I don’t want to write about the US situation any more. I shouldn’t need to. But… I can’t get away from it. I can’t read trending articles or look at social media without it being in my face all the time. There’s actually too much wrong to even try to take all the most important bits that are happening right now and put them together for my social commentary. I can’t.
Just yesterday Trump tear gassed a bunch of peaceful protesters outside a church so that he could pose for a photo-op with a Bible. But one of the people who were gassed and chased from the church was the priest of that church. The first thing I read today was a publicly posted letter of resignation to the Defense Sectretary by a member of the Defense Science Board who’d had enough, because of his support for Trump’s actions.
I can’t couch for the accuracy of these claims (but I do recognize some of them from articles going around that have been verified), but here’s an example of a copypasta going around Facebook right now:
Copypasta
The mask is off.
Austin police have killed a young man by shooting him in the head with bird shot rounds wrapped in cloth, and continued to shoot the medics carrying his body. They shot a known pregnant woman in the stomach, then stormed and abducted her from a medic tent. They maced young children during a peaceful daytime protest.
Detroit police have brutally beaten, tear gassed and arrested my friends peacefully protesting. A curfew is set from 8pm to 5am city wide.
Rockford police dragged people from their cars and beat them last night.
Minneapolis police shot at people filming them on their own balconies.
An NYPD officer called a woman a “fucking bitch” and threw her on the ground. She went into a seizure and had to go to the emergency room. Then more New York cops rammed into crowds of protesters with their cars.
An Atlanta couple last night had their tires slashed, windows broken, and were dragged out of their car and tazed.
Chicago police announced a curfew and then raised the bridges out of downtown. Demonstrators were trapped and at the utter mercy of CPD roundups. A police supervisor ordered on the radio, “Gas ’em all.” Over 1,000 people have been arrested.
Everywhere, journalists are being indiscriminately targeted and arrested. A Minneapolis photojournalist is blinded permanently in one eye after being hit by a less lethal round.
They’ve maced children. They’ve torn off a woman’s hijab. They’re turning off their body cameras and hiding their badge numbers.
This is just what’s been documented. Imagine what hasn’t been.
The true nature of American policing has been revealed for the world to see. I have never seen brutality on such a massive scale. They don’t care if you’re peaceful. They don’t care if they’re on camera.
Black and brown youth are the leaders on the ground. They are the leaders of our future. Black and brown youth are the people who are bleeding, getting beaten, and being thrown into jail. This is trauma that will last their whole lives.
To the bail funds. To the phone lines to demand release. We have to protect our people.
If you’re going out there again please, and I beg you, be safe.
-please copy and share
Trump’s statements are divisive, to say the least, and he has actively incited violence. It’s not a stretch to say that his words may well have already contributed to violence against his own people. In his position of power, to say the things he has said is disgusting. He should be held accountable. Any decent leader would call for unity, and acknowledge the systemic racism and problems in their police force, and make some kind of attempt at reconciliation. But not Trump.
For an example of what an actual leader does, see the response by Justin Trudeau, the prime minister of Canada, to a question about Trump’s handling of the situation. He seems ready to say something, then bites his lip and stands there for 21 seconds saying absolutely nothing, a perfect response to Trump really, before talking about systemic racism and the plight of people of colour in Canada. This is the sort of thing Trump should have said last week, if he was a decent human being and a real leader. But he isn’t. And instead, he continues to make a bad situation worse.
I shall try to refrain from further commentary about this, unless it gets even worse. It’s fucking depressing. But to get to my title (and yes, I completely forgot my chosen words – oops)… to combat oppression, violence is valid. Maybe violence is needed. When the people who are supposed to be enforcing the law are killing innocents, the law itself is unlawful. When that happens, shut the fuck up with your criticism of the response to it. And shut the fuck up with your “all lives matter” shit. If people are starving, you don’t open food kitchens to feed their rich neighbours. When people are oppressed, you don’t see to the rights of the oppressors. #BlackLivesMatter
Edit… Just saw this and I guess it belongs here. Reminds me of that Joker meme with “You get what you fucking deserve”.

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