sentenced to 20 years in prison. His sentence shows us that, at its best, our justice system could possibly give a cop 20 years in prison for killing an unarmed Black man, right? It could happen but only if he is so many feet from the cop, actively running away and the encounter is clearly recorded on video. Meanwhile, Joseph Bigsby, a 16-year-old Black man, killed a Chicago cop in 1973 and was sentenced to 200 years. He was released after serving 42 years, which incensed the city’s Police Superintendent. Simply put, some people matter in America and some don’t. Another march will not change that. We cannot remove hate or indifference from the heart of America. Our focus must be on power.
The issue is power — significance, the ability to determine one’s course and defend his/her interests. The U.S. drops bombs on weaker nations with little thought because those nations have no power. Many countries loathe the United States but they dare not send drones to Washington — not out of admiration but fear. Convicting one cop or not ultimately won’t change our position in this country. Today all of Black America holds its breath, hoping for “justice” each time one of us is murdered unjustly. We are a powerless people appealing to more powerful, oppressive forces to be more benevolent to us. Rather than hope for benevolence, we must build power. Ultimately, no one can oppress us unless we give them the money to do so.
We protest police brutality and afterward gladly deposit our dollars into multinational banks. These same banks built capital through the slave trade and currently invest in a racist prison industry. We are angered by an unjust criminal justice system and yet continue to allow politicians- (who are funded by corporate interests we empower with our dollars) – to guard the status quo. We express outrage when local, elected representatives of the justice system act heinously but, will not contribute to campaigns that allow more progressive actors to unseat those individuals. There is no single ounce of oppression we couldn’t rid ourselves of if we simply rerouted the energy, anger and Facebook posts about Sandra Bland, “microagressions” at work and police shootings’ outcry into action economically and politically. Replacing the “justice for fill in the blank” post with a “move your money here” post and following up on it is ultimately what will bring about change.
Stop acting surprised after each lynching. This is America, we should know what to expect. Stop wasting energy and outrage begging those who oppress us to be more benevolent. Seize power and turn that anger into a productive wrath. We do that simply by banking, investing and shopping in ways that foster Black power. If you find it unfeasible to deposit your money into a Black-owned bank simply because they don’t have as many ATM locations as your current bank and that sacrifice is too much for you, please don’t post a damn thing about how much you want justice. If you can’t find the willingness to change your spending habits to increase power and job creation in your own community, please don’t feign outrage at the next lynching because frankly, you don’t care and on some level you’ve become well-adjusted to it.]]>
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