still as strong as ever. They are often discriminated against for their skin colour and race in every social aspect possible, from getting basic education to being stereotyped in Hollywood films to being elected as the President. It shouldn’t be an appalling fact to say that black people are the most oppressed group in America. The racial injustice they face daily is brutal, in most cases actually leads to death, just like Floyd’s.
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| Photo credit: Forbes |
Racism against black people in America is no breaking news. The country after all has been known to its horrifying history with slavery and the Segregation era. And yet, many decades later, the racism against black people is still as strong as ever. They are often discriminated against for their skin colour and race in every social aspect possible, from getting basic education to being stereotyped in Hollywood films to being elected as the President. It shouldn’t be an appalling fact to say that black people are the most oppressed group in America. The racial injustice they face daily is brutal, in most cases actually leads to death, just like Floyd’s.
So what do they want to change about the system? Firstly,
the already flawed system needs to recognize its power and how they are harmful
to black people in the country. Many police officers have been misused their
power in order to harm black people in the name of bigotry and hatred towards
the said community. Not only the authorities, Donald Trump himself as the
president, instead of using his power to listen to the people, has threatened
the protesters with more violence. [4]To
whom can we depend if not the authorities? The protests all over America have
shown that when the authorities fail, it’s time for the people to take control.
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| Photo credit: Business Insider |
The police authorities' system is flawed in many aspects,
and one of them is by enabling white privilege.[5]
White people in America have the utmost privilege in the country, and anyone
who denies so is living unlawfully on the privilege. Privilege can be used as a
weapon against the oppressed group. The treatment given by the police
authorities between white people and black people is vastly different and
injustice. Black people would get harsh treatment for the littlest crimes – in
most cases, they weren’t even committing crimes in the first place like Trayvon
Martin in 2013[6]
and Ahmaud Arbery in last February [7]–
while white people enjoy the littlest punishments even for the most harmful
crimes.[8]
In the same week George Floyd was killed, a story about a
white woman named Amy Cooper became trending worldwide on social media. [9]Amy
Cooper walked her dog unleashed in Central Park, NY where dogs are supposed to
be leashed, so Christian Cooper, a black man recorded her while she called 911
claiming that “an African American is threatening her life and her dog’s.” The
video angered many people, with how Amy Cooper is seen using her white
privilege and weaponized it against an innocent black man. Amy Cooper faced her
consequences as she lost her high profile job and her ownership of her dog. But
questions started to rise on how many more black people have fell victims in
the hands of people who misused their white privilege like Amy Cooper?
As mentioned before, black people are undoubtedly the most
oppressed group in America. Hence, it is only right for white people and other
races to start becoming effective allies to black people who are suffering.
Silencing yourself from the current political situation won’t help, it only
means you are siding with the oppressor. Black people need allies from other
races now more than ever, and there are plenty of ways people can help them
during times like this. Donate to organizations and memorial funds, sign
petitions, use social media as a platform to spread awareness, educate people
on the importance of #BlackLivesMatter, and most importantly is to have empathy
with those who are suffering from injustice. With much support from people,
whether in America or internationally, America could possibly see a revolution
in the system that’s designed to fail its people, especially black people. Now
is the time.
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/27/us-coronavirus-deaths-toll-1000000
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html
[3] https://blacklivesmatter.com/about/
[4] https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/may/29/twitter-hides-donald-trump-tweet-glorifying-violence
[5] https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/fall-2018/what-is-white-privilege-really
[6] https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/07/trayvon-martin-and-the-irony-of-american-justice/277782/
[7] https://www.nytimes.com/article/ahmaud-arbery-shooting-georgia.html
[8] https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/ncaa/ex-stanford-swimmer-rapist-released-after-serving-half-his-term
[9] https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/opinion/chris-cooper-central-park.html
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