This was a divisive act that was analyzed for months on end about Colin Kaepernick’s silent protest over police brutality. He got criticized heavily for it but would you have taken a knee next to Kap to protest police brutality as well?
Would you have taken a knee for the senseless killings of African Americans by the police? Well….. would you?
EVEN back then, people found a reason to NOT pay attention to the REAL ISSUE which was the senseless killings of African Americans at the hands of the police. They allowed the media to distract them with football nonsense and why he’s kneeling against the anthem.
We talked about the flag and we talked about the National Anthem…. we NEVER talked about police brutality.
Don’t you see the issue with that? Will people truly understand police brutality or will they continue to turn a blind eye because it doesn’t directly impact them?
I’m a very positive and upbeat guy but this story is disturbing. It absolutely makes my blood boil to know that someone in the position of power has used their authority unethically.
Remember when police cars used to have the saying “to protect and to serve?” I wonder why that message is no longer on police vehicles? It makes me wonder if they’re out to be an extension of the abuse of government power.
But I’m not going to go into the politics and conspiracy theories of THAT whole thing. I will say this: if you’re not deeply disturbed after watching that video, then you have a problem.
The issue here is a man who’s been arrested but includes excessive force AFTER he has submitted to police. I used to work with Behavior Disorder students where I had to CPI (Crisis Prevention Intervention - legal restraint) students who were a danger to themselves or the class.
I bring this up because I was in a position of power where I could’ve EASILY abused it if I wasn’t right in the head. In other words, if I felt some type of way about a student or allowed what they said or did to get to me, I could EASILY abuse this power with intent to hurt them.
It’s a challenging job to deal with the hardest people day-in and day-out and remain sane and do a good job.
NEVER in my 10 plus years working with those students did I ever allow my ego to take over and be bigger than the situation. It was NEVER about exercising my power, it was about de escalating a situation so that we can bring peace and safety back to the environment.
I say all of that because the officer that had his knee on the neck of George Floyd CLEARLY didn’t take ANY OF THAT into account. Even while being recorded, he didn’t adjust himself or try to see if George was “ready to comply.”
NO.
He just kept doing what he was doing out of the abuse of his own power trip.
This angered me to the boiling point of needing to speak up. As an African-American, there have been many times I’ve been pulled over for DWB (Driving While Black - a term coined for driving JUST BECAUSE of skin color and being deemed suspicious). There have been times I have feared that my life was in danger. There have been times where I feel like I‘ve had to watch EVERY MOVE I make as to not incite a reaction.
I truly hope that George Floyd gets justice. I can only pray and hope that people understand the importance of why I’m writing this and why it’s important for everyone to see why we CANNOT have this kind of behavior from the people that are supposed to “protect and serve us.”
Also remember one thing…
You can’t be outraged at this crime with the Minneapolis police officer and STILL be mad at Colin Kaepernick with his peaceful protest. If you are, then you’ve missed the entire point of this article.
Stay woke,
Fred