Saturday – 30 May 2020
This has been a trying, frustrating, and mentally taxing week, to put it very mildly.

The fuse is lit…

In the space of less than seven (7) days, we’ve seen:

  • A White woman use her perceived privilege to call the police threaten Christian Cooper, a Black man.


    Picture (c) ABC News

    There’s a part of me that wants to grossly oversimplify this and call her “The Ultimate Karen,” but I don’t for two reasons:
    1. I have friends and family members whom I love and respect named “Karen,” and
    2. Her actions show an implicit and smug belief in the misconception that she could rely on her “privilege” to cause harm to a person of color and I don’t want a cute name to gloss over that.
  • We’ve also seen the death of an unarmed and handcuffed black man, George Floyd, at the hands of a police officer.

    Picture (c) The New York Times

    (New footage has shown that it was actually three officers, but the number doesn’t really matter.) Additionally, the subject of the investigation basically had a 48-hour free pass before being arrested and charged… with third-degree murder:

…a category of murder defined in the laws of three states in the United States: Florida, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania.

Depending on the state, third-degree murder may include felony murder regardless of the underlying felony, felony murder only where the underlying felony is non-violent, or depraved-heart murder. It is punishable by a maximum of 40 years imprisonment in Florida (in the case of a violent career criminal) and Pennsylvania, and 25 years imprisonment in Minnesota.

source: Wikipedia

Third degree murder can be defined as homicide committed with the intention of causing bodily harm, but not necessarily death. It can be a killing that results from indifference or negligence or recklessness. Statutes defining third degree murder vary considerably from state to state. In California murders are classified into two- first degree and second degree.

Example of a State statute defining Third degree murder

Minn. Stat. ยง 609.195 MURDER IN THE THIRD DEGREE

(a) Whoever, without intent to effect the death of any person, causes the death of another by perpetrating an act eminently dangerous to others and evincing a depraved mind, without regard for human life, is guilty of murder in the third degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 25 years.

(b) Whoever, without intent to cause death, proximately causes the death of a human being by, directly or indirectly, unlawfully selling, giving away, bartering, delivering, exchanging, distributing, or administering a controlled substance classified in schedule I or II, is guilty of murder in the third degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 25 years or to payment of a fine of not more than $40,000, or both.

source: US Legal

It’s sad, no… that’s not strong enough. It’s disheartening to think – let alone SEE – that after 60 years of progress, this country only seems interested in not even maintaining a “status quo,” but in taking steps backwards. Leaps backwards in some cases.

And I am tired of seeing men, yes Black men in particular – who have not resisted arrest, who have not acted in threatening manner, whose apparent only “crime” in many (but not all) cases was the color of their skin – die at the hands of those sworn to uphold the law… and then be summarily dismissed as “thugs” and “animals.”

The Powder Keg Explodes

Not surprisingly, in the wake of these events, protests have sprung up across the country. Some peaceful, some far less so. But, what are people to do when, for decades, they have been systemically and consistently ignored when they try to work within the channels that are supposed to be the gateways to their voices being heard?

Let me be very clear: I am not advocating violence and/or the destruction of property, but I do understand the emotional eruption and need for some kind of outlet. This is not the first time that we’ve seen this kind of reaction boil over in the wake of injustice. Unfortunately, I am sure that it won’t be the last time, either.

Taking a Deep Breath

What I would like to know is: How we can come together, not as Black or White, Native, Hispanic or Asian, but as Americans? Is that even possible? It that an aspiration that everyone – or anyone, for that matter – still hope to achieve?

I hope so.

…because now, I have to figure out a way to talk about this with my kids. There’s a part of me that doesn’t want to, because I love the innocence that being young affords them. By the same token, they need to know – even if at a very basic level – that there are people in the world who would harm them just because of the color of their skin or, due to some misguided notion, simply because they think they can.

As an aside, I had a team meeting yesterday in which the subject of the protests in Minneapolis came up. One of my coworkers – and his family – lives less than five minutes from the area where the protests were happening. He’s not Black, but he is a person of color.

This is not just a news story for him; it’s very real and VERY close.

My team and I, after making sure that he and his family were safe, discussed what was happening and what led to people’s reaction. I appreciated their candor and was able to provide a perspective that none of them had. It may not have been much, in the grand scheme of things, but I like to think that I helped them consider a viewpoint outside their own.

Parting Thoughts as the Smoke Clears

Here are some things (the bold text contains links) I’ve found or been shown over the past few days that I feel are worth seeing/watching:

Be well. Stay strong. Stay safe.