by Barry Berman
Writing this blog helps me sort through what’s going on and how it affects me. It is therapeutic. The dialogue with readers has sparked a provocative conversation that, I hope, benefits us all. It does for me.
A week ago, you couldn’t imagine anything more cataclysmic than COVID and all its ripples. Now, it barely gets a token mention on CNN.
As I write this, I’m watching armored troops barricading the White House with passionate citizens on the other side mourning, yet again, the murder of a fellow American brutality murdered by a cop. Enough is enough.
The world is changing so dizzyingly fast, my brain can’t keep up.
The intensity of both events and the coverage is beyond human capacity.
Here is what I believe:
The common denominator that links both is race.
The long trail from Rodney King to George Floyd….
STOP!
Trump just declared martial law. He’s mobilizing the military to put down “angry mobs.” Oh my God!
He’ll deploy “thousand and thousands” of military troops to squelch dissent.
The tear gas and rubber bullets to dispel peaceful protesters (to clear the way for a Trumpian photo op at Saint John’s Church across from the White House) were not enough. Now, if governors don’t play ball, he’ll send troops into states to quell protests.
Far be it from me to offer expert commentary, but in my view , while the horrific epidemic-like murders of black people by police need to stop — and more than justify the rage of America — the outpouring of emotion speaks as much to the centuries of systemic, intentional, insidious and cruel initiatives to keep our black and brown brothers and sisters in real and virtual chains.
I wrote a blog post just the day before Floyd died about our collective fear of the other. I had no idea that a few hours later that would be cruelly demonstrated by the foot of a bigoted policeman crushing the life out of a helpless person he considered to be “the other.”
And the Coronavirus? A huge, HUGE part of this evolving tragic story is about racism. The lopsided statistical imbalance of people of color who are dying from this disease and suffering from the lack food and vital essentials is a direct result of our nation’s plotting to keep the necks of our fellow human beings under the foot of a dominant white society.
The events of the past week are intrinsically tied together.
Somehow, we have a primordial feeling that America is so well established over hundreds of years that it can never end. Yet, we’re just a baby compared to the more than 500 year run of the Roman Empire, which ultimately collapsed of its own weight.
George Floyd couldn’t breathe, Covid victims can’t breathe, and I believe that if we don’t get our act together now this country won’t be able to breathe.
We truly have one last long breath at this and that is at the ballot box. Our current inept and increasing dictatorial leadership is the end result — perhaps literally — of generations of mistreatment of people of color.
It is by no means a sure thing that “we shall overcome.”
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We Shall Overcome by Mahalia Jackson
For What It’s Worth by Buffalo Springfield
Barry Berman was founder of CRN International and Connecticut Radio Network. He is an entrepreneur, writer and broadcaster and is starting, Sounds Great! Media a boutique digital audio (podcasting) agency and consultancy with an emphasis on health and wellness.