Black Lives Matter

The criminalization of African Americans is not new. It is just as old as America. Except now, it is just getting filmed more thanks to the rise of technological advances, George Floyd’s death was to be broadcasted to the entire world within seconds. Once public attention shifted to Mr. Floyd, the United States would never be the same. His death served as a wake up call for the world. When he died, millions did not just mourn for him, but they fought for him. The widespread circulation of videos of African Americans suffering harm by the people who are meant to protect is ever present in today’s society. I believe that if the initial video of Mr. Floyd had not been released, his story would not have been told and the outrage and protests that followed would not have experienced the same turn out. His death empowered one of the most influential non-violent civil disobedience movements known as Black Lives Matter. Moreover, his death did not just start or shine light to the ongoing movement, but exemplified the principles they stand for.

George Floyd’s case is drawing comparisons and bringing condemnations to other cases of police misconduct and brutality. There is a growing scrutiny of violent tactics used by police forces at peaceful, nonviolent BLM demonstrations.  Black people are being shot and suffering microaggressions in the United States at a disproportionate rate compared to other ethnicities. The solution? Police Reform. I do not mean abolishing the police system, that is simply unrealistic. We can start reforming the system by training police to address their racial bias. Everyone has some sort of bias. (For me, admittedly, I am biased towards men) Having the courage to admit that you have a bias is the first step to achieving impartiality. Once bias is addressed properly, we can start improving commutative strategies that hold police accountable for misconduct transparently. This begins with opening police misconduct records to the public, improving data collection, and reporting practices that use force. Currently, as of October 2020, there is no federal database tracking the use of force, stop-and-frisks, and people killed by law enforcement. There must be a higher standard established by the federal government for qualifying to be in the police force. In Texas, it takes forty weeks and 1,600 hours to become a licensed cosmetologist. Meanwhile, to become a police officer, a trusted position in society where lives of civilians are in your hands, it only takes eight to twelve weeks, or 723 hours of basic law enforcement training. This explains (but does not excuse) why police have high rates of implicit bias. There is an insufficient amount of training focused on racism, age-appropriate reason, cultural competency, non-violent problem-solving, and mental illness which in turn leads to brutality. Systematic change can only be done through collective action. You can do your part to end police brutality by spreading awareness, advocating for what is right, and exercising your right to vote. 🙂