Is America burning? (Black Lives Matter protests, civil unrest and riots 2020)

[A380]

If someone you care about is being attacked by someone stabbing a knife with such ferocity as this girl was, and there was a cop with a gun aimed at her and they didn't fire cos it's not 100% the knife would kill, doesn't sound particularly acceptable to me.

Most statistical studies, in the uk, which have various flaws show that you are more likely to die if a stabbing victim than as a shooting victim. This may have an element of reporting bias and also that most criminals here have really shit ammunition. I haven’t seen studies from elsewhere in Europe or the states though.

 

[Bahnhof Strasse]

Most statistical studies, in the uk, which have various flaws show that you are more likely to die if a stabbing victim than as a shooting victim. This may have an element of reporting bias and also that most criminals here have really shit ammunition. I haven’t seen studies from elsewhere in Europe or the states though.

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

The other three cops at the scene are charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter and are expected to go on trial together in August.

Convictions for all three now seem very likely. J. Alexander Kueng, a 26-year-old Black officer who working his third-ever shift, was largely trained by Chauvin and might get the lightest sentence, but as his own sister says, "I don’t care if it was his third day at work or not. He knows right from wrong.”

The Black Officer Who Detained George Floyd Had Pledged to Fix the Police (Published 2020)

Alex Kueng is one of four former officers accused of crimes in the killing of Mr. Floyd, which happened on his third shift. His decision to join the force had frayed friendships.

www.nytimes.com

That's so fucked up.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Whenever the US has a big race relations story, the African-American community fields a huge number of very impressive commentators and spokespeople and leaders. They're so articulate and balanced and professional and effective. Where are their counterparts in the UK? With just a handful of exceptions, they're hopeless, IMHO. I don't know whether anyone else will agree with me. But if I'm right, what are the root causes? I've met lots of heavyweight intellectuals and deep thinkers in the Black-British community. Maybe our media sabotages them, or there's too much racism for them to challenge it....

I don't know if your observation is true or not, but I do see that many African-Americans are very close with their church. Churches in the US provide not only a support system, but a training ground for public speakers. A lot of the spokespeople carry the title "Rev." One of my favorite of these speakers at the moment is Rev. Barber of the Poor People's Campaign ( Poor People's Campaign – A National Call for Moral Revival (poorpeoplescampaign.org) ). He looks like he's going to heave over with a heart attack any minute, but he speaks his truth.

 

[petee]

 

[David Clapson]

I don't know if your observation is true or not, but I do see that many African-Americans are very close with their church. Churches in the US provide not only a support system, but a training ground for public speakers. A lot of the spokespeople carry the title "Rev." One of my favorite of these speakers at the moment is Rev. Barber of the Poor People's Campaign ( Poor People's Campaign – A National Call for Moral Revival (poorpeoplescampaign.org) ). He looks like he's going to heave over with a heart attack any minute, but he speaks his truth.

I see what you mean:



Over here people of faith are routinely mocked and ridiculed by atheists. It's hard for them to get past that with a message. The Archbishop of Canterbury manages it now and again, but he's white. One of our best black thought leaders is Bonnie Greer, an American.

 

[hitmouse]

It's Going Down has an interview with one of the Minneapolis unionists who kicked the National Guard out of the labor hall: This Is America #138: Chauvin Trial Ends, Streets Explode
The whole show's really long, if you just want to listen to that interview then it's from about 11:30-42:00 or thereabouts.

 

[NoXion]

Over here people of faith are routinely mocked and ridiculed by atheists. It's hard for them to get past that with a message.

I wonder if centuries of murderous sectarian bullshit, which hasn't entirely gone away even today, has anything to do with that?

 

[Shechemite]

Bonnie Greer is a thought leader? We’re all fucked then

 

[SpineyNorman]

Bonnie Greer is a thought leader? We’re all fucked then

Yeah but black people in the UK are all a bit thick and don't know how to do antiracism properly because they don't go to church enough or something

 

[Idris2002]

A little step back in time to the good old days before Trump, when US presidents were better - in this case Reagan - just read about this incident, never heard of it before

US state forces dropped a bomb, and got 500 heavily armed troops to fire 10,000 rounds of ammunition in the rough direction of where black anarchist liberation group MOVE were based - taking out an entire block

MOVE - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

The day police bombed a city street: can scars of 1985 Move atrocity be healed?

An airstrike killed 11 people, including five children, in an assault on a Philadelphia black liberation group. Now a reconciliation effort is under way

www.theguardian.com

"
Why Have So Many People Never Heard Of The MOVE Bombing?
"

NPR Choice page

There appears to have been some deeply unethical behaviour regarding the human remains of the child victims, said remains being used to teach forensic anthropology:

Bones of Black children killed in police bombing used in Ivy League anthropology course

Remains of those killed in 1985 Move bombing in Philadelphia serve as ‘case study’ in Princeton-backed course

www.theguardian.com

The department where this forensic anthropology was being taught (online, with the case used as an example of what happens when you can't identify a person from their remains) have been trying to defend themselves:

Controversy flares over how Penn and Princeton treated a MOVE bombing victim’s remains

Penn is facing new questions about how it has handled remains of a victim of the MOVE bombing in 1985.

www.inquirer.com

The course was taught by an adjunct, i.e. someone with no job security whatsoever, so this will end with damage limitation by scapegoating.

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

Yeah but black people in the UK are all a bit thick and don't know how to do antiracism properly because they don't go to church enough or something

I didn't say anything like that, or anything about politics in Britain for that matter, nor am I suggesting that someone should go to church. I was speaking entirely of how organizing in the US has often originated in churches, since the time of Martin Luther King. If you look at how some states have turned blue in the last couple of years, its been churches getting their members on a bus to go vote. Why do you think there's so many Republican-sponsored bills to keep people from voting on Sundays?

 

[SpineyNorman]

I didn't say anything like that, or anything about politics in Britain for that matter, nor am I suggesting that someone should go to church. I was speaking entirely of how organizing in the US has often originated in churches, since the time of Martin Luther King. If you look at how some states have turned blue in the last couple of years, its been churches getting their members on a bus to go vote. Why do you think there's so many Republican-sponsored bills to keep people from voting on Sundays?

I didn't think you were and it wasn't really aimed at you, more Mr Clapson

Anyway, in my opinion Akala is loads better than Greer and there's plenty of others too. (Someone's going to tell me something unspeakable akala has done now and shatter my illusion)

 

[hitmouse]

There appears to have been some deeply unethical behaviour regarding the human remains of the child victims, said remains being used to teach forensic anthropology:

Bones of Black children killed in police bombing used in Ivy League anthropology course

Remains of those killed in 1985 Move bombing in Philadelphia serve as ‘case study’ in Princeton-backed course

www.theguardian.com

May be old news now, but the last of the MOVE 9 only got out last year: Chuck Sims Africa freed: final jailed Move 9 member released from prison

 

[hitmouse]

Yeah but black people in the UK are all a bit thick and don't know how to do antiracism properly because they don't go to church enough or something

Fwiw, Ill Will Editions put out a lot of good stuff last year really laying into the concept of a "black leadership", this from Idris Robinson was great imo:

How It Might Should Be Done • Ill Will

A militant nationwide uprising did in fact occur.

illwill.com

If there were riots, if people got busy, there was no mention of a Black leadership. If things stopped, if things were stultified, all we heard about was a Black leadership.

The thing is, I have never in my life actually seen a Black leader. Why? Because they don’t exist. If there are Black leaders, they’re dead like Martin and Malcolm. If you’re worth your salt, you will be killed. If there are Black leaders, they are in jail with Mumia and with Sundiata. If there are Black leaders, they are on the run with Assata.

There is only one category of people who speak of Black leaders, and we know them as white liberals. The Black leadership is nothing other than a figment and hallucination that exists solely in the imagination of the white liberal’s mind. The odd thing about it is that somehow white liberals have more contact with Black leaders than I have ever come across in my entire life. It is as if a channel extends from the Black leadership directly into their head...

Why does the white liberal need to hallucinate and invent a Black leadership for him or herself? Ultimately, it is because whitey loves property. Property enjoys a special prestige in American life, it has a special kind of sanctity. We always get these calls for the Black leadership from white liberals whenever the windows start to crack.

 

[JimW]

I didn't say anything like that, or anything about politics in Britain for that matter, nor am I suggesting that someone should go to church. I was speaking entirely of how organizing in the US has often originated in churches, since the time of Martin Luther King. If you look at how some states have turned blue in the last couple of years, its been churches getting their members on a bus to go vote. Why do you think there's so many Republican-sponsored bills to keep people from voting on Sundays?

Historically a lot of union activists in the UK came from non-conformist backgrounds having learnt oratory as lay preachers and so on.

 

[weltweit]

Bonnie Greer is a thought leader? We’re all fucked then

Actually when she is in public like on QT, I find Bonnie Greer usually talks a lot of sense.

 

[Yossarian]

Chauvin might now be facing federal charges in connection with a different arrest - and the Minneapolis Police Department might have to answer some tough questions about why this man was allowed to remain on the force.

The videos, from Sept. 4, 2017, allegedly showed Chauvin striking a Black teenager in the head so hard that the boy needed stitches, then allegedly holding the boy down with his knee for nearly 17 minutes, and allegedly ignoring complaints from the boy that he couldn't breathe.

After Chauvin's conviction for Floyd murder, DOJ weighs charging him for 2017 incident involving Black teen: Source

Federal investigators probing Derek Chauvin's use of force against George Floyd are also weighing charging him for a 2017 incident involving a Black teen, a source said.

abcnews.go.com

 

[krtek a houby]

The toxic legacy of the Portaland protests - reckon it's fair enough to portray the teargas as chemical weapons.

Hundreds report abnormal menstruation after being teargassed during Portland protests

 

[AmateurAgitator]

 

[hitmouse]

I suppose this comes under "is America burning Black Lives Matter?":

https://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2021/05/05/33237266/string-of-fires-ignited-by-political-yard-signs-leave-piedmont-neighbors-uneasy

Alletta Brenner didn't know her home had been set on fire in the early morning hours of Friday, April 30, until she heard firefighters putting out the flames outside her bedroom window.

"I was absolutely confused by what was happening," said Brenner, who lives in Northeast Portland's Piedmont neighborhood with her partner and young children, in an interview with the Mercury. "And then I was stunned."

She learned what had occurred quickly: According to the firefighters, it appeared that someone had pulled her "Black Lives Matter" yard sign out of her lawn, leaned it up against a wooden gate connected to her home, and set it on fire. It just so happened that a fire truck was responding to another call in the neighborhood around that time, and when its driver saw her gate burning, they pulled over to extinguish the flame.

Later that morning, Brenner discovered she wasn't the only one on her block who'd been targeted. At least two of her neighbors shared on the app Nextdoor that they'd also had fires set on their property before sunrise. She saw clear similarities between the incidents. One of her neighbors' fires was lit by using another yard sign reading "We believe" followed by a list of several statements, including "Black Lives Matter." That fire was set right next to another yard sign reading "Black Lives Matter." The other house, which saw its garbage can set ablaze using aerosol cans, had a "PDX Love Over Hate" sign in its yard, although it wasn't used in the fire. At least one of the neighbors who experienced arson was Black. (They declined to speak with the Mercury for this story.) All fires were extinguished before seriously damaging any property.

To Brenner and her other neighbors, this seemed like a targeted attack on homes with progressive political and anti-racist signs.

So she was concerned to get an email from Portland Fire and Rescue investigator Lt. Craig Gault dismissing the connection. In a response to Brenner's inquiry about the arsons being politically influenced, Gault wrote there was "no indication" that the actions were related to politics, and that he believed it to be "the normal houseless drug effected / mental health fire setting issue."

Brenner lives near several homeless encampments, and says that while the neighborhood has seen some small fires caused by cooking stoves, she hasn't ever heard of her houseless neighbors engaging in arson.

"That struck me as offensive," Brenner said.

 

[Sprocket.]

Historically a lot of union activists in the UK came from non-conformist backgrounds having learnt oratory as lay preachers and so on.

The Labour and Trade Union movement have always appeared to be more inspired by Methodism than Marxism in the UK.

 

[Shechemite]

Not sure many people put Marxism down as a major factor in the birth of the Labour Party tbf.

 

[Sprocket.]

Not sure many people put Marxism down as a major factor in the birth of the Labour Party tbf.

Exactly. That is the point.

 

[Shechemite]

Bit of an obvious point.

 

[ska invita]

The Labour and Trade Union movement have always appeared to be more inspired by Methodism than Marxism in the UK.

well i didnt know that, so thanks for making the point

 

[Sprocket.]

Well that’s me telt. Goodnight.

 

[yield]

As Paycheck Protection Program Runs Dry, Desperation Grows
May 20, 2021
Overwhelmed lenders and panicking borrowers are in a frenzy to grab the remaining money in the small business relief program.

“Some of our lenders have been getting death threats,” said Toby Scammell, the chief executive of Womply, a loan facilitator that has nearly 1.6 million applications awaiting funding. “There’s a lot of angry, scared people who were really counting on this program and are afraid of being shut out.” More funding seems unlikely. Congress twice extended the program in December and March, anteing up nearly $300 billion total in new aid, but there is little indication that it will do so again.

The relief program had been scheduled to keep taking applications until May 31. But two weeks ago, its manager, the Small Business Administration, announced that the program’s $292 billion in financing for forgivable loans this year had nearly run out and that it would immediately stop processing most new applications.

Lenders suspected funds were running low, but — in a break from its practice last year — the S.B.A. had not given them running updates on how much money remained. As a result, lenders had no warning that the end was imminent.

When you've lost the the small business owners.

 

[hitmouse]

Dunno which thread this is best suited to, can go here I suppose:

Imprisoned Anti-Fascist Activist Says Federal Guards Let White Supremacists Beat Him

Anti-fascist activist Eric King says in a civil rights suit that he was abused and had his rights violated by federal Bureau of Prisons guards.

theintercept.com

 

[Artaxerxes]

Absolutely astonishing, or it should be.