George Floyd. Breanna Taylor. Trayvon Martin. Michael Brown.
These names have ignited a flare in thousands of people. These names have coerced Americans and people from many parts of the world to come out and fight against an injustice that has been lurking around for years. These names are just a few among many more to let society know that black lives do matter, but it does not seem so.
Masses came out, thousands of people came together holding huge posters with impactful slogans and pleaded for their voice to be heard; to end the boundary between blacks and whites, to end the discrimination they and their ancestors had been facing in the country they considered to be their own.
Do these protests and demonstrations sound like a ‘threat to society’, or a ‘movement by terrorists and thugs’? But this is what these were according to a lot of prominent news channels in America. These were, as seen through the eyes of white supremacists extremely violent and aggressive, ‘harmful for the national security.’
It is heartbreaking to see how similar actions done by both blacks and whites are treated and responded to differently even in today’s times. Black protesters and dissenters are projected to be a ticking bomb who could do infinite damage no matter how peacefully they try to voice their dissatisfaction and fight for their basic human rights. Tear gas, physical assault, brutal weapons and unethical arrests are some steps that the police take to control black people, regardless of their age or gender, regardless of what they have to say.
On the other hand, when whites have to make their point, irrespective of how threatening their medium of protesting is, the media and people shrug it off. #OregonunderAttack is an example, where a group of armed white militiamen came together and threatened to capture a government institution unless some land laws were changed. It screamed violence, dominance and supremacy. Yet it got a bare minimum coverage in social media and news, it was deemed as ‘peaceful’ and ‘not alarming’. This publicly highlighted the racial bias which still existed amongst people.
In January 2021, predominantly white pro-trump extremists stormed the Capitol, armed and with tactical gear to protest against the victory of Biden. News channels showed the horrifying footage, the angry people who were causing massive destruction to an institution that was so symbolic to America. But the response control team seemed to go light on them as compared to Black Lives Matter protestors, and it took hours before the situation was completely under control.
This difference in treatment was given emphasis to by the public. Joe Biden and Michelle Obama tweeted on how the scene would have played out if these were black demonstrators, how the approach to control the crowd would have become highly militarized.
Racism has caused harm to innumerable families, so many people have unjustly lost their lives. White supremacy is still quite prevalent, even though the support for black lives and their importance has considerably increased over the years. Society is pushing for a change, it is demanding a full stop on the racial injustice and bias. But there are still people who are preventing this from happening.
It‘s high time this racial prejudice comes to an end. Instead of looking at people’s color, it’s time we look at them as humans and make the world a better and peaceful place for everyone.