Monday, June 1, 2020

Focusing 2020 on Protests for George Floyd



Here is my analysis of how to focus on the protests surrounding George Floyd.  I want students to think critically and not simplistically about what hs been taking place.  None of what I wrote endorses the use of violence (whether against police or property) as a means to an end.  The link above contains my full thoughts with supporting material.  Here is a summary:

1. Racism is a part of our society in general (not just a part of police) and the President of the United States has been a very public face and promoter of racist ideas.
2. Even after the killing of dozens of Americans and the Black Lives Matter movement and Colin Kaepernick taking a knee and Lebron speaking out, there was no social change and instead there was resistance - a counter movement against Black Lives Matter, Colin Kaepernick being fired and banned from the NFL, a President speaking out against the movement or change, and an endorsement of white supremacy by the President of the United States.
3. Everyday life is exhausting when you must face racism in your daily living and racism is far more widespread than policing.
4. Looting and protesting are not the same. Focusing only on looting is simple-minded and scapegoating and will inevitably lead to more of the same in the future. There are many good police officers who are forced to work within a broken system. Some of these police have shown their sympathy to protesters. And many protesters who went out of their way to protect buildings, stop looting and protect police.
And in fact, looters vary widely:
Some looters are fringe groups who are against the protesters and want to make them look bad (and possibly start a race war),
Some looters are white people who don't understand the repercussions of looting,
Some looters are protesters who were met with violence so they were violent in return,
Some looters have no interest in the protests at all and are simply taking advantage of the situation.
Think critically. Work to identify your own biases. Work to end injustice in the U.S. even when the injustice is not affecting you. Work to end violence.
I elaborate on all of these points in the document linked about.