And now there’s another one.
Personally, I’m not surprised.
You have been warned . . . The historian has entered the building . . .
In the U.S., the whole foundation of the formation of a police force was to keep the enslaved on plantations and working. What could possibly go wrong after emancipation?
We’ve seen it.
The systematic killings of Black people, both male and female, by law enforcement. We all feel like this is all brand new; however, Black bodies have been targeted by the state from some time. Police brutality is not new to us.
Lynchings? Law enforcement was part of those.
The Klan? Law enforcement were members of the Klan.
Nixon’s “law and order?” Yep, targeting Black people who protested for civil rights to keep us in our places.
The toys law enforcement gets to play with are far more powerful today. Yes, someone thought it was a good idea to give the police forces military grade hardware. 🙄 But the attitude about Black bodies have not shifted, if so, only a tiny bit.
“But Michelle, the officers were Black.”
Yep, Black officers are trained in a system that is designed to continue White supremacy and target Black bodies.
The color of the cops doesn’t matter. The law enforcement system is designed to keep White supremacy in place.
As we enter Black History Month, what do we do?
I am actually making a point of avoiding media coverage. I don’t need to see the details of how police murdered this young man. I don’t need to have on replay how law enforcement terrorizes the lives of Black people. I don’t need to go small because the state targets our lives. I don’t need my son to be smaller because the state targets his life.
As a matter of fact, I’m going to continue to preach my gospel of pleasure.
Nothing pisses off a White Supremacist society than people making pleasure the priority of their lives. This means that we don’t donate our time to the system. We own our time. We own our bodies when we keep pleasure in our front view.
There are many things one can do. But whatever that is, don’t compromise your pleasure. Otherwise, we perpetuate the same thing repeatedly.
Say their names. Here’s a link to all of us who have lost our lives at the hands of this state.
Michelle