According to The New York Times, this madness began on Memorial Day, when an “awfully drunk” George Floyd used a “$20 counterfeit bill” to buy cigarettes from Cup Foods in Minneapolis. It became news when police officer Derek Chauvin used his knee to keep Floyd’s neck pinned to the ground despite cries of “I cannot breathe” from Floyd and questions from fellow officers. It escalated into a national protest movement – and violent riots – after Floyd died.
There should be an awakening in America; because another black man died in the custody of a white cop, peaceful protests quickly turned into criminal violence, and partisan arguments – not helpful conversations – are still the order of the day. Race relations in America won’t move forward without apolitical pursuit of truth, justice and the American way, beginning with the obvious truths.
The Times reported Mr. Floyd did pass a counterfeit bill at Cup Foods, which is a criminal act, and an eye witness described the bill: “the ink was still running.” This is obviously not 1968 and Floyd is not Martin Luther King, but the black response is the same. Black Lives Matter is a legitimate political movement and, as such, a predictable routine of protests morphing into violence and looting alienates white sympathy. A real question: what sticks with the social majority – the single arrest video or thousands of riot videos?
Arrest videos and bystander reports clearly depict white police brutality and the death of a restrained black man, and don’t corroborate the arrest report. Yes, Floyd should have been brought in for a counterfeit crime, but Chauvin should not have used cruel and unusual force. Fox News reports declining applicants for police jobs since the Michael Brown shooting in 2014; therefore, conservatives that support law and order must insist blind justice starts with cops on the beat.
As part of the national conversation, George Floyd’s story is (to be blunt) not new. It began for a white majority in 1962 with To Kill a Mockingbird, and for a black minority in 1963 with MLK’s I Have a Dream speech. That was 57 years ago and the best-intentioned laws and regulations were not close to the black-white panacea Washington promised. In fact, today’s black-white relations grow worse because of a new twist; growing white resentment.
As a constitutional matter, Floyd’s death deserved peaceable protests. However, burning, looting, and shooting policemen is political violence that won’t be forgiven. And, fairly or not, the nationwide riots taint Black Lives Matter’s message, despite reports of acts by other un-affiliated groups. Sadly, the silent majority will forget George Floyd but not the images of fire-bombs thrown by Antifa or the stores looted by black teens. That’s just the way it is.
Election Day is coming, and the Left (put cops in jail) and Right (put Antifa in jail) are having the same argument America had in 1968. Back then, a scared silent majority took TV images of anti-war and race riots into the voting booth (and voted for law and order). I suspect history will repeat itself in 2020 because most Americans can’t relate to George Floyd’s arrest (only 25% of Americas have ever been arrested – only 3% to prison).
The solution to race and law enforcement is cultural and regional. Clinton’s crime bill didn’t help and neither did Obama’s DOJ intrusion into solid-blue cities (like Chicago). And, even after Trump’s vicious dog tweet, Joe Biden should avoid the subject. It is a time for healing – and making George Floyd a 2020 political issue won’t help.