All Lives Matter

On this last day of May I am shocked and saddened by the events in America. Living through a worldwide pandemic was supposed to make us kinder to one another. But, sadly, human nature does not change.



George Floyd was killed by a man who did not even mind being filmed while doing it. He has two kids at home. He was not armed, and there was no proof he’d done something wrong.

 



I remember reading a post on the blog of a virtual friend who has an autistic son. He’s doing well, but what happens when he’s old enough to start going out on his own? Where she lives in America autistic people carry a medical card, which explains why sometimes their behavior can seem unpredictable, or even aggressive—especially when challenged, or scared. Well, her fear is, that if her son is stopped by the police and he puts his hand in his pocket to get his card, he could be shot. Just because he’s black.



To me, this beggars belief. I am so lucky to have lived, and live, in places where you can walk the streets more or less safely.
We do take a lot for granted. And we must take a stand against this kind of cruelty.

All the pictures are imaginary portraits by the wonderful British artist Lynette Yadom-Boakye.

 

14 thoughts on “All Lives Matter”

  2. Lovely portraits to drive home your point, Marina.
    The scenes in America are similar to those I have been watching for most of my life, seemingly. Something has to change deep inside that society, and I sadly cannot see that happening under the current administration.
    Best wishes, Pete.

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      1. Then you don’t know anything about American politics. Maxine Waters is a Democratic Republican – the darling of American Society – who encourage sAmericans to hate Trump and do violence. She is head of Finances in the Congress and is as evil as Nancy Pe;losi, Hillary Clinton, and all the other characters in the Washington swamp. You might think Athens is corrupt – wait till your eyes wake up to the USA.

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      2. I am perfectly aware of the Washington swamp, that’s why I try to avoid reading about it as much as possible. I hadn’t even heard of her. At the moment, I can’t think of many politicians I respect, and that’s worldwide. You can’t believe anything they say.

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  6. Thank you for this post. All lives do matter however, that particularly slogan diminishes the Black Lives Matter cry. Their point, and I think it’s well taken, is that “white privilege” is a fact and that the singling out of people with dark skin for discrimination has been systemic in much, if not most of the world. Black Live Matters is a cry for equality which – in the western world and my life as a caucasian woman – has not been something I’ve yearned for, much less thought about.

    It’s my hope that the tragic killing will not be yet another blip in history but will be finally usher in a just order for all lives. Again, thank you for shining your light on this critical issue.

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    1. I totally agree with you. I didn’t want my title to be a slogan, it was just a title… Like you, having grown up and lived in Greece most of my life, this issue has been quite foreign to me. All the kids in my school were Greek, and white. Of course, ‘racism’ of a sort always exists, even for people in the next village, but it was very mild. Even when Greece was flooded with immigrants from Eastern Europe and people took a dim view, most of them integrated pretty well.

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  7. I have been watching events in the States with horror…not because of the the rioting, but because there is a need to riot. The fear of your friend for her son is so real, and the pandemic and economic consequences have impacted people of colour so much more. It is a terrible and frightening perfect storm, only made worse by Trump’s narcissistic and callous responses.

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  8. I wish the politicians and police could be changed overnight into people of colour and turned loose on the streets with the privilege of money, position and power. I wonder how long it would take for them to raise an outcry at the racism, discrimination, disadvantage and brutality they meet.
    But of course, it wouldn’t be heard.
    After all, they are ‘just’ people of colour, and their views and their rights don’t count…

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