Enough is Enough

Artwork by Sacrée Frangine

I’m sure all of you by now have heard the tragic tale of George Floyd, who was murdered in broad daylight due to an ‘accusation of forgery’. We all know that the real cause of his murder was because he was black.

There is a whole history of black people who have lost their lives due to racism. Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Stephen Lawrence, Mark Duggan, Eric Gardener – these are only a few names out of millions. Remember these names – we need to honour them and the way to do that is by fighting racial inequality.

Racism has been a raging battle that not just black, but any person of colour has faced with for centuries. Generations and generations of black and brown people have protested in the hope of trying to end this oppression and yet it still exists.

Segregation was abolished over 70 years ago and yet; ethnic minorities are being treated as if it never happened.

I feel as if we are fighting a fight that is never going to end. No matter how peaceful protesters may be, white supremacists always find a way to twist it into something chaotic. For example, take the protests happening all across the USA – New York, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, as well as international protests in Berlin and London. And while people are fighting for what is right and just, they are being assaulted, pepper-sprayed, tear-gassed by police officers. I saw a video where a gang – and yes, I will use the word gang – of armed officers strutting down a quiet neighbourhood, who then proceeded to shoot innocent bystanders with paintballs.

They took an oath and swore to protect their people. From what we’re seeing, they’re not fulfilling their duty – they are abusing it. And nothing is being done to stop that.

Must I speak of the Central Park five – five innocent teenage boys were wrongfully accused of the assault and rape of a white woman. Not only were they give prison sentences that weren’t theirs to perform but five out of six (the sixth being Corey Wise) were all underage and were kept against their will by police officers who refused to allow them to leave and interrogated them without parental consent. That, there, is law enforcement abusing the overwhelming power that governments have given them.

And nothing was done to stop that.

All four officers who were associated with the murder of George Floyd have been fired. With paid administrative leave. That is ridiculous – there were at least two or three officers holding Floyd down as Derek Chauvin – the officer that murdered him – deeply shoved his knee into his neck. They’re an accessory of murder, they should all be convicted.

Speaking of Chauvin, he had recently only just been charged with murder… but third-degree, which basically classified it as an accident. That man broke several rules and killed an innocent civilian and no matter how much he denies it, it was intentional. This is first-degree murder, not fucking third.  

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

Black people shouldn’t have to keep fighting a constant war with racism. They shouldn’t have to live in fear. Day after day, they are doubting simple things that we all take for granted just because they’re frightened of abuse being thrown them, whether it’s physical, verbal or emotional. Day after day, they are dealing with injustice – they shouldn’t have to. No one should ever deal with that – and while people of colour are becoming victims of racism and discrimination, black people are the ones who are getting the hardest blow. I know out there that there are a lot of black people who think that they can’t do regular things that white people can because they are afraid of losing their lives.

They shouldn’t have to live in fear. They shouldn’t have to rethink their decision to do something as simple as to go on a run or sleep in their own bed. Black people shouldn’t have to fight for something that should have always belonged to them – their right to live freely.

Racism shouldn’t exist but unfortunately, it does. And while those in power do shit all, we can do something about it. Sign petitions, donate to trusted organisations, protest (only if you feel safe to). 

https://www.obama.org/anguish-and-action/ ,

https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/

– these links have several ways to help, so I strongly advise you to have a look.

White supremacists had created and are reinforcing an ideology that people of colour, especially black people, are a disgrace. We know that isn’t the case. We can do something about it – take action NOW. And if you keep quiet and don’t speak up, you’re siding with the oppressor. From what I’ve seen, all the support for racial equality has primarily come from people of colour. If you are white, you need to do better. Even if you say that you’re not racist, that is not good enough.

This isn’t just a fight for black people. This is a fight for all. We need every person getting involved. That’s the only way we can win this ongoing battle.

We need to be anti-racist. We need this world to be anti-racist.

And we will not rest until that happens.