Tyranny must be faced with a certain level of reciprocal ferocity in order to create a lasting impact. We have been living in the midst of an onslaught at the hands of those sworn to serve and protect us for far too long. That is precisely why our cities are filled with Orwellian scenes of chaos. That is precisely why the brutal public slaughtering of yet another, unarmed black man has drastically shifted the direction of our country.  

The slow and painful death of George Floyd was the unfortunate catalyst to a problem as old as the United States itself. It is beyond a state of naivety to think that racism is not alive and well in the United States of America. It is beyond even the threshold of blatant ignorance to refute the countless atrocities that black men and women fall victim to at the hands of their civil servants. It is morally lacking for any American, regardless of race, age, or occupation to not be outraged at what happened to George Floyd. 

In respect to their blatant and malicious abuses of power, the police are a fundamentally and irreparably damaged institution. In addition to what I can only gauge as a misunderstanding of their creed. “To Protect and Serve” has become nothing more than a collection of meaningless letters printed on the sides of squad cars. The police have overstepped their boundaries entirely as they have been caught time and time again, acting as judge, jury, and executioner to thousands of undeserving citizens. The very citizens they are sworn to provide for in the most selfless of ways; they should be willing to lay down their lives in order to preserve the lives of the members of their community. Instead, they have been found guilty of murdering human beings based on the archaic resonances of the deeply rooted racism that still courses through the veins of this country. This is an undeniable travesty that is void of ANY form of justification. The time for change is here, and it is now.

   

It is purely disgraceful how many people had to meet an unjust demise, because of a flawed system that values them less because of the color of their skin. It is unfortunate that it has taken so many years and so much bloodshed to perpetuate change, but I implore you to not become disheartened. The protests in the streets may seem like violent mayhem. But sometimes that is what change looks like. Change is not always beautiful, but through perseverance, it is attainable.    

We stand with George Floyd and all who came before him, and we will not be moved until a transformation of the police departments code of ethics is in place. It is time to make sure that blame falls on more than just the officer that killed him (Derek Chauvin). His leadership that allowed for a piece of filth like Chauvin to fall into their ranks for eighteen years, after numerous complaints, are just as complicit. A change of this magnitude needs to shake and rattle the structure all the way to its core.