English assignment

Nanor Petrossian

Professor Nowak

WRIT313

October 23, 2020

Abstract

The topic of racism in the United States has always been a controversial topic for a long time.

There have been numerous campaigns and protests in the streets by people of color who believe

that the system opposes them. Different people have varying opinions regarding some of these

campaigns that emphasize the value of black lives. Reports of police brutality against blacks are

not new and often made headlines in America and worldwide. While the black community has

been at the forefront of movements such as 'Black Lives Matter,' some groups try changing the

narrative to 'All Lives Matter.' The debate has been a back and forth struggle for all parties

involved. However, the murder of George Floyd Mayweather did change the narrative as police

brutality became evident in a manner like never seen previously. It is an incident that became a

turning point for Black's struggle for equality. The majority of the Americans feel the system is

not just unlike before, where it was only a Black person's issue. Words echoed by activists that

existed in the previous decades are still relevant now due to similarities in scenarios. The Issue of

Racism and Police Brutality

The struggle for equality is a daily struggle for the Back community. If daily news

reports are anything to go by, the COVID-19 pandemic has heightened racism exposure (​Dave,

np)​. Social media has become another popular medium for exposing the prejudices that the

Blacks face in the hands of police, and the strategy did pay off as it has attracted criticism from

all over the world. Access to social amenities and good consumption, as studies indicate, are not

equal for each race. There was a considerable disparity in coronavirus cases between the whites

and the blacks and the Latinos. Racism was affecting all facets of social living, including the

health sector. Many questions to the United States government have gone unanswered, but the

public is still not giving up so easily. A common question that minority groups ask themselves in

America is, when will racism end? Police brutality and racism will continue to be a black

person's problem until other races join hands in ending the malpractice.

James Balwin was quite vocal about racism despite taking a diplomatic approach to offset

the status quo. In the film ​I Am Not Your Negro, ​Baldin states that "​I am terrified at the moral

apathy, the death of the heart, which is happening in my country. These people deluded

themselves for so long that they don't think I'm human." The same cruelty that great activist bore

witness is still in existence, according to the black community. Police shootings of people of

color have been on the rise, as studies reveal. Some critics argue that only a handful of the

shootings are lucky enough to see the light of justice while a significant number go unreported.

Several public figures and celebrities have had to come out to defend their own and condemn this

unending vicious cycle. With every innocent life lost of a black person, protests and

demonstrations have increased in a similar proportion. The Blacks' rage expresses itself in their

demonstrations, looting, and campaigns against white supremacists and police brutality. On

numerous occasions, James would talk about American society making it difficult for Blacks to

control this anger inside of them. It would be accurate to say that the murder of George Floyd

was a breakpoint for the Blacks who got fed up with the system (​Dreyer, np)​. The phrase 'I can't

breath' became famous not only in America but in other nations. It was disheartening for the

world to witness a black's death as a product of racism and police brutality.

While some may argue that actions do not justify the anger that the Blacks feel, Baldwin

would say the alternative is much unbearable, self-destruction. Since the era of slavery, the black

community has struggled to keep itself from committing atrocious acts. The fight for equality

began with the battle for freedom, leading to the abolition of slavery. The passing of bills and

elimination of policies promoting racial segregation was a gradual process that took years to

accomplish. James Baldwin's return to America was his way of 'paying dues' like fellow black

community members. He could no longer tolerate the news and reports that came his way

regarding treating people of color. Like his fellow activists and friends, James did not want the

white to see him as Black but as a human being. The whites needed to self-evaluate why there

was a necessity for a different perception of Blacks. Equal treatment of all races is a battle that

has been difficult to win but met with significant landmarks throughout history. In other words,

the Blacks' anger against all forms of prejudices is under the category of subjective violence with

an exact cause.

The racism that was present during ancient times is still present in the modern-day only

in different packaging. Colonialism ended, and so did slavery, but access to social amenities and

services for the Blacks became a challenge. Elimination of one challenge leads to the creation of

another one. The Armchair Theorists speaking about racism and the Blacks' subjective violence

did highlight the change in perspective, especially after Floyd's murder. It was a painful moment

in history that became a point of epiphany for the world to comprehend the American system

decadence. Slavery and working in the plantation may have been a win for the black community,

but inequality took a different form. Police brutality became one way of normalizing systemic

violence. For a Black child who wants to be successful in America, society expects that he/she

must work twice as hard as an average white child. It is a norm that is hidden, but, according to

the opinion of many, exists. The justice system judges the whites and the blacks differently, with

the latter having a high chance to lose when going against the former. W.E.B. DuBois in ​The

Souls of Black Folk claims that the problem is not the negro; the environment is the issue which

creates unfavorable conditions (pp.43). White supremacists work with much effort to ensure that

there are measures to allow the status quo to persist.

W.E.B. DuBois talks about double consciousness worth keeping while James discredits

the whites' thinking and perception. It is a distinction between the two, but each provides a valid

reason for his claim. Baldwin argues that if there were one singular race, Malcolm X and other

black activists would still be existing if, for any reason, there was one singular race. When the

Poles and Israelis arm themselves with firearms and weapons in their fight for their liberty, it is a

brave act commanding applause. However, when the Blacks repeat the same thing, it becomes a

criminal offense requiring punishment. The whites' perception is corrupt to the extent of

intending to sacrifice some Blacks so that the rest will fear. It is suitable for Dubois to have

double consciousness as a Black person to benefit from both worlds, the whites and the blacks.

There is a lot to learn from a white perspective and much to say from a black outlook.

A few years back, white privilege was just an idea only told in books, but proceeding

towards the twenty-first century, its visibility became undeniable. Majority of whites used to

consider Blacks to be the complaining type without a valid reason. Therefore white privilege was

just a term that the African-Americans had invented to show their discontent with how things

were running in America. Shootings of Blacks increased, and so did police brutality, according

to past reports. There was much anger from the Blacks who felt that their views and opinions

were subject to ignorance. The coronavirus pandemic attack had its brighter side despite leading

to many deaths worldwide. A lot of countries went into lockdown as quarantining made people

closer to social media. Social media platforms were used to report some of the Blacks' police

brutality and killings that did not follow the right protocol. Floyd's murder was not the only one

that got the public attention and the world talking, but the seven-minute video had a significant

impact on social injustice. Campaigns such as Black Lives Matter were at the forefront of

ensuring the American police system's inhumane act became visible to the world. White

privilege came into action when a police report painted George badly while trying to protect the

police system's reputation. However, the power of social media and the Black's movement made

it difficult for anyone to oppose what the world had seen.

While most may think that some of the activists had a differing opinion regarding racism

and all forms of social injustice, I believe they speak the same language. From Baldwin to

Dubois, they did want racism to be put to an end one day, and all races got the same privilege.

Blacks do not feel hatred towards the whites but the system that favors one race at others'

expense. It is a system that also protects its own even when the injustice is irrefutable. There are

a lot of useful facts that the Armchair Theorists highlighted in their discussion. Systemic

violence continues to prosper under the maintenance of the status quo. It beats logic that George

Floyd had to die for the whites to realize that the system is unfair. In 2017, the percentage of

Americans that supported BLM was below the fifty percent mark. The rate of supporters for the

movement surpassed fifty-percent in the year 2020. It would be inaccurate to argue that Floyd's

death did not act as an eye-opener for the social injustices that the minorities face in America. It

took a long time for the whites to acknowledge some biasness in the American system finally.

All activists have the same result at the back of their minds in this racism issue; the only

distinction is the approach.

In assessing popular misconceptions concerning anti-black racism and police violence in

the United States, the Armchair Theorists provide a solid argument. Looting, protests, and other

forms of violence from the Blacks have often been put under subjective violence. The

assumption that the white supremacists try to spread across America is that Blacks are violent

and require law enforcement to restore peace. Some of the BLM movement protests did not

require police intervention, yet most ended with arrests and injuries. In other words, the

Americans at one point did come to the acceptance that the Blacks cannot conduct a peaceful

demonstration. Such notions are the tools used by anti-black racists in the preservation of

systemic violence. The construction of the American system is so that it pins the Blacks against

the whole of America. Changing the working of the system would require efforts of more than a

single race since. Social is becoming an instrumental tool in exposing some of these social

injustices.

In conclusion, the fight against racism is not over, but 2020 has been a year of essential

landmarks in the struggle. Transformation is not only taking place in a single specific sector but

across the paradigm. Even the definition of racism now includes systemic oppression. Every

move that the United States is making concerning discrimination is under the scrutiny of the

world. The cry of the Blacks in America has now got the attention of not only America at large

but also other nations. There have been suggestions that the police department in America should

be subject to defunding to uplift the Black communities' welfare. Looting and destroying

property would not be an issue if access to consumption goods were equal for all races. The

whole discussion that paints the Blacks as aggressive has for so long been done from a wrong

angle. There have been wins for the people of color on many issues, but that does not mean they

should down their tools. It is about time that America's status quo is subjected to dismantling to

have a useful working community.

Works cited

Baldwin, James, and Raoul Peck. I am not your Negro: A major motion picture directed by

Raoul Peck. Vintage, 2017.

Dave, Dhaval M., et al. ​Black Lives Matter protests, social distancing, and COVID-19​. No.

w27408. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2020.

Dreyer, Benard P., et al. "The Death of George Floyd: Bending the Arc of History Toward

Justice for Generations of Children." ​Pediatrics​ 146.3, (2020).

Du Bois, W. E. B. 1868-1963., and Brent Hayes Edwards. ​The Souls of Black Folk. Oxford

[England]; New York: Oxford University Press, (2007): 43-102.

The Armchair Theorists. ​The George Floyd Protests, Looting, and Slavoj Zizek's Violence​.

Youtube (2020).​ ​https://youtu.be/y7R4R4Dm97c