Phoebe Chen ’21
What is Police Brutality?
Many of you may have heard about George Floyd’s case. Just a couple weeks ago, a white police officer kneeled on an unarmed black man, George Floyd, until he died from asphyxia which his independent autopsy later showed. However, the reason people are so outraged is because of the frequency of unarmed Black people getting shot by white police. Breonna Taylor, tamir rice, David Mcatee… even just this past week, an unarmed black man in NJ died in the hands of the police. The worst part is that the incredibly large majority of these police suffer no consequences because they are protected under the law.
What is Systemic Racism?
After slavery forcefully ended, White and Black communities were separated through Jim Crow laws. Once these were abolished, Black communities that have been segregated for so long continued to receive Less funding + access to education in contrast to White communities. This is one of the main reasons for the huge socioeconomic gap between races— not because of the common misconception of Black communities being lazy. Systemic racism is literally about the SYSTEM of Black oppression.
Aren’t Violent Protests bad? pt. 1
I don’t like seeing the mass destruction. However, it is important to look at why it’s happening. Black voices have been suppressed for 4 centuries, and repeatedly, the government only institutes change when violence is incurring… the results are evident. Since these violent protests, all 4 of the police involved in Floyd’s death were convicted, and other police involved in similar situations have been fired. Prior to these violent protests, it would be likely that these police would be free. In 2018, out of the 2000 police that shot and killed people, less than 2% were charged with any crime.
Aren’t Violent Protests bad? pt. 2
if we look at these protests on a micro level, it’s easy to see that many of the people who are starting this violence aren’t the protestors themselves but are the people using these protests as an excuse to steal. Those people do not care about the movement, but are just taking advantage of it. Even further, a lot of the police are starting this violence! Many peaceful protestors have been arrested or hurt from the tear gas and pepper spray they are using. Let’s keep in mind that tear gas has been banned in warfare. Also, It is our 1st amendment right to protest peacefully! Just this past week, a peaceful protestor Sarah Grossman died from the tear gas that the police used.
Where do Asian people fit in? pt. 1
You may have had negative or hurtful encounters with the Black community, and I’m not denying those occurred. If they did, I’m sorry, and they should not be condoned. But it is important to look from the macro level what the Black community has done time and time again to help us. As Asian- Americans, we will be eternally grateful for your hard work and effort in getting us where we are. There’s more to this though; let’s look at this from a history perspective.
Where do Asian people fit in? pt. 2
In the Civil Rights Act of 1964, MLK and President Lyndon B Johnson signed this act to stop discrimination based on color, religion, sex, and origin. Before this act, Asian people faced lawful discrimination in schools, housing market, and workplace. Without this act, we would still face segregation in a myriad of public institutions. The Civil Rights Act that the Black community singlehandedly fought so hard for did not have to include the Chinese. But it did, and now is our time to come together and give back.
the len(z) 