O/T:- Mr George Floyd RIP

[dam617]

Wow! "Allegedly" suffocated by the police? If you think you need to hedge your bets fair enough but there's 8 minutes and 46 seconds of video evidence doing the rounds that remove the need of that word for me. It quite clearly shows a police officer kneeling on a mans neck while he repeatedly says "I can't breathe" and "Please don't kill me."

I think it's entirely understandable why many many people are angry about this and why others are trying to listen, understand, demonstrate and change society so this doesn't keep on happening again and again. You just seem to be one of the people who has instead chosen to be angry at them for doing this. Which probably means you're a white privileged "nasty racist".

Tony Timpa. Suffocated to death by Police Officers in Dallas. Officers laughed as he was stretchered into an ambulance unconscious.

Daniel Shaver. Shot to death at point blank range whilst on his knees in a hotel corridor - Dallas again.

Numbers, in each case, of pairs of Nike's looted? Zero
Numbers of Smart TV's looted? Zero, despite footage of both incidents being readily available online.
Needless to say, they were both white.

[Elite_Pie]

Tony Timpa. Suffocated to death by Police Officers in Dallas. Officers laughed as he was stretchered into an ambulance unconscious.

Daniel Shaver. Shot to death at point blank range whilst on his knees in a hotel corridor - Dallas again.

Numbers, in each case, of pairs of Nike's looted? Zero
Numbers of Smart TV's looted? Zero, despite footage of both incidents being readily available online.
Needless to say, they were both white.

Firstly, two wrongs don't make a right.

Secondly, could I ask what websites you got your info from? I just suspect that they're websites I wouldn't tend to visit.

[queenslandpie]

QLP. Thanks for your genuine and disarming post. It is appreciated.

The thing I admire about the #BlackLivesMatter movement is it's a focused campaign with the genuine and ambitious campaign to end institutional racism against black people. That might never be possible in our lifetimes as it's undoing hundreds of years of racism, but it's a motive to be applauded first and foremost (except by racists). In a week where it seems more obvious than ever this is still a problem i'm prepared to call people out if I suspect they're concentrating on those minor faults - because that's what racists also do to keep racism going. However, I may have also misinterpreted some of what you were saying in doing that. Thanks for coming back to me.

In terms of 'white privilege' it's a very different thing to 'class privilege' (which is also an issue in society but an unrelated one). There's a good article that explains some of that here > https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/f...ivilege-really

This is a good week for white people to listen and learn things and grow as both people and a species. Like other people have pointed out with Trump, £millions, Covid, social media/ media pandering etc there are various other nuances right now that you can see around this. But to concentrate on those nuances is a problem in itself if you begin to ignore the root cause again as a result.

“I'd rather be a hypocrite than the same person forever.” -Adam 'Ad-Rock' Horovitz

Fair comments and I agree with most of it. Have a good day.

[queenslandpie]

Reread this post, Queenie. I accept you're no racist and that you've had to plough your own furrow. However, I can see why DSR jumped to the conclusions he did (but now seems to have stepped back from).
For example, the way you have worded it makes it look like you blame the criminality of George Floyd for the rioting and looting that has followed, ('as a direct result of this').
For example, in another post, you look forward to the return of Tarquin Beech. If you cannot see the inherent racism in the bulk of his posts then you don't recognise racism when it stands up and shouts at you.
Most Brits and over 95% of those on this board think racism is something imagined by the BAME communities. In this regard, the current review into why so many more BAME folk have suffered from Covid-19 than 'whites' should prove interesting reading.
You, like me, are English born and bred. Are we in a good position to see the injustices suffered by BAME communities? The best we can do is to listen hard and make the best judgements we can.

I certainly take on board that my wording wasn't the best. I can't say I've been looking at Tarkers past posts as racist but perhaps I am wrong. I do not think most Brits think racism is imagined. However I do think racism still isn't properly defined. Is calling me a POM racist? I get called it every day. Some would say that's racist. I agree with your last paragraph. QP.

[i961pie]

I was watching the anti racism demonstrations in London on TV which went off peacefully for the majority. It does show the depth of feeling about this which is great to see. But then a few idiots spoil it which guarantees the wrong headlines in the press which is a shame.
There is one thing that is a little ironic, the slogan is Black Lives Matter yet with Black and Asian people seemingly to be very susceptible to this virus will it mean those ignoring the medical advice and marching side by side will pay for it later?I
Obviously they must think the cause is worth the risk.

[The_Don_ORiordan]

I was watching the anti racism demonstrations in London on TV which went off peacefully for the majority. It does show the depth of feeling about this which is great to see. But then a few idiots spoil it which guarantees the wrong headlines in the press which is a shame.
There is one thing that is a little ironic, the slogan is Black Lives Matter yet with Black and Asian people seemingly to be very susceptible to this virus will it mean those ignoring the medical advice and marching side by side will pay for it later?I
Obviously they must think the cause is worth the risk.

Do they though? I think many see they are protesting about essentially the same thing (Floyd and BAME social equality).

Although no one doubts there are social aspects to the Covid death rate inequality, if there are physiological aspects, which many also believe, they are clearly blinded to this. Unfortunately not helped by the “social inequality” message being banded around by the general media as the key reason, despite very little research being performed at this stage. This is going to cost a lot if lives, not only if those protesting but also those whom they come into contact with.

Reading the tweets about the Nottingham protest today, the “lockdown” is being seen by some organisers as a method to “stop these protests”.... words defy me.

Sometimes you just have to find another way.

Unfortunately I read one of the London organisers interview that she felt “social media had let them down” as the reason for the protest, really?

I’d say the exact opposite.

[drillerpie]

Nice to see a political thread where contrasting and interesting opinions are being exchanged in a firm but polite way.

I'm enjoying reading it.

[Notsohumblepie]

Firstly, two wrongs don't make a right.

Secondly, could I ask what websites you got your info from? I just suspect that they're websites I wouldn't tend to visit.

Try :

Daniel Shaver story - New York Times
Tony Timpa story -The Guardian.

I’m not sure if Piers Morgan mentioned it though.

[Elite_Pie]

Try :

Daniel Shaver story - New York Times
Tony Timpa story -The Guardian.

No, they're not the ones, because neither of them mention anything about the number of pairs of Nikes and Smart TVs looted. I suspect you might need to look a bit further to the right to find them.

I still don't see the point in mentioning those two deaths though. The US police in both cases were completely wrong, and their actions were indefensible. There seems to be big problem over there with the number of police officers happy to use violence just because they are the law.
It doesn't alter the fact that they are six times more likely to use that violence against people who aren't white however, which is what these protests are about.

[BigFatPie]

Tony Timpa. Suffocated to death by Police Officers in Dallas. Officers laughed as he was stretchered into an ambulance unconscious.

Daniel Shaver. Shot to death at point blank range whilst on his knees in a hotel corridor - Dallas again.

Numbers, in each case, of pairs of Nike's looted? Zero
Numbers of Smart TV's looted? Zero, despite footage of both incidents being readily available online.
Needless to say, they were both white.

Whataboutery or whataboutism

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whataboutism