Do black lives matter?
June 17, 2017 12:35 PM   Subscribe

Started as a hashtag in 2013 after George Zimmerman was acquitted of all wrongdoing in the murder of Trayvon Martin, Black Lives Matter became a decentralized movement in 2014. It is now 2017 and in the wake of the acquittal of Jeronimo Yanez for the murder of Philando Castile it is reasonable to ask if progress has been made.

In 2014 the movement came together in protests over numerous killings of black people by police officers.

On metafilter we discussed the death of Eric Garner

We discussed the death of John Crawford III

We discussed the death of Michael Brown

We discussed the death of Laquan McCdonald

We discussed the death of Akai Gurley

Many of the victims in 2014 and the years following got no post of their own, because they had been killed while a post for another victim was still active.

2014 gave way to 2015 and the killings continued.

2015 gave way to 2016 and the killings continued.

2016 gave way to 2017 and the killings continued.

The movement has, sadly, grown in that time. People have risen to internet fame and built careers on their reporting of the ongoing state sanctioned murder of black people in America.

The trial of Jeronimo Yanez was an unusual event simply in that there was a trial at all. Fewer than 1% of police officers who kill a civilian face charges. But the few trials that have occurred showed us the pattern that Yanez's would follow.

The defense argued that Castile was no angel.

The defense argued that Castile looked like a criminal suspect.

The defense argued that Yanez feared for his life.

The defense argued that Yanez followed police procedures.

And the jury declared that the killing was justified and proper.

And we protested. Again.

It has been almost half a decade now since we first tried to declare that black lives mattered.
posted by sotonohito (0 comments total)

This post was deleted for the following reason: This framing is too your-own-bloggish for Mefi; fine to just repost tomorrow with links about the acquittal if you want. -- LobsterMitten



 

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