Can We Change?
It depends on the body count
Daunte Wright lost his life only miles from where George Floyd lost his. They were murdered by the same group of thugs that terrorize so many people across this nation. Change is something that seems so far away.
While America was focused on the judicial system trying to prove that Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd, something the entire country can watch on video, another black man has lost his life. Already the attacks on his character have begun.
Negligent
The police officer who pulled the trigger was on the force for 26 years and is now on administrative leave. Imagine being at a job for 26 years, and not being able to tell the difference between two lethal tools in your employ. And then, after you kill somebody because of your inability to distinguish this difference, you are placed on administrative leave, and not fired immediately.
By not firing her outright, this police department is saying that she might be able to come back and work for them. A statement that so clearly says, “we know our officer killed a person, but it was an accident, and she can’t be held responsible.” Accident or not, this police officer cannot remain on the force after such a lethal mistake has been made. My only surprise at hearing this story was that it hasn’t happened to this officer sooner in her career.
About That Change
No matter how many protests, no matter how high the body count gets, no matter how many grieving family members are left in the murderous wake of these police departments, those in power are not going to relinquish or take responsibility easily. This hearkens back to the fact that elections are so, so, so, so, SO, important.
Contrary to popular belief, change does not start at the top. Change develops over time, as we are seeing in the rebellions of the protesters. In a perfect world, the energy from these protests would then be directed into votes, which would be cast for candidates who run locally on platforms of change. Then, and only then, will change begin to manifest.
Unfortunately, only a fraction of this energy is ever harnessed and converted into votes. Which begs the question: “How high will the body count have to get before enough votes are cast to permanently alter the Police State in the United States of America?”
Conclusion
We are witnessing a replay of what happened in May of 2020. I fear if this energy is not transferred into local election results, police forces across the nation will get the signal that they can keep doing whatever they want without consequence because the people who vote them in are not putting their jobs in jeopardy.
Please vote in every election in your area. Information is usually available through a simple google search of your county. Search for county officials in order to research them, and search for the candidates in those elections to find out what, and who they are trying to represent by gaining power in your districts.
The power belongs to the people, but only if we use it.
I Leave You With This
A poem by me, written a few days after George Floyd was killed in May of 2020.
A Billy club and a gun
Handed out with a badge
After a few weeks in training
Now you think you’re the man
You can’t wait to start restraining
This power is euphoric
You’re more than human
The laws don’t apply to you
So, technically, you can’t abuse them
Show them who’s in charge
Under the president’s direction
You should use a little more violence
And when you take someone’s life
You needn’t worry
You can always rely
On the police code of silence
