On May 25, George Floyd was killed by police officers from the Third Precinct in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was accused of counterfeiting a $20 bill to buy cigarettes and, within hours, was violently arrested, pinned down and pronounced dead. The events of this day, although tragic, are a surprise to no one — deaths like George Floyd’s have been illegally occurring for decades in the United States, and this nation’s history of slavery does little more than explain it. 

The response to Floyd’s death has been anything but subtle. For days now, riots in the streets of Minneapolis have become the headlines of news sources across the nation; hundreds of people have rushed into the streets to protest against the federal forces that committed these crimes, their enraged screams and shouts fueled by the racist actions of police officers that will most likely go uncharged. “Another Black man dead,” they are saying. And how can this be? That after more than a century of fighting and advocacy, Black people continue to be killed and oppressed despite being released from the chains that once bound them. How disappointing that a history of activism and #BlackLivesMatter has not been enough to spare their lives from the same violations their ancestors faced. Instead, modern incarceration and police brutality continue to uphold the institutional racism that has always existed against them. What a shame that, despite living in a supposedly progressive and inclusive country, injustices like those committed against men and women like George Floyd expose the reality of racism in America today.

An analysis of American culture finds that, in the end, the complacency of Americans to racial injustices is the primary reason for the U.S.’s inability to correct its institutional racism. American society and culture, as diverse as it claims to be, has developed an ugly notion of extreme individualism; so strong that, for many people, the issues of others are no longer of value. From this, a concept of neutrality and complacency has become acceptable—a social silence that works to benefit no one but the individual who claims it. And this can no longer be. The violations against Black people and people of color in this country have been far too many and the deaths altogether unacceptable. It is not appropriate to continue pledging to a flag whose nation claims “liberty and justice for all,” when, everyday, there is news of a new violation or death. 

The actions and words of the president himself are nothing but a reflection of the anti-Black grudge this country refuses to let go. “These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen...Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” he tweeted on May 28, 2020. The president’s tweet was regarding his order to send the National Guard to Minneapolis to manage the riots that Floyd’s death spurred. Notice the language used by this man, the supposed face of the oh-so inclusive America, to belittle the rioters enraged by these police officer’s racist crimes. These “THUGS”, he said, as if their reactions are not justified. However, the president's wording is not new — in fact, President Obama used this same word to refer to protesters in Baltimore in 2015. NPR conducted an interview with John McWhorten, who teaches linguistics at Columbia University, to discuss the racial use of the word “thug” in respect to these protests. “Well, the truth is that thug today is a nominally polite way of using the N-word,” commented McWhorten. “When somebody talks about thugs ruining a place, it is almost impossible today that they are referring to somebody with blond hair. It is a sly way of saying there go those black people ruining things again,” he explained. This statement, unfortunately, remains mostly true today, as it is language and microaggressions like these that further fuel the plight of African-Americans in the United States.  

The violence being committed by protesters, however, is equally inappropriate. What was once a peaceful solidarity against the oppression and violations committed against Black people, such as that seen during MLK’s Civil Rights Movement, has quickly turned into a bloody battle for justice. It is neither acceptable nor useful to address these racial targetings with the very violence that created them. In truth, many of the rioters who have looted and destroyed businesses have been opportunists. The media has been quick to connect their destructive actions with those of real activists who mean no harm, enabling the public to understand Black justice movements oppositely from what they truly intend to do. Continuing to associate these so-called rioters with the real activists will only tarnish the image of Black justice fighters. And, if we do not separate them, rather than peacefully achieving equality and change, the destructive actions of these opportunists will only deepen the racial divide in America.

Moreover, the New York Times reported on the actions and accountability for which both protesters and police officers involved in riots in New York City will face. “On Saturday morning, Mayor Bill de Blasio denounced violence by both protesters and police officers, saying he understood the deep anger over racism and police killings that had spurred the demonstrations while urging people to protest peacefully,” the NY Times wrote. “A police official… said the department’s Internal Affairs Bureau was investigating at least two incidents of apparent excessive force that were captured on video—one in which a burly officer violently pushed a slight woman to the ground and another in which an officer beat a man with his baton.”

Protests like these have only grown in size and viciousness as similar demonstrations have recently appeared in Bay Area cities like Oakland, California. On Friday night, what started as a peaceful march of 200-300 people through the streets of Oakland quickly turned into a targeted display of rage. CBS Bay Area’s recent updates on the night’s events included pictures of vandalized cars in a Mercedes-Benz showroom with the words “EAT THE RICH” spray painted on the side. We must recognize that protests like these, that use looting and fire as a way to attract attention, must not be connected to the true intention of Black justice fighters. Although perhaps fueled by Floyd’s death, these destructive reactions are no longer about a fight for justice; simply a desperate attempt to be heard. 

This is not to say, of course, that resistance fighters have not been met with violence before. The events of Selma’s Bloody Sunday are evidence of this, where, in 1965, peaceful protesters marching the 54 miles from Selma to Montgomery were met with clubs and tear gas by Alabama state troopers. Despite the attacks, they did not fight back. We must use this as an example by which to model our actions today. Violence cannot be condoned, and the death of a police officer in Oakland already shows that rioters have gone too far by resorting to the same unjust brutality that Floyd’s murder displayed.

The reality is that, without a fundamental change to the collective mindset of a more united America, amending these wrongs will only occur after too many more lives have been lost. It is not enough to continue pretending to live in a just country when we do not, and it is not correct to ignore these injustices for the sake of only caring for our own. The recent traumas in the Black community show the reality of that; the deaths of Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery and many more reflect the continuous presence of the anti-Black grudge today. And, whether these Black people had been Latinos or Whites, their unjust deaths must weigh the same for any and every community. 

There is no doubt that the racism and discrimination present in the United States is rooted in its long history of slavery and segregation, and the riots responding to George Floyd’s vicious death are a culmination of decades-worth of frustration. For far too long, this country has been categorically divided by countless elements, a polarization that has traumatized many Americans into choosing a blissful ignorance away from other communities’ issues. Over time, this has turned into a harmful us-vs-them mentality that we simply cannot continue. We cannot continue, either, to place the blame of one individual on its entire community. The malicious intent of a handful of cops does not speak for all cops, just as the actions of one Black “thug” does not make all Black people dangerous. Finally, we must think critically, as well, to distinguish the vicious riots from the true intentions of Black justice fighters. It is imperative that in order to regain control and clarity of both our opinions and the situation at hand, we must learn to always educate ourselves past the images and frenzy of information we are fed.

Nevertheless, it is no longer appropriate to stay silent—it is our duty as fellow Americans to take action, do our research, and show our support. Do not remain passive on issues of racism and police brutality because your complacency is now just as fatal as the very hands of the officer that killed George Floyd.