Here’s Why This Pic Of An African-American Woman Kneeling In Front Of Armed Policemen Is So Significant
George Floyd was a 46-year-old man, who was fondly called Big Floyd and Gentle Giant by his friends for his kind nature. They said he loved his hugs and would remove a shirt off his back for someone in need. He was a father to a six-year-old. He was a man who was trying to turn his life around by working two jobs – one as a truck driver and another as a security guard at a Latin American restaurant. He wasn’t armed and neither was he attacking the officers when he was being arrested by four white officers in Minnesota. And yet, Derek Chauvin pinned him down and kneeled on his neck, eventually choking him to death. In fact, he continued kneeling on him for three whole minutes after he lay there motionless and without a pulse.
Racial discrimination has plagued America for decades and this isn’t the first time that the police used brutality and excessive force on a black individual. That has led to an outrage and several protestors have been retaliating with violence and damage of property. However, several protestors are making a strong point without resorting to violence. And a recent photo clicked by photographer Dai Sugano captures the vibe perfectly.
https://twitter.com/KhaledBeydoun/status/1266906235531661317?
In the picture, a young black, unarmed woman is kneeling in front of armed policemen, holding guns and batons. The photo that went viral on the internet shows that racial discrimination has taken many lives at the hands of the police and unfairly ruined several more. The kneeling position reminds one of an image of an African-American nurse who got arrested peacefully as police handcuffed her, back in 2016.
This was when the US was under protest as two African -American men Alton Sterling and Philando Castille met with a similar fate and were ripped off their civil rights of being investigated and tried. Back then, the officer who was responsible for the death of Sterling wasn’t even charged and just sent on leave.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CA1Aj0dhQU6/
In fact, football player Colin Kaepernick had kneeled down in the same position before an NFL game in 2016, as a mark of protest and was fired from the team for doing so. And while the league’s commissioner Roger Goodell released a statement recently condemning what happened, Kaepernick still remains fired for peacefully protesting against racial discrimination. Taking a knee is a peaceful way of protesting against racial discrimination and yet, Trump called Kaepernick a “son of a bitch” when he did so. That’s all the value of black lives and George Floyd’s death has made this a cry of intervention.
This was a year after a Texas cop had pinned down a black teen, kept his knees on her back, and pulled at her braids for being in a pool party. He physically assaulted this kid and even took out his gun to fire at any of those who tried to help her. One of the few non-black kids at the party recorded the video of the assault and later said it seemed the officer used excessive force because most of the teens were black at the party. That officer too wasn’t charged for assault and he simply had to resign.
If the citizens hadn’t protested so much, do you think the officer would have been charged? George Floyd was just a man buying a pack of cigarettes and on the suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill, was killed. The same officer has earlier been investigated for racial profiling and excessive force. And while Derek Chauvin faces third-degree murder and manslaughter charges, it wasn’t until the US was into four days of protest. Tom Fuentes, former assistant director of the FBI, of the video footage of Floyd’s death, said: “It’s hard to imagine a more clear-cut smoking gun. There’s no excuse for them (the four responding police officers) not to be arrested the first day.” However, Floyd’s lawyer Benjamin Crump said that Chauvin should be charged with first-degree murder and not third. He said, “We now have the audio from the police bodycam and we hear where one officer says ‘he doesn’t have a pulse, maybe we should turn him on his side’, but yet officer Chauvin says ‘no, we’re going to keep him in this position’. That’s intent.”
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Apparently cops in Kansas City joined the local protest against police brutality. And my first reaction was to say something smart ass. But this is truly a start. pic.twitter.com/e3sUwaR16h
— Dylan Park-Pettiford (@dyllyp) May 30, 2020
SCPD is fully supportive of peaceful protests @CityofSantaCruz and we always keep them safe.
Hundreds gathered on Pacific Ave in #SantaCruz, taking a knee together in memory of George Floyd & bringing attention to police violence against Black people. PhotoCredit @Shmuel_Thaler pic.twitter.com/EmfAfcIZaM
— Santa Cruz Police (@SantaCruzPolice) May 30, 2020
Meanwhile, then cops in Kansas City joined the protest against police brutality. In Santa Cruz, California several people peacefully protested by kneeling for nine and a half minutes, in honour of George Floyd, and were joined by the cops too!
