There has to be violence. Violence against the nearest object/store/car/building is the only viable outlet for the deepest anger, gut-wrenching frustration, but mostly, for the never-ending, systematic humiliation perpetrated by white people on Black people. Humiliation just for being alive. So, yes, violence is an answer to deal with the humiliation and torment of being a human living every day as a target of hate while simply walking down the street or sleeping in one's own bed. Can you imagine the magma of generations of humiliation roiling within a person's psyche ready to explode at the final straw?
I can imagine it because as we know from numerous studies, past trauma can be passed down epigenetically and trauma seems to be most strongly passed from fathers to their sons, but not exclusively. It's called "transgenerational trauma or intergenerational trauma and is a psychological term which asserts that trauma can be transferred between generations. After a first generation of survivors experiences trauma, they are able to transfer their trauma to their children and further generations of offspring via complex post-traumatic stress disorder mechanisms." This is real. Real for everyone.
I am not saying this is an excuse for violence but I sort of am. I can't think of any other immediate solution that would fulfill one's pent up justifiable rage with such a satisfying release. What...writing a letter? Making an appointment to talk to the police chief? Running for office? Where is that going to get you? You may as well say "Talk to the hand."
The police understand violence. They understand its power and they use it liberally. Police want to make a point? Threaten violence. When it comes to violence for it to be legitimate, it’s okay if the police initiate it, not you. In other words, violence, treachery, humiliation, torture, torment...these are all their playing cards and they love a good card game. You know the MLK quote: "Hate begets hate; violence begets violence; toughness begets a greater toughness." The speech doesn't end there: "We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love... Our aim must never be to defeat or humiliate the white man, but to win his friendship and understanding."
With all due respect, the second part of the speech seems a little passé don't you think? Love has not worked, doesn't work. What does it even mean in this context? Love is hard even with someone you 'love' but to love someone who thinks nothing of doing you harm, who thinks you are dirt...come ON. How realistic is it 'to win the white man's friendship and understanding'? Ask any Indian. What makes you think the 'white men' who perpetrate this violence on Black people will suddenly change their minds about how they think of people of color if they are met with 'love'? They may smile and speak in platitudes and even shake your hand (this is Before Times) but never, ever turn your back on these people. Maybe, maybe after years of working together on 'love' and issues and policies, enough trust will be built up but man, that is going to take a long, long time. Trust is the real name of the game and to gain it, working together must produce tangible results…like vetting police officers before they enter the Police Academy; results like Black people having real influence and a real seat at the table where there is accountability, not just lip service.
The world is on fire yet there are people who say "This too shall pass" as it has in the past. We, all of us who care, who are sick of the social injustice for people of color, for immigrants, for the dispossessed, for the poor...we cannot 'let this pass'. We must seize on the momentum even during this pandemic to push forward and institute changes immediately. The first change must be in retraining police and how policing is done but that is just the technical side. Can you train people to have empathy? Every cop should have to take an in-depth history course and dive deep into how this country came to be where it is now. A course in enlightenment.
So, what comes after the violence once the violence is spent? Is there finally some psychic relief? Does a human go dormant like a volcano? Perhaps for a little while. Hopefully, people in power, with power, will use this dormant period to lay down their arms, open their hearts and minds (if they know what's good for them) and welcome the traumatized, the aggrieved, the humiliated, the violated to talk, to talk a lot, to talk often, to talk forever, to never stop talking about some real solutions to address the incalculable hurt and pain inflicted on Black people and people of color for years and years and years...for centuries. It's time.
