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Calling the protests around the world “George Floyd Protests” (as @CNN did) is an attempt to minimize the systemic problem that exists within the US — racism, police brutality, and a human rights crisis. The more I learn about the Trump Administration, the more I believe that policy (in the form of civil rights) has a powerful role to play in the deconstruction of existing discriminatory practices in the US.
Scott Woods said: “The problem is that white people see racism as conscious hate, when racism is bigger than that. Racism is a complex system of social and political levers and pulleys set up generations ago.” Racist policy has thrived in the US for many decades: property rights, law and order enforcement, social welfare, taxes, and healthcare to name a few major areas. Policies that impacted white people: owning property, INCLUDING SLAVES, red-lining (where certain neighbourhoods were designated for African-Americans only), the 2008 Recession (sub-prime borrowers were predominantly African-Americans, those of which who were denied prime financing), and in the very obvious form of safety outside (police brutality, false accusations, literally able to do anything without fearing for their life).
You don’t need a degree to understand this, however I will say that the concept of racism as a structural/ institutional issue was one that took me a long time to conceptualize. Maybe it’s because I study economics with a keen interest in human rights and how the government protects them. These particular findings were collected through the @blklivesmatter’s multi-link (in my bio). America has built a system that was never designed to protect Black people, and policy makers need to step up (or step the f*ck down and move aside) to create real, anti-racist policies that protect, serve, and liberate ALL Americans.
The last thing I will say is that Canada is not immune. We have policies in place that do not serve or protect our Black and Indigenous communities. Think about that the next time you think you live in a bubble, because Canada could be next. We have AMPLE time to unlearn. Start now. #blacklivesmatter #unlearn
