There is much to say, but the aspect of this result that stood out most for me was the nobility and grace of the Floyd family itself. They have comported themselves with nobility in the face of the very public assassination of their family member and barrages of racist backlash. Their comments yesterday and those of their lawyer were in tune with what you comment here: For them, this is only a start. They asked us to remember that no justice has been accorded the women killed by police, many recent cases and I always think of Eleanor Bumpurs, the first case that I became aware of in 1985, in which the 66 year old mentally disabled woman was shot twice and killed with a 12-gauge shotgun during an eviction proceeding. This week, two women in their 80s were attacked by police, one had her arm broken and shoulder dislocated; another was tazed. The fact that big burly cops feels the need to taze an 87-year-old woman indicates to me their pleasure in doing so, their basic sadism, the joy they take in hurting others and seeing them suffer. There are many police like this. As you know, I had two teeth broken by a cop like this. Only the federal government has the economic and political might to make a dent in this situation, in my view. As for our culture of violence and racism, only required curricula in the schools and intense anti-racist training at every level of society will make a dent. Listening to President Biden and VP Harris tell the nation where they stand as they did this week and knowing that they called the Floyd family was a positive move and a signal, in my view, that this administration will not be afraid to take strong steps. I hope I am right.
Yes, accountability is not justice. This case needs to be the next jump step in creating justice. Qualified Immunity must be killed and I am hoping this case puts a counter legal position on the record to be used in other cases. However, we need legislation that bans QI completely on local and Federal levels.
I also hope this will legitimatize Independent Civilian Review Boards that actually have power to investigate, and impose consequences. I do not trust the typical reformist measures that leave judgement in the hands of the police. I do not promote reformist police measures that keep awarding more money and more cops with their carte blanche killings. And I do not support the alleged bias awareness trainings which provide very little change. Accountability must be in the hands of the people, particularly those most negatively affected by police and those who have committed their life to undoing racist structures.
Claire: I do indeed want Chauvin to go to prison. Perhaps as he looks for a prison group (probably white supremacists) that will protect his ass inside, I hope he will have time to come to some just conclusion about the human being (whose humanity he did not honor) he killed in front of a lot of people, inc. children, on a sidewalk in Minneapolis. Cheryl
There is much to say, but the aspect of this result that stood out most for me was the nobility and grace of the Floyd family itself. They have comported themselves with nobility in the face of the very public assassination of their family member and barrages of racist backlash. Their comments yesterday and those of their lawyer were in tune with what you comment here: For them, this is only a start. They asked us to remember that no justice has been accorded the women killed by police, many recent cases and I always think of Eleanor Bumpurs, the first case that I became aware of in 1985, in which the 66 year old mentally disabled woman was shot twice and killed with a 12-gauge shotgun during an eviction proceeding. This week, two women in their 80s were attacked by police, one had her arm broken and shoulder dislocated; another was tazed. The fact that big burly cops feels the need to taze an 87-year-old woman indicates to me their pleasure in doing so, their basic sadism, the joy they take in hurting others and seeing them suffer. There are many police like this. As you know, I had two teeth broken by a cop like this. Only the federal government has the economic and political might to make a dent in this situation, in my view. As for our culture of violence and racism, only required curricula in the schools and intense anti-racist training at every level of society will make a dent. Listening to President Biden and VP Harris tell the nation where they stand as they did this week and knowing that they called the Floyd family was a positive move and a signal, in my view, that this administration will not be afraid to take strong steps. I hope I am right.
Yes, accountability is not justice. This case needs to be the next jump step in creating justice. Qualified Immunity must be killed and I am hoping this case puts a counter legal position on the record to be used in other cases. However, we need legislation that bans QI completely on local and Federal levels.
I also hope this will legitimatize Independent Civilian Review Boards that actually have power to investigate, and impose consequences. I do not trust the typical reformist measures that leave judgement in the hands of the police. I do not promote reformist police measures that keep awarding more money and more cops with their carte blanche killings. And I do not support the alleged bias awareness trainings which provide very little change. Accountability must be in the hands of the people, particularly those most negatively affected by police and those who have committed their life to undoing racist structures.
Claire: I do indeed want Chauvin to go to prison. Perhaps as he looks for a prison group (probably white supremacists) that will protect his ass inside, I hope he will have time to come to some just conclusion about the human being (whose humanity he did not honor) he killed in front of a lot of people, inc. children, on a sidewalk in Minneapolis. Cheryl