A Riot Is the Language of the Unheard

    A famous Martin Luther King Jr. quote 

    The quote is often traced to 1968, but it was actually a frequent rhetorical turn for King, appearing years earlier than that. In 1966, for example, in a Sept. 27 interview, King was questioned by CBS’ Mike Wallace about the “increasingly vocal minority” who disagreed with his devotion to non-violence as a tactic. In that interview, King admitted there was such a minority, though he said that surveys had shown most black Americans were on his side. “And I contend that the cry of ‘black power’ is, at bottom, a reaction to the reluctance of white power to make the kind of changes necessary to make justice a reality for the Negro,” King said. “I think that we’ve got to see that a riot is the language of the unheard. And, what is it that America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the economic plight of the Negro poor has worsened over the last few years.”


    https://time.com/3838515/baltimore-riots-language-unheard-quote

    Some of those involved in the outburst in Minneapolis will face justice. There have been arrests.

    https://www.fox9.com/video/688884

    How many different police chiefs have they had in Minneapolis?

    The Minneapolis police department does not want to change 

    I haven't heard of the arrest of any officer involved in the homicide. The evidence has been shown repeatedly.

    Comments

    The officer who had his knee on George Floyd's neck had 18 prior complaints 

    https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/28/us/minneapolis-officer-complaints-george-floyd/index.html

    Local DA and FBI say no charges yet. There is "stuff" on other tapes

    https://www.kdrv.com/content/news/570831302.html

     

     


    When the Challenger blew up, NASA immediately acknowledged a problem, grounded it's fleet. Police nationwide have a violence and PR problem, but they keep doubling down on the Blue Line of Silence and an "everything's alright, few bad apples" attitude. The public supported that attitude when Cap tried doing #TakeAKnee -silly flag saluting was more important than human lives, plus "The troops! The troops!"


    We have umbrella guy setting fires

    St Paul police say that they know it is not a police officer.

    How?

    A homicide is committed on video and there are no arrests 

    State police arrest a CNN crew for no reason.

    The Mayor thinks the police officers should be arrested

    The is no evidence of Floyd resisting arrest

    Even if he resisted, he died despite being no threat

    The people in charge of the investigation lit a match by their incoherent statements 

    The Governor disagrees with the arrest of the CNN reporters 

    The police have become a gang

    Yes police do great things, but they have allowed to repeat the same tragic mistakes without facing consequences 

    Eric Garner loose cigarettes, dead

    Tamir Rice toy gun, unstable cop, child shot dead in 3 seconds

    Freddie Gray magically fractured his own spine in police custody 

    No convictions. 

    Yet people are told "obey the rules"

     

     

     


    Poetry Slam?

    but these rioters have nothing to say except that molotov cocktails are "fucking awesome" and its fun to throw rocks through windows, beats being bored to tears by online classes in the family basement, I'm gonna take a picture for the memories:

     


    fire and breaking glass, great fun:


    all good fun untl someone shoots an eye out or some such:


    Anyone old enough to remember Reginald Denny would've hit the gas.
    Though even in the middle of chaos, there are acts of grace.




    Loud And Clear: Concerning the Riots (and the related quote by MLK Jr.0

    Found re-tweeted by Michael Maiello

    By Joseph Kugelmass @ SpliceToday.com, June 8

    If rioting is the voice of the unheard, we must accept they’re also a last resort and a bad bargain. Excerpt:

    [....] Then Beck criticizes the “white liberal” perspective on riots by asking, “But what’s a good liberal to think when the mob incinerates a city bus”?

    To do justice to his question, we must return to the words King spoke at Grosse Point High School—but not the ones you’ve already seen 100 times. “Now I wanted to say something about the fact that we have lived over these last two or three summers with agony and we have seen our cities going up in flames,” King begins. He continues: “I would be the first to say that I am still committed to militant, powerful, massive, non­violence as the most potent weapon in grappling with the problem from a direct action point of view. I’m absolutely convinced that a riot merely intensifies the fears of the white community while relieving the guilt. And I feel that we must always work with an effective, powerful weapon and method that brings about tangible results.”

    This precedes his statements about rioting giving unheard people a voice, and it changes the meaning of his point. If “a riot merely intensifies the fears of the white community while relieving the guilt,” then the rioters are speaking on behalf of racist oppression when they haphazardly violate the law. That’s why white supremacist groups have been so eager to serve as agent provocateurs from the very beginning of this crisis. Hate groups will gladly accept short bursts of anarchic violence in exchange for the sustained, systematic oppression of America’s minorities, especially when rioting diverts attention away from legitimate protests against police brutality.

    In other words, if rioting is the voice of the unheard, we must accept they’re also a last resort and a bad bargain. When a police force delegitimizes its own authority by conspiring in the brutal subjugation of America’s underclass, some people will take advantage of that lost legitimacy by disregarding the law. These opportunists are not necessarily black, poor, or “liberal.” Their aims are local: destroying something, in anger, or enjoying somebody else’s property. If they were really seeking attention, in a constructive political sense, they’d be taking to the streets with press kits. Classing rioters as “protesters,” or implicitly praising them for their supposed impatience with injustice, is a reckless misunderstanding.

    But I don’t want to be wrongly interpreted as saying that rioters have made some kind of political misstep. They’re not a movement. They have no coherent political intentions. Rioting simply demonstrates the power of the police to control mass behavior, including by inciting mobs to acts of senseless violence. It’s a direct result of police brutality and systemic injustice, and it serves the interests of the powerful [....]


    So without the uprising, we would have the same degree of discussion about police reform? The NFL would have changed its message? 
    A training officer with multiple accusations choking a man to death, this is why we are here. 

    This protest is worldwide

    https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/07/us/unrest-protests-minneapolis-ending.html?action=click&pgtype=Article&state=default&module=styln-george-floyd&variant=show&region=TOP_BANNER&context=storylines_menu

    Cities are rethinking police budgets

    https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/08/us/unrest-defund-police.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

    A majority supports the George Floyd protests

    https://www.axios.com/54-americans-support-george-floyd-demonstrations-d413bfb3-a6a0-4c3d-8d8c-5da451e267e0.html

    On the other hand, people disapproved of anti-lockdown protests

    https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2020/0511/Poll-Most-Americans-disapprove-of-anti-lockdown-protests

    Trump's approval fell

    https://news.yahoo.com/trump-polls-biden-george-floyd-coronavirus-job-approval-152747803.html

    We may be experiencing something different

     

    Edit to add:

    There were going talks by different advocate groups  to reform policing.

    Nothing happened 

    Kaepernick took a knee

    That was not patriotic

    Massive protests.

    Now we have a suggestion of movement.

     


    People of all colors were peacefully but forcefully protesting - due to Aubrey, Brianna, George. It's disingenuous to insist ONLY destructive acts brought change. People of all colors are pissed and horrified by this casual police and vigilante sadism & murder. Theyre hitting the streets.

    There's something different between pushing curfew to get police to respnd - a legitimate non-violent tactic - vs busting up businesses. 

    So get your fucking terminology straight And figure out what the fuck you want to be saying, because youre all over the fucking place as fucking usual. I can *understand* some destruction, but it's clear most of it is not the average Joe - any of that anger dissipated after a couple nights. 


    The fucking point is that the real move to change came after people broke stuff.

    That is sad, but undeniable. The polling suggests that despite the destruction, the majority of the public understands the frustration.

    The Governor of Minnesota has expanded the discussion to expanding health care.

    There are discussions about decreasing funds going to police to buy tanks, to using those funds for public housing, etc.

    That push cams after people broke stuff.

    The NFL changed after buildings were damaged.

    Show me convincing data that the marches, without the violence would have made a change.

    No one has been arrested for the murder of Breonna Taylor, despite peaceful complaints

    The Arbery case is on its fourth prosecutor.

    Destruction got attention.

    That is the unsettling realty.


    The breaking stuff and the peaceful protests started on the same day. The criminal gangs and the strategic harder core protest-cum-a-bit-of-rioting started on the same day. So how do you decide it was the breaking stuff that was the most persuasive? And not videos of cops running over And abusing peaceful protesters, shooting tear gas and rubber bullets at journalists, pushing over an old man and leaving him neglected in a pool of blood on a sidewalk? 

    No one will be arrested for Brianna's "murder" since the police had 5 no-knock warrants, so there's likely no way to charge even manslaughter since the boyfriend fired. It totally sucks, but looking for a cop charge is delusional. Maybe they can charge the judge for negligence, but it's a pittance sadly.

    The Arbery case went national when a video appeared. The first prosecutor seemed to be corrupt & compromised, and covered for the main murderer. National/world outrage has since helped push that case forward - not destruction. Video of all the abused has largely made the difference,along with expanded Twitter use in 4-5 years,though having a hated out-of-control President & AG also raises the response.


    Also strange that you ignore the positive side of cops taking a knee and marching with protesters. That if some police themselves recognize real justification fór Black grievance, it provider a lot of cover for more conservative people to loosen their opinion. Happened to my mom - she's not talking about the damage - she's talking about being understanding to blacks. Youve got it all flipped.


    I said

    The polling suggests that despite the destruction, the majority of the public understands the frustration.

    You posted

    Happened to my mom - she's not talking about the damage - she's talking about being understanding to blacks. You've got it all flipped.

    What did I flip?


    You said:

    The fucking point is that the real move to change came after people broke stuff.

    That is sad, but undeniable...

    ... [various gov & organizational changes] ...

    That push came after people broke stuff.

    The NFL changed after buildings were damaged.

    Show me convincing data that the marches, without the violence would have made a change.

    ...

    Destruction got attention.

    That is the unsettling realty.

    So you dont think 4 internationally high-profile racist incidents in a month (3 of them murderer, 3 incidents on video) plus well-documented heavier Covid killing of Blacks was enough to "get attention", or even mass protests - it was ONLY "destruction", "broke stuff", "violence".

    Now let's hear a good MLK Jr quote to wrap it up all nice & purty. That's *your* reality.


    Chauvin was arrested three days after the protests began. In a usual case involving law enforcement,  the prosecutors would still be looking at the evidence.

    Initial words from the prosecutor 

    A Minnesota prosecutor on Thursday night said there is evidence that does not support criminal charges against the white cop who kneeled on George Floyd before the black man’s death — but later backtracked.

    Along with the since-tempered revelation, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said he will not “rush” to charging the four officers involved in Floyd’s Monday arrest because “justice cannot be rushed.”

    Freeman had the called the video of Floyd being detained by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin “graphic, and horrific, and terrible.”

    “But my job, in the end is to prove that he violated a criminal statute, and there is other evidence that does not support a criminal charge,” the prosecutor told reporters at a news conference.

    Shortly after, Freeman’s office clarified his statement.

    Protesters gather outside the home of Minnesota attorney general Mike Freeman to protest the death of George Floyd.Reuters

    “County Attorney Freeman was saying that it is critical to review all the evidence because at the time of trial, invariably, all that information will be used,” the office said.

    “Evidence not favorable to our case needs to be carefully examined to understand the full picture of what actually happened.”

    Freeman did not disclose what evidence his office has uncovered that may be unfavorable to them


    https://nypost.com/2020/05/28/prosecutor-says-he-will-not-rush-to-charge-officers-in-george-floyd-death/

     


    As I explained, it doesnt make sense to rush in and charge a cop with a crime that wont stick. As notes, Zimmerman was overcharged, So that a jury wouldn't convict. 3 days Is barely a long time to research the evidence and best prosecutable charges. Again, this was caught on full video, so 0 chance Chauvin wouldn't be charged, protesters or not. 


    The prosecutor 

    “But my job, in the end is to prove that he violated a criminal statute, and there is other evidence that does not support a criminal charge,” the prosecutor told reporters at a news conference.

    This despite the choking caught on video.


    And after 3 days the court case Is risen, hallelujah. It's a Miracle. Thru Violence 2.0.


    NASCAR responds 2 violence?


    Wow! Now that is quite simply: amazing effort at culture change by those who can actually affect it.

    Very much reminds me of how this happened (and my thoughts were helped along with your report about your mom!)



    harmonic convergence aginwink


    I'm verklempt...!

    Talk amongst yourselves.


    I am thinking the ceremonials you pointed out, with the moment of silence and the other stuff, that was a trial balloon to see how fans would take the change....



    And for billionth time, people have a right to peacefully secede from whatever Union, though conditions will vary, and thuggish threats including shootings to make them stay Is barely a progressive position. Of course people leaving to preserve an immoral practice Is not defensible unless that practice Is codified in the Constitution, which rather circumscribes a more rightful response. And these little foreign enclaves like the North wanted with Sumter - Goa, Macau, Gitmo, Gibraltar, Kaliningrad all have dubious legality. But as long as the answer Is what Ppl want to hear, the logic to get there doesnt matter.


    They wanted to leave. They wanted their slaves. They wanted states in the Union allow them to bring their slaves into the territory. Blacks fought on the side of the Union and whipped some Confederate butt. The end. Constitution was amended.

    Now even NASCAR  wants no part of the traitors. The Navy and Marines are fed up as well.

    And the poor statues.


    you still haven't a clue how culture change happens. No law forced NASCAR to do it, no politician, no court, no political party. South fought an entire civil war and lost it but STILL for a century no fucking laws, political parties or courts could change their culture. But when a cultural attitude is no longer considered cool and therefore can't make money for capitalists, it's dumped pronto.

    Being a harpie preaching a sermon about how the other guy is "evil" just doesn't seem to work for some reason, go figure. More often then not, makes them dig in their heels.


    Don't you ever see the policeman in the way you write and argue? Just like one.


    I don't shoot people in the back or do chokeholds


    There were decades of pressure over the meaning of the Confederate flag and the statues. Without that persistent pressure nothing would have happened. NASCAR did not magically change. Why was the Confederacy no longer cool? Constant harping. The cultural change was due to criticism that reached a critical mass. They would still be digging in their heels.


    On March 4, 1861, Abraham Lincoln was sworn in as president. In his inaugural address, he argued that the Constitution was a more perfect union than the earlier Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, that it was a binding contract, and called any secession "legally void".[89] He had no intent to invade Southern states, nor did he intend to end slavery where it existed, but said that he would use force to maintain possession of Federal property. The government would make no move to recover post offices, and if resisted, mail delivery would end at state lines. Where popular conditions did not allow peaceful enforcement of Federal law, U.S. marshals and judges would be withdrawn. No mention was made of bullion lost from U.S. mints in Louisiana, Georgia, and North Carolina. He stated that it would be U.S. policy to only collect import duties at its ports; there could be no serious injury to the South to justify the armed revolution during his administration. His speech closed with a plea for restoration of the bonds of union, famously calling on "the mystic chords of memory" binding the two regions.[89]

    The South sent delegations to Washington and offered to pay for the federal properties[which?] and enter into a peace treaty with the United States. Lincoln rejected any negotiations with Confederate agents because he claimed the Confederacy was not a legitimate government, and that making any treaty with it would be tantamount to recognition of it as a sovereign government.[90] Secretary of State William Seward, who at the time saw himself as the real governor or "prime minister" behind the throne of the inexperienced Lincoln, engaged in unauthorized and indirect negotiations that failed.[90] President Lincoln was determined to hold all remaining Union-occupied forts in the Confederacy: Fort Monroe in Virginia, Fort PickensFort Jefferson and Fort Taylor in Florida, and Fort Sumter – located at the cockpit of secession in Charleston, South Carolina.

    Battle of Fort Sumter

    Main article: Battle of Fort Sumter

    Flagpole in a ruined building

    The Confederate "Stars and Bars" flying from Fort Sumter

    Fort Sumter is located in the middle of the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina. Its garrison recently moved there to avoid incidents with local militias in the streets of the city. Lincoln told its commander, Maj. Anderson to hold on until fired upon. Confederate president Jefferson Davis ordered the surrender of the fort. Anderson gave a conditional reply that the Confederate government rejected, and Davis ordered General P. G. T. Beauregard to attack the fort before a relief expedition could arrive. He bombarded Fort Sumter on April 12–13, forcing its capitulation.

    The attack on Fort Sumter rallied the North to the defense of American nationalism. Historian Allan Nevins underscored the significance of the event:

    "The thunderclap of Sumter produced a startling crystallization of Northern sentiment. ... Anger swept the land. From every side came news of mass meetings, speeches, resolutions, tenders of business support, the muster of companies and regiments, the determined action of governors and legislatures."[91]

    Engraving of large protest

    Mass meeting in New York City April 20, 1861, to support the Union.

    Union leaders incorrectly assumed that only a minority of Southerners were in favor of secession and that there were large numbers of southern Unionists that could be counted on. Had Northerners realized that most Southerners favored secession, they might have hesitated at attempting the enormous task of conquering a united South.[92]


    The South lost.

    The South was too stubborn and too stupid to arm black people.

    The white racists in the North gave blacks the opportunity to shoot and kill the white racists in the South.

    My ancestors were getting paid to kill slave owners, many could not pass up that deal.

    The biggest gift the North received was the incompetent Robert E. Lee

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/05/19/the-truth-about-confederate-gen-robert-e-lee-he-wasnt-very-good-at-his-job/

    What if the South had.....?

    What if the North had.....?

    Jefferson Davis ran away dressed as a woman.

     


    Ahmaud Arbery video released - May 5
    Breonna Taylor - May 14 photos, May 15 wrongful death suit, May 21 police chief resigns
    Christian Cooper/Amy Cooper - Central Park birdwatching viral video - May 25 (Memorial Day)
    George Floyd killed - May 25 (Memorial Day)
    Add to that lockdowns for Covid with more people hacking time for news
    Also people seeing no resources for Coronavirus PPE as it hits 100,000 deaths Memorial Day, but lots of teargas, rubber bullets, equipment for cops & soldiers

    Quite the busy May.


    The only point was to share that other people don't interpret that statement by MLK Jr. the way you do. Kugelmass is interpreting it in larger context both of what King said that day and how he believed things should proceed overall.

    There's two issues here: what pseudonymous-rmrd-on-the-internet believes works and what the deceased MLK Jr. believed to work in the past.

    Maiello thought it was interesting enough to share with his followers on Twitter and I thought it was interesting enough to share elsewhere.


    What did King predict would happen if non-violent voices were ignored? Stokely Carmichael was chomping at the bit.



    The protests — and the coverage of them — started out looking like 1968, @owasow writes. They wound up turning into 1964: https://t.co/iBYvwxgLUs

    — Mike Madden (@MikeMadden) June 11, 2020

    Omar Wasow is an assistant professor in the politics department at Princeton University. He also founded BlackPlanet.com and the Brooklyn Excelsior Charter School.

    https://twitter.com/owasow

     


    thread continues....

    peaceful nonviolent protestors + eliciting and taking  brutal police crackdown without fighting back = media attention and subsequent ympathy from the public.

    RIOTING on the other hand = BAD GUYS. No sympathy from the public. (I.E., Why are you burning your own neighborhood down? To hell with you!)

    Not rocket science. Ghandi started it. MLK Jr. continued it.



    And for his personal story getting published (follow thread)


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