Black Lives Matter- Lets Recap

Black+Lives+Matter-+Lets+Recap

VIctoria Singleton, Staff Writer

On May 25, 2020 George Floyd was arrested and murdered for the use of a $20 counterfeit bill. His death sparked an international agitation and revival of the Black Lives Matter movement. All 50 states in America, Washington D.C., all five permanently-inhabited territories and 60 other countries took part in the protest for not only George Floyd’s life but the deaths of countless black lives taken at the hands of the police. Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott, Alton Sterling, Philando Castille, Stephon Clark, Breonna Taylor, Botham Jean, Sandra Bland and Elijah McClain are the names of a very small fraction of citizens killed at the hands of police officers. This is not even close to .0625% of all black people killed at the hands of police. The actual number of black people killed by American citizens is not included in this estimated number. The names forgotten and invalidated by the media is what fuels BLM to continue to fight.
Protests took place in every state by the beginning of June. These protests received a lot of violent push back from the police. Tear gas and rubber bullets were used on protesters. In the center of a pandemic police officers marched the streets in their military grade outfits, while nurses were scavenging for PPE substitutions, all to stop the protest for someone’s right not to be killed by those allegedly positioned to protect and serve. Riots were at the front of a very long road for protest . On May 30th , five days after the death of Geroge Floyd, President Trump blamed “ANTIFA and the Radical Left” for the riots that occurred in Minneapolis and around the country.
ANTIFA- Anti Fascism…not an organization, simply a belief system.
The protests in Portland, Oregon have been going on ever since the death of George Floyd.
Mayor of Minneapolis pointed out that many white supremist groups and other outside factors contributed to the rioting and damage done to the city at the time. It remains undecided who started and enforced riots around the nation but the voices of BLM nationwide have been dogmatic in not supporting the rioting and looting. Many small businesses were subjected to the flames and destruction of initial riots in June. While big corporations have the money to rebuild, these small businesses were left destitute in the time of the pandemic.
All lives matter. This is a statement of great controversy. It is a given that all lives matter but when a particular group of lives is not being treated correctly the statement becomes nullified. If every house in the neighborhood is burning, you tend to all houses equally. No house shall be favored when they are all burning. By the same token if one house, only one, is burning that is the house that will receive the attention of firefighters. Their priority has to be the burning house due to the absence of struggle at the other houses. The term “Black Lives Matter” is more than a true statement; it is simply being publicized to help bring understanding.
Breonna Taylor was murdered in her home after being falsely suspected of a crime with someone already in custody. The essential worker was lying in bed next to her boyfriend when loud commotion was heard outside the house. Walker, Taylor’s boyfriend, got up from their bed and retrieved his gun. The rest of the account is pretty foggy due to conflicting testimonies from Walker, police and neighboring witnesses. Breonna Taylor was murdered by three police officers based on false accusations. While Walker did indeed fire the first shot, there was probable cause on his part given that he was in his own home. Many may try to argue that the Louisville police in question were trying to defend themselves, however 16 of 32 shots were fired by an individual officer shifting self defense to pure intent to injure and kill.
#JusticeForBreonnaTaylor was trending for quite a while on Twitter. The issue with this is that black lives are not a trend and their importance is unchanging. Regardless of circumstance nobody should die at the hands of police. Reform in the system is needed and the lives lost need to be acknowledged rather than devalued.

Select black students at FMHS (anonymous survey)