I'm out here for George Floyd. And then Eric Garner. And then for Fong Lee. For Map Kong--who died at the hands of police running away and if White would still be alive. The systematic oppression of a system that works against communities of color. To document. To show truth. Send that truth in clipped videos to government officials because you can at least try--George Floyd being brutally MURDERED IN BROAD DAYLIGHT was a tipping point. Another Black Life taken. Honestly, I'm fine with burning down the Police precinct. I'm fine with some chaos. Some fire in the streets. Residential neighborhoods, small businesses, POC owned businesses though--that's bullshit. Opportunists are bullshit. But if the death of George Floyd taught us anything--in order to be heard sometimes there needs to be a different way--because we've been protesting for years. We've been shutting shit down for years. Working to make change on all different fronts. But this still happens. Why were there more cops protecting Derek Chauvin's house then protecting businesses along University Ave--POC owned businesses--from opportunists? We haven't come that far. In the last two days--like many other protesters--I've had weapons pointed at me. Pepper sprayed. Tear gassed. I've seen that look in someone's eyes when they want a piece of you. And for what? Protesting? Because they don't care. So let's see what happens next. Let's see what happens as the WHOLE NATION comes out for George Floyd and for their own city's injustices that have come at the hands of a system against them.
APIA COMMUNITY
Use your voice. Stand up. Do it any way that you can, no matter what it is.
You don't have to be out in the streets protesting if that's not your thing.
Run for office. Help change laws.
Do work in the community online or offline for racial equity.
Use your voice in your personal life to help work against bias with those you can.
Because we have to take a stand.
Protests, George Floyd, Using Our Voices
Saturday, May 30, 2020Minneapolis Officer Tou Thao: You Helped Kill George Floyd. It's Time To Pay The Price
Tuesday, May 26, 2020Right now Minneapolis and the state of MN aren't in the news for the right reasons.
A video taken by an onlooker Monday evening shows a Minneapolis police officer keeping his knee on the neck of a motionless, moaning man at the foot of a squad car. The man, who was later identified as George Floyd, later died. Tuesday afternoon, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo announced that four officers involved are now "former employees" with the department, CBS Minnesota reports. Mayor Jacob Frey tweeted, "Four responding MPD officers involved in the death of George Floyd have been terminated. This is the right call."https://kstp.com/minnesota-news/minneapolis-police-george-floyd-death-/5741256/
One of those officers, is being identified as Tou Thao by multiple news outlets:
A source with knowledge of the investigation identified two of the officers as Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao.https://www.cbsnews.com/news/minneapolis-police-george-floyd-fatal-arrest-officer-kneeling-neck/
The source confirmed the officer seen holding Floyd down in a video of the incident is Chauvin. The other officer in the video is identified as Thao.
The two other officers that have been fired were not on camera. They have yet to be identified.
THIS HAS GOT TO STOP.
Not only does the simple fact of police brutality---killing innocent men of color, primarily BLACK MEN--need to stop--but this officer--this ASIAN AMERICAN OFFICER Tou Thao--there's no gray here.
There's nothing you can even remotely defend.
He stood there, along with those other officers--AND WATCHED George Floyd DIE.
MURDERED.
In broad daylight.
As an ASIAN AMERICAN OFFICER who SHOULD be doing better for the community because he was from a community of color and immigrants, he was supposed to understand.
He was supposed to be different.
He wasn't supposed to buy in to the WHITE RACISM THAT ALLOWED ANOTHER BLACK MAN TO BE KILLED from atop a perch of OPPRESSIVE POWER structured by racism.
He should have said something.
He should have stopped him.
He should have done anything other than WHAT HE DIDN'T DO.
But this wasn't the first time either he'd been involved in a case with these same undertones:
In 2017, Lamar Ferguson sued Thao and another officer, Robert Thunder, for excessive use of force. According to the lawsuit, Ferguson and a woman who was eight months pregnant were walking home when Thao and Thunder stopped and searched them without cause. The officers handcuffed Ferguson, and Thao threw him to the ground and began punching him, while Thunder kicked him, according to the allegations.
Should have...
Could have...
But didn't.
And now another Black Man is dead by the hands of the police.
#InSolidarity #BlackLivesMatter
#APIAHeritageMonth #DontForget 290+ Links About Asian American and Asian Bias During The COVID-19 Pandemic
Sunday, May 17, 2020Links and data from the http://asianamericancv19archiveproject.org/ a new project (in beta) where the mission is to document and keep a historical record of bias, xenophobia, displacement, and injustice, against the Asian American and Asian community during the Covid-19 pandemic, and to share that data with all communities via open source technologies, where no single entity or individual owns the historical archive, helping to ensure that it can never be erased (see the FAQ/Data) section for more information on data sharing via GitHub).
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