Thread by @l78lancer

There are people in America who now, in retrospect, are examining the Chauvin conviction through deservedly critical eyes. Many are wondering, and some are dismayed that, with the mountains of evidence, testimony and proof, why conviction wasn't a slam dunk?

Some wonder why hasn't this happened before now? Those should be obvious assumptions. That's really the point though. Never in history have trials for these egregious incidents EVER been slam dunks. Most of the time they never make it to trial, not even to a plea bargain.

If that was the case Eric Garner and Walter Scott would've been slam dunks, too. The vast majority of cases never get charged. Therefore, the doubt and skepticism we experienced here were totally warranted. And while that must change, it is the norm. That's he hill we must climb.

Yet while there's some happiness at the recent accomplishment, there is some irrational exuberance about the outcome of the Chauvin verdict after the fact. Yet, Black people know what we saw and experienced were anything but givens. We've been here, done that too many times.

I truly dislike the expression "woke," because it's often intellectually lazy, tossed around like devalued currency. But, it kind of applies here. There've been whites in America active in the nascent stages of #BLM since its formation of the movement after Mike Brown's murder.

During that period, Antifa began forming a nucleus to actually become a thing. And while supportive of #BLM, it kind of morphed into it's own entity, more or less.

But the the size of and engagement in the marches against police brutality and racism, and for civil rights increased and drew broader attention from supporters and adversaries in mainstream America.

But many people in America really didn't start becoming "woke" until the Confederate statues protests and Heather Heyer's death, then George Floyd's and Breonna Taylor's killings. That in and of itself is a really good thing.

But, despite that increased engagement, much of white America still has the wrong - or maybe skewed - take on what they've seen in this trial. That is not a criticism, but an observation.

Because some eyes have been opened, it appears that those eyes naturally expect justice the way that they would in their paradigm, in their world.

But because those eyes are just opening - and even with the past half dozen years or so of active Antifa engagement - historically, much white America has no sense of history or frame of reference for how to view where the Chauvin conviction fits intro that history.

That's because even for many folks who are now clearly on the side of justice and equality with open eyes and clear vision, the history isn't part of their reality. So their view from that frame has no way to retrospectively internalize the depth of the struggle and oppression.

So yes, this looks and feels like a "victory" because in some ways it is (of course the real victory would be George Floyd still being alive.) And, it feels like the beginnings of progress - and it is.

But progress is far from being imminent, and future convictions are anything but a foregone conclusion, because we've been here before.

And if folks are not clear that while, yes, this is a beginning but they need to beware of taking change for granted, then there will be a lot of disillusionment, disappointment and anger.

Black people have been committed to the struggle for civil rights and justice for decades. But we, as a people know that for change to happen, help is needed from outside the black community.

Now that white America appears to be assembling into a critical mass of support, real change is beginning to appear on the horizon.

Many, many people in America are completely wedded to racist, practices, customs, acts, norms and values. They justify it in may ways including "tradition" and religion." That's what makes direct, overt racism as well as structural, systemic racism so imbedded.

So in that light, one of the hardest things we'll have to balance is tempering our expectations because the of reality of the tremendous resistance to change, while demanding continued change and progress.

Please read what I said in my bio, and take it to heart. Pain, struggle and persistence are unavoidable. And, the change will be nothing like instantaneous, or even rapid. But to be in this fight we have to be willing to take them on.

It's not about series of individual events but the process. Welcome to the fight against overt and systemic racism.

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