1/10
"None of us are free, if one of us are chained." Those are the lyrics of a song recorded in 1993 by legendary singer Ray Charles. I hear those lyrics revived in the chants of so many freedom-seeking protestors in the streets over the last 11 days.
"None of us are free, if one of us are chained." Those are the lyrics of a song recorded in 1993 by legendary singer Ray Charles. I hear those lyrics revived in the chants of so many freedom-seeking protestors in the streets over the last 11 days.
2/10
Since the death of George Floyd, I've been in the streets of Minneapolis, Chicago and New York City with protesters. Almost all peaceful. Most angry. All hurt, confused, and certain of what’s said in the second verse of that song:
Since the death of George Floyd, I've been in the streets of Minneapolis, Chicago and New York City with protesters. Almost all peaceful. Most angry. All hurt, confused, and certain of what’s said in the second verse of that song:
3/10
“If you don't say it's wrong, then that says it's right.
We got to try to feel for each other.
Let our brothers know that we care.
Gotta get the message, send it out loud and clear...”
“If you don't say it's wrong, then that says it's right.
We got to try to feel for each other.
Let our brothers know that we care.
Gotta get the message, send it out loud and clear...”
4/10
Protesters are telling us this isn't a “black” problem; it's an everybody problem. If one of us isn’t treated fairly by the police, or as they try to vote, or in our courts, then none of us are. If you accept that premise, then let us acknowledge that we are not free.
Protesters are telling us this isn't a “black” problem; it's an everybody problem. If one of us isn’t treated fairly by the police, or as they try to vote, or in our courts, then none of us are. If you accept that premise, then let us acknowledge that we are not free.
5/10
Nearly 13.4% of Americans are black & live their lives in fear. They follow a set of unwritten protocols, literally, to stay alive. That sounds like an exaggeration & to many white Americans, the concept of lynching is something from history books.
Nearly 13.4% of Americans are black & live their lives in fear. They follow a set of unwritten protocols, literally, to stay alive. That sounds like an exaggeration & to many white Americans, the concept of lynching is something from history books.
6/10
But lynching—in which an accused gets no due process—has never really ended. #GeorgeFloyd got no due process & died at the hands of police. #AhmaudArbery in Georgia got no due process; he was killed on February 23 by two vigilantes who allegedly thought he was a burglar.
But lynching—in which an accused gets no due process—has never really ended. #GeorgeFloyd got no due process & died at the hands of police. #AhmaudArbery in Georgia got no due process; he was killed on February 23 by two vigilantes who allegedly thought he was a burglar.
7/10
#BreonnaTaylor got no due process on March 13, when police used a battering ram to get into her apartment & then killed her in a shootout w/ her boyfriend, who had a licensed firearm. The warrant the police had was for the wrong people & place. Yet Breonna Taylor is dead.
#BreonnaTaylor got no due process on March 13, when police used a battering ram to get into her apartment & then killed her in a shootout w/ her boyfriend, who had a licensed firearm. The warrant the police had was for the wrong people & place. Yet Breonna Taylor is dead.
8/10
Congress has passed a new lynching law, but it's stalled in the U.S. Senate by Republican Sen. Rand Paul of KY. Sen. Paul worries that people who assault but don't kill during extra-judicial attacks might get swept up in it.
Congress has passed a new lynching law, but it's stalled in the U.S. Senate by Republican Sen. Rand Paul of KY. Sen. Paul worries that people who assault but don't kill during extra-judicial attacks might get swept up in it.
9/10
We wouldn't want that, now: regular racists being caught up in laws designed to protect black Americans, who face deadly harm at the hands of police & society to this very day.
We wouldn't want that, now: regular racists being caught up in laws designed to protect black Americans, who face deadly harm at the hands of police & society to this very day.
10/10
Protest & the vote are all that are left when all the odds are stacked against you. It is not for black Americans to bear this burden alone, to speak out against the violence & systemic racism they face. Because until they are unchained, none of us are free.
Protest & the vote are all that are left when all the odds are stacked against you. It is not for black Americans to bear this burden alone, to speak out against the violence & systemic racism they face. Because until they are unchained, none of us are free.
