On July 14th, 2014, Eric Garner died after a police officer put him in a chokehold to arrest him for allegedly selling untaxed cigarettes. Despite the fact that the entire incident was caught on camera, leaving no uncertainty as to what happened and clearly showing that excessive force was used, a grand jury announced today that it would decline to indict the officer responsible. Tonight, I joined thousands of New Yorkers to protest that decision and to stand up against the racial injustice that pervades American society, particularly law enforcement. At around 7:00pm, I headed downtown with Aisha Davis, found Deborah Owolabi, and ended up in the area surrounding Rockefeller Center. It was the intention of protestors to disrupt the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony, but we were prevented by police barricades. Why the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony? Because while America pretends that all is well and jolly, our Black and Brown brothers and sisters are being subjected to police brutality and unequal enforcement of the law. Because Eric Garner doesnt get to spend Christmas with his family this year. Because enough is enough. After a while, the protest moved to Times Square, where people gathered and chanted, expressing their frustration and their anger. Soon, word spread through the crowd that we would leave to go and block the West Side Highway. Upon arriving at the highway, we saw police lights and a mass of people in the distance. It was another group of protestors who had arrived before us and who were closed in by the police. As we walked towards them, they began to cheer. The police officers moved in our direction and attempted to corral us into the same area. At one point I was separated from Aisha, and when I turned around to go towards her, a police officer grabbed my arm and pushed me forward, then back in the direction I had wanted to go. It scared me, knowing that he had power over the situation, but I kept quiet and it was fine. Later on, there was a scuffle between protestors and an officer, and all of a sudden a huge line of police officers with helmets and nightsticks was rushing in my direction. I covered my head and ran out of the way, not knowing if they would come at the crowd, hoping they wouldnt hit me. Thankfully they didnt, nor anyone else. As the crowd moved further uptown, Aisha and I decided it would be safer to leave, so we did. I am full of emotions and thoughts right now, but Im glad tonight happened and that people are standing up. The time has come for America to deal with the issue of race, to accept responsibility for the injustice that has filled so much of its history, and to become the nation it was meant to be. As we move forward, however, we need to be conscious of our approach. It pained me to see how many people were screaming hateful words in the faces of police officers tonight, because not all of them do wrong, and if we want to change things I truly believe we must adhere to both internal and external nonviolence. Just as we must not strike our opponent, we also must not hate him. In times like these, we must remind ourselves of individuals like Gandhi and Dr. King, who remained nonviolent in times even worse than our own. If they could do it, so can we. Tonight, I pray for the family of Eric Garner. I pray for all the people still out in the streets. I pray for the police. I pray for my country. I pray for justice. I pray for peace.
Posted on: Thu, 04 Dec 2014 04:23:33 +0000
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