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| Jacob Blakes's mother, Julia Jackson (Raw Story) |
On the plus side, the harassment of black Americans by a racist cop like Derek Chauvin which in his case ended up being deadly has been exposed to the entire world. There is almost always someone around with a smart-phone to record the incident. The world needs to know that so that we can learn how to prevent that from ever happening again. The urgency is real.
We need to do what is necessary to root out the all too frequent inequality of treatment between black and white people by police. There is little doubt in my mind that this is the case. In some cases it is overt racism. But in other cases it is a subliminal racism that many cops act upon without even realizing they are doing it. That has to end. Driving while black should never be considered a crime. That is not how this country is supposed to work.
That being said, I will repeat what I believe to be the case. The vast majority of police are not inherently racist. They are heroes who wake up every day, put on their uniforms, and go to work not knowing whether they will return home that evening. Law enforcement is a dangerous job. Keeping the peace often involves a cop putting himself in harm’s way.
Back to smartphones. The fact that these images have contributed to justice a good thing. But then there is the other edge of that sword that is responsible for an upheaval invioleice across the land. The public reaction of good people that protest those killings has givenrise to a degree of lawlessness and violence not seen since in decades. It has unleashed a fury among many protester that has resulted in criminality which has included looting and destroying public and private property.
I understand the anger. But these kinds of protests undermine the very cause they are supposedly fighting for. Because even though the media is painting these protest as justified and minimizing the rioting and looting by referring to them as outsiders taking advantage of these protests. It is getting increasingly hard to see protests like this that way since they end up with violence in almost every case where some of hosee protesters can be heard justifying it all.
If the President ever wanted to have an issue he could rally American support for, he could not have asked for a better gift. Despite the media’s positive spin of images on the nightly news, images of looting and destruction in a city seeming to be going up in flames send a different image to viewers. Demands for radical change such as eliminating law enforcement is not a message that resonates with mainstream America. Most of whom want to see law and order restored and a peaceful reslotution to this real issue. They are probably frightened by what they see on the nightly news.
I mention all of this now again because of what happened to Jacob Blake. A video was taken of Kenosha police pursuing him where upon entering his car, one of those cops shot him 7 times in the back under murky circumstances. Fortunately Jacob Blake survived. Unfortunately, however, he may very well be paralyzed for life.
That video has generated yet another series of violent protests. Which is being reported by the media every single day since the very first one. These protesters are angry and destroying their city. This is what is being broadcast every single night... a scary thing to watch! This is why I say that the law and order approach taken by the President will resonate with the majority of Americans now more than ever.
This is not a black and white issue. This is a right and wrong issue. There is a right side to this that includes rectifying the long delayed justice for black America as well as keeping an orderly society where people feel safe; protected; and where criminals are punished. It is for this reason that I want to recognize the courage of Julia Jackson, Jacob Blake’s mother. Her attitude is amazing considering what happened to her son. She understands what should be obvious to all good people who care about this country. Which is that the kind of protests going on right now in Kenosha are destructive and counter-prodcutive to their justifiable goals of equality. Here is what she said:
"As I was riding through here, this city, I noticed a lot of damage and it doesn't reflect my son," Jackson said. "So I'm really asking, and encouraging everyone in Wisconsin and abroad to take a moment and examine your heart. As I pray for my son's healing ... I also have been praying even before this for the healing of our country."
This black mother whose son was shot by a cop and possibly paralyzed for life is a woman that needs to be heard. Mainstream white America needs to know that their abhorrence of violent protest are shared by mainstream black America, too. . But more importantly it is the protesters themselves that need to hear it. And heed it.
What better person to make this point than Julia Jackson at this moment in time.
I know black people are angry. I don’t blame them a bit. I am too. But to get what they seek – what all good people seek, they need to stop those among them that loot stores and destroy private or public property and in the process ruin lives. If cooler heads prevail, a lot more can be done.
Unfortunately I think her words will fall on deaf ears.
