Since Georgeās murder, Iāve been hearing and seeing non-Black people question the Black lives matter movement. I donāt believe non-Black people have the authority to dub a riot/protest āgoodā or ābadā. Honestly, itās unnecessary.
You can have your own opinions, but when you interrogate Black people on why they feel the need to burn cop cars after more than 400 years of being murdered, you just seem tone-deaf.
Itās traumatic living in America as a Black person, I thought y'all knew that.
After every murder committed by the cops, people have gone to the streets, and here are the results of doing that:
TRAYVON MARTIN- was walking home with an iced tea and Skittles. He was shot by George Zimmerman, who was found not guilty.
KEITH SCOTT- was sitting in a car, reading. He was shot by a police officer, who was not charged.
JONATHAN FERRELL was asking for help after an auto accident. He was shot twelve times by police, the case ended in mistrial.
STEPHON CLARK- was holding a cell phone, and was shot 8 times, 6 in the back. The officers were not charged.
AMADOU DIALLO- while taking out his wallet, 41 shots were fired by four different officers. They were all acquitted.
TAMIR RICE- was playing with a toy gun, and was shot by a police officer arriving on the scene. The officer was not charged.
SEAN BELL- was hosting a bachelor party. 50 rounds were fired by police officers who were found not guilty of charges.
PHILANDO CASTILE- was pulled over and told the officer he had a legally registered weapon in his car. The officer was acquitted of all charges.
AIYANA JONES- was sleeping and was accidentally shot by an officer in a raid on the wrong apartment. The officer was cleared of all charges.
TERRENCE CRUTCHER- needed help when his vehicle broke down. Was shot by a police officer who was found not guilty of manslaughter.
ALTON STERLING- was selling CDs, and was shot at close range while being arrested. No charges filed.
FREDDIE GRAY- was beaten to death by officers while being transported in a police van. All officers involved were acquitted.
JOHN CRAWFORD- was shopping at Walmart, holding a BB gun that was on saleāthe police officer was not charged for his murder.
MICHAEL BROWN- was shot twelve times by an officer, including in the back. No charges filed.
SANDRA BLAND- was pulled over for traffic ticket; was tasered and then arrested. Suspicious āsuicideā while in jail. No charges.
If you saw this happen over and over again, with a few acts of ājusticeā (that ultimately donāt make up for a loss of life) then youād be angry too.
āThe definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.ā
I know non-Black people are trying to understand the revolution that is happening currently, but you donāt learn by pressuring Black people to explain why theyāre upset. If you have said anything along the lines of:
āWhy riot? It makes Black people look violent.ā
āIt hurts the businessesā
āI understand butā¦ā
āMLK wouldnāt have wanted thisā
āWhy not vote instead?ā (even Obama said this one)
Youāre criticizing a largely well-intended revolution that Black people are now forced to ignite because nothing else works.
When you could Ā just stand by Black leaders and your Black friends and trust their wisdom on this subject.
In closing, some good newsā¦.
It gets results, thatās why.
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