There once was a leader, almost red
Who danced on the graves of the dead
Hundreds of thousands
Died on his watch
His family was always well-fed
They skimmed from the kids they were charged
With helping, A charity at large
No one was the wiser
They pointed and despised her
Crooks were they all
We're mislead
I was invited to a watch party on Facebook, and protesters in Philadelphia were attempting to pull down
a statue in a public square. It was equally comical and alarming. It was comical because it was clear
that they were acting out with no practical knowledge and alarming because I was afraid it would
topple over, crushing dozens of them under its weight.
The scene was riveting to me. Though I had planned to head outside for a walk in the pleasant 80-degree weather that was blanketing New York City, I could not tear myself away.
Into my reverie came the comment section with caucasian people calling it a "tragedy" and "disgusting." It set my blood to boiling. I posed several questions: "Which do you find more disgusting, the pulling down of a stone statue or the killing of black and brown people with no justifiable cause?", "Is the statue more important than the constant loss of Life they are protesting," "Are you as disgusted by three to four police putting their full body weight on a man until he dies - no trial, no jury of his peers? Killed. Murdered. And for what?"
I have yet to receive an answer to these questions.
Earlier in the day, I had gone to pick up a few groceries from the store and received a call from a good friend who lives in a city further south. He wanted to know if I had been watching the footage and photos of the many protests all over the Country - Philly, Cleveland, Atlanta, New York, Boston. So many.
We chatted about the ongoing state of race relations in America and the narrative pushed by the media. We commiserated over the continued marginalization of our people. We discussed the possibilities of the whole Coronavirus pandemic being a planned event (him being a bit of a conspiracy theorist, at times). Then, we hit upon a topic that was slightly contentious between us: Why are people rioting? Is that going to make it better or worse?
Let me say that I am a proponent of non-violence, in general, and nonviolent protest specifically. However, I believe that it will take dozens of disparate approaches for any real change to occur. Some will need to fight back, and others will find their calling being nonviolent. There will be those who can circulate petitions and those who can get the ear of our representatives in office. I hope that all will use their right and responsibility to vote, but voting alone will not change people's hearts.
People wax nostalgic about Martin Luther King, Jr. and his nonviolent protests, but it was not the lone approach of Dr. King that brought about Civil Rights. It was a combination of factions, including him, and Malcolm X, and the Black Panther Party, and the Nation of Islam, and, and, and…
Lest you forget, both the nonviolent Dr. King and the more militant Malcolm X were assassinated.
I also remember reading the story of Nelson Mandela and realizing that, even though he was the leading figure touted in the struggle for equality in South Africa, there were many coalitions in that fight - some followed the nonviolent path, others were much more militaristic. They blew up houses, businesses, and power plants - if memory serves me correctly.
There is no one walk to freedom and equality.
As we continued our conversation, we came to the tentative conclusion that people need to do what they are willing to do. Those who can be nonviolent in the face of violence should do so. Those who are predisposed to fight, go to jail, be beaten and abused, should be ready to take their lumps for the cause.
Black men, women, and children are being killed by those sworn to protect US even when doing things as innocuous as playing in a playground, driving down a street, or sleeping in their own homes. Who are you to say that they should only protest peacefully in the face of genocide?
In this Facebook watch party, someone stated that "violence doesn't help anything," and I reminded them that the USA was created when people took to the streets, tarred and feathered their British overlords, and fought for Independence. Was it a smooth, safe, and nonviolent transition of power? No!
Power concedes nothing without a fight.
Every uprising has its detractors. There are those who would uphold the status quo as long as it is working for them. They will attempt to vilify those who are being unjustly jailed, beaten, and even killed before they will demand accountability from those sworn to uphold the Law.
"Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."
There is no Liberty in being killed for passing a small, fake bill to buy groceries. There is no Liberty in being murdered for failing to signal while driving down a deserted street. There is no Liberty in being assassinated while playing with a toy gun in a playground. There is no life that is not sacred and holy and worthy of due process.
If you have not been demanding justice for Amadou Diallo, Sandra Bland, and Tamir Rice, how can you now declare that "violence is not the way." Violence has been perpetrated on our kind from before we were brought to this Country. You birthed US in brutality during slavery. You taught US, from your history books, that violence is the way to get what we want. You continue to grind your knee into our necks and expect US to be complacent and nonviolent in the face of your cruelty.
It is going to take an economic, spiritual, and political revolution to stop the murder and subjugation of minorities in this Country. You are either with US or against US.
Which is it?
We had more catastrophic news today - October 2, 2020 (this has not been the best news year).
I awoke to a frosty, damp, and muggy day right after the sun peeked over the horizon to be obscured by dark pillows in the sky. I usually listen to the news when I arise, so I popped on my Bluetooth, to not disturb the neighbors. The first story was: President Trump and First Lady Melania test positive for Covid 19.
My jaw hit the floor. So many emotions and thoughts were doing marathons around my skull. I was not surprised, but I was curious about how he finally contracted it and if he was handling the situation via Twitter.
I logged into my Twitter account while listening to the few details that were available to find what he had tweeted just after midnight: "Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!" Hm. I read it with a bit of bravado and attitude, as I imagine he typed it.
My instinctive thought? It serves you right.
Hey, I'm human. I'm not vindictive and hateful; I don't think. I believe in live and let live. But, I also believe in Karma with a capital K.
This is the "world leader" who has been publicly telling the American people that Coronavirus is "a hoax." He has also said, "This is a flu. This is like a flu." "It's going to disappear. One day it's like a miracle, it will disappear." and "But it affects virtually nobody. It's an amazing thing."
Trump has been publicly humiliating news people and democratic governors about mask mandates. He has refused to wear a mask and also refused to stop having mass rallies where his followers refuse to wear masks. In the 1st presidential debate, he mocked Joe Biden for wearing "the biggest mask I've ever seen."
Yet he admitted, in a taped interview, to knowing how dangerous this current Covid strain is and continued, as recently as a few days ago, to lie to US all.
Karma!
The president contracting Covid was not the catastrophic news.
While watching Democracy Now a few hours later in the day and tweeting with followers and friends, I learned that the US potus did several heinous things that border on criminal. Again, I was not surprised. Unfortunately, I have had more than three years of one disaster after another with this administration. There is one bombshell that follows a blowup that portends a new disaster. I feel like the guy in the commercial that has 'seen it all.' My heart and mind brace for impact every time I click on a website, listen to the news or read political articles careening through cyberspace.
No. I was shook... dismayed... horrified... angry... but I was not surprised.
A close aide to President Trump was feeling ill after a rally and quarantined on the trip home on Air Force One.
There were reporters, politicians, aides, secret service, flight attendants, pilots, and the president on the plane.
No one was warned that someone who was sick, and possibly had Covid, was on the plane. A plane. The air circulates throughout. There is no outside ventilation. There are no mask mandates under this administration. It is a free-for-all.
No one was warned.
The next day, the president had a donor event.
No one was warned.
He tests positive for Covid 19 and tweets it out.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of people who have come into contact with him over the last two weeks. He did not even let people on the plane know that they had been exposed. They found out via social media or the news. Some still may not know.
Some still may not know.
This is being called a 'super-spreader scenario.'
Trump has visited three states and interacted with unknown thousands of people. He claims that those close to him are tested regularly. Yet, one of his closest aides has probably had the virus for two weeks or more.
Once Trump found out, what did he do? Did he start the process of contact tracing? Did he alert those who may have been exposed? Did he mention it at all? No. He hid it. He hid it from everyone.
I am trying to wrap my head around the horror of this realization. No, it is not a surprise. It is disheartening and disgusting. I am saddened and more than a little outraged.
There will be people who will hem and haw and make excuses and gaslight. There will be those who will be calling for sympathy and patience. There will be those who will be hoping for the worst outcome.
I know what I want—an End to this administration.
This man does not care about the health and safety of those closest to him, so you should realize that he does not care about you. If a large majority of Americans do not understand this and vote him out, I don't know how much longer our Democracy can survive.
