"It's a Beautiful Life"- Genevieve Galvan Frenes

Day 81-

I am not African-American, but I am a woman of color.

I’m Hispanic, Mexican-American to be exact. Although I’m part Asian (somewhere down my lineage), many mistake me for white, because I’m a light-complected Hispanic.

I don’t know what it feels like to be in fear because of the color of my skin. I do, however, know how it feels to be looked down upon because of my color.

In the past few days, with the death of George Floyd, it’s obvious that there are a great deal of black (African-American) men who have felt this fear, not just now, but all of their lives.

And it’s with a heavy heart that I read and see post after post of the protests that have sparked over 30 US cities (CNN.com) after the death of Mr. Floyd at the hand of a Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, and three other officers. Floyd’s death emerged over a counterfeit bill on May 25th.

8 minutes, 46 seconds…the exact time Chavin’s knee was on Floyd’s neck (CNN.com). The smug face on his photos on social media shows the face of a grown man who enjoyed causing pain and death to an innocent man,…and who happened to be a white, police officer.

So if we look at this incident and say, “Well, this is just one bad white cop and his men,” yes, this is true. Many of us know people, even family members, who are decent, good, fair-minded cops. In my hometown, I have respect for many officers who are white, black, Mexican, Asian, — and all of them very good individuals who treat people right.

This is not the case in all police departments, and I’m certain there are bad cops, just like there are some bad people in power in all professions.

But the problem has been prevalent for so long in the area of law enforcement that African-Americans are tired, and the feeling of “enough is enough” can be seen in the protests emerging all over the US.

And as the posts continue, questions have arisen from African-American friends and colleagues who ask others, especially white people, to help stop this racism and not look the other way.

Because we know, many still look away, especially if it doesn’t concern them.

And if you’re Hispanic, you don’t look away either, because there has been some discrimination throughout history concerning our race. However, no other discrimination compares to our African-American friends.

African-American or black men have suffered more injustice than any other group.

If we think of history and the protests emerging from violent confrontations between white cops discriminating against black men, the names of some of these riots are familiar — the Watts Riots of 1965 (lasting for six days), the Detroit Riots of 1967 (lasting five days), the Los Angeles Riots of 1992 (lasting six days), (Brittanica.com) and now we’re in 2020, with George Floyd Riots, on Day 5… and the riots seem to be increasing by the day.

(Keep in mind, the riots mentioned are some of the main riots most know about, yet I’m certain there are more out there not as highlighted).

All of these riots have beginning aspects in common–a white officer, an African-American or black man, some form of discrimination in the way the man was treated, the injustice of such treatment not being addressed, and the aftermath, resulting in riots.

And if we compare the riots, the results are similar – looting, violence, marches (some peaceful, some violent), angry protesters, outside forces or help brought in like the National Guard (in some instances), and deaths and injuries to those involved or in the vicinity of the riots.

So, what will it take to change?

Here are my ideas, and although I have no background in law enforcement or mental health training (except my experience as a teacher), these might be good to consider:

Giving mental health checks to police officers to make sure they are stable or not suffering –It’s just a hunch, but I would say that many in law enforcement might look down on individuals, especially men, in seeking help for depression or anxiety concerning their daily duties as officers. To seek help might be perceived as a weakness, especially in men. If we give students mental health checks to see how they’re doing at school and in the home, we should do the same to our officers who see more violence and trauma in their line of duty than any other group.

Police chiefs following through on violent or overly aggressive police officers–If police chiefs know there is an issue with a cop’s poor or aggressive behavior, especially in dealing with African-American men, they should place them on leave to be evaluated or monitored in some way. They should run reports on the number of incidents where excessive force was used during their experiences with African-American men to see if a pattern is developing.

Police chiefs shouldn’t wait for their officer to be filmed on national television once the officer goes over the top and injures or kills another human being. And if the justice system finds a crime or injustice is done by an officer, that person should be held accountable immediately, not days later or after uprisings begin to happen.

And lastly, peaceful protests which unify rather than divide–There are peaceful protests happening right now which demonstrate Martin Luther King’s viewpoint of non-violence. What we need are more of these, but with the added inclusion of law enforcement agencies who agree that the death of Mr. Floyd was wrong and unjustified.

All people, not just black or African-American, need to see law enforcement take a stand so that society can learn and see that there is solid belief system set in place, acknowledging that deadly, unnecessary, force against an individual is not going to be tolerated.

Everyone needs to be impacted by Floyd’s death.

In the middle of a pandemic, there is built up energy and frustration, and although some protesters may be rioting just to cause trouble, others are truly fed up with a world which doesn’t make things right, especially in the case of black men (not that rioting and destroying property is the right thing to do either).

There are also those who are protesting peacefully and truly invested in finding justice for Mr. Floyd, who represents many other black men dying at the hands of white officers and not made accountable for their actions.

If we see Mr. Floyd as our brother, our family member, a connection to us, then that feeling of turning away from this issue is not even conceivable. We wouldn’t allow this incident to happen to our family.

Stay blessed everyone…we need to find a peaceful yet bold way, in changing the mentality which exists in our world today.

History is repeating itself, and we see our screens filled with the same message of hatred as yesterday. Let’s change it now.