If a Law enforcement agency continues to perpetuate violence against various marginizled demographics, where they face no accountability for thier actions, in such cases is rioting wrong?I like many used to be a fan of peaceful protests and negotiations but the simple fact of the matter is that it gets us absolutely nowhere.
The older I get, the more I see that riots are part of the evolution of society or as MLK once aptly stated "Riots are the language of the unheard" because we don't live in a utopia, where people are afforded the basic human rights, that they deserve, simply because they exist. Until we get there the voices of those who are lost at the margins in all of thier sorrow, frusteration, anger and pain will continue to spill out on the streets.
So called "Normal" people sit at home on their sofas, with thier kids thier spouse and thier white picket fence in the front yard and there is a whole lot of passing judgement, head shaking and finger wagging going on because if we are able te denigrate those fighting for change and define them by thier decisions that on occasion result in violence, we can maintain the status quo and never take any substantive action
There's hundreds of pages on social media cites devoted to the disparagement of the violence in fergusen, many of which stem from the Tea Party wing of the Republican party. Yet, even the Tea Party got it's name from a riot. In 1773, American Protestors led by individuals such as Samuel Adams dumped an entire shipment of tea into Boston Harbor, to protest the tea act, which colonists at the time maintained violated thier rights, In response, George III and the British Government at the time attempted to enforce the coercive acts, which ultimatly stripped various colonies of their ability to self-govern and was one of the catalysts that led to the American Revolution which ultimatly created this country.
The Boston Tea Party was meant to affect societal change, while the destruction of property in that case may not have ended in loss of human life, the American Revolution did. Once again, in our history, we see a cry for help from the oppressed and the question is will we answer it or in what fashion will we answer it?
The Simple fact of tthe matter is that peaceful protesting is a luxury for those who have the time, the finaces and resources to simply wait at home and wait for the change that they desire to come about, who are consistantly assured that thier voices will be heard and included regardless and thus they join the endless chorus for peaceful assembly shaming leaders in the black community for thier actions that may or may not result in a riot.
It deserves to be recognized thar we riot becuse we are the only population in this country that still need to. When the Rodney King Verdict was handed down, in the 90s, 30 years of oppression, of groveling, of degredation boiled over. 3 decades of trying to talk about the history of profiling of discrimmination and in general vastly unfair and dare I say it..blatantly racist treatment boiled over. The City burned. The landscape began to change and police took note.
The sort of racism that we saw exhibited in the Rodney King verdict, is the same racism here today. While, it may not culminate in separate water fountains or in select seating in the back of the bus , its even more insidious because it's showing up in the fact that black children are afraid to go to school because they know that they will be mistreated on the sole basis of the color of thier skin and that if they respond, they will be disciplined and they will be disciplined differently. It shows itself in the public beatings of our youth and young males, particularily those who are disabled who they prey on at thier most vulnerable moment and then attempt to ram through the system before anyone notices.
Rather then tearing down people who have been dehumanized for over a century, we could be reaching out to this peoplulation and assisting them in rebuilding thier humanity and supporting them so that once again, they feel safe walking down the block, not just when tempers flare or buildings burn but starting when your born the wrong color in america.
I am not neither going to go as far as to encourage or condone violence against the City of Chaska and/or local officials who perpetuate what is literally a modern day system of Jim Crow but I am also not going to discourage it.
If the City of Chaska burned tomorrow. If thier public officials were dragged into the streets and treated with the same level of violence that they have treated others, I personally wouldnt lose any sleep at night and to be honest if they wanted to blame me for it..que sera.
