With the Pandemic and recent killings of African Americans by police in the United States it is easy to become depressed or seek move away from this type of news. Folks want to avoid talking about it or watch something to take their minds off of it.
Resist the urge to ignore this. Now is the time to have a conversation about how you feel about injustice. It is also time to learn more about these things and how they impact you.
Art has been a great expression of how some people are dealing with unjust situations. I have found comfort in how artists use their creative minds especially to express their pain and fear and translate it onto a canvas.
George Floyd was an African American man who was arrested by Minneapolis Police on Monday, May 25. This situation was video taped by people who watched four police officers hold Floyd down. One officer had his knee on Floyd’s neck which restricted his breathing. Floyd died.
After the world watched this man die on the internet and television as the video was replayed, grief and angry filled the nation as we were faced with the chickens coming home to roost. Since then riots broke out around the city, with even a police department building being burned down.
Over the last couple of months life has become very precious as we have watched the numbers of people dying of the pandemic climb to 100,000. Yet this singular death of one man by a police officer has been the proverbial straw.
I have seen people who have been quiet during other situations like this speak loud and often. I have seen people throw themselves in between police and people they are pursuing.
If we are going to stop this, everyone has to do their part. You have to figure out where you belong and go to it. But everyone has to be a part of this if we are going to stop this. We are going to stop this.
UPP Creative Media 