Can systemic change be achieved in the USA?
- Charlie Harden-Sweetnam
- Jun 2, 2020
- 1 min read
Updated: Mar 1, 2023
How can unrest become social revolution?
Is that not what is desired, at least to some extent, by protesters, the Black Community, and those who support them?
Revolution can defined as the overthrow of an oppressive or incompetent government or institution through a grassroots movement.
Much of what we have been seeing over the last few days is nothing new. Baton Rouge 2016 protests, for example, in the wake of the murder of Alton Sterling, called for similar changes in the nature of policing in the US. However, the way this movement has spread is different, as is the reaction from the US government. Donald Trump has now threatened to move the military in, which hasn't happened since the 1992 LA riots.
Trump’s Rose Garden address shows how much the USA has been shaken by these protests. But what the President said will in my opinion only fuel the flames; he did not address the root of the unrest, but stands against the looting and the arson, as well as the violence against innocents, while simultaneously ignoring the systemic violence and abuse of power, perpetrated in the name of the US government and his ‘law and order’. Indeed his reaction to the unrest will be an escalation of force, and thus violence against protesters and journalists.
Will they protests preceede systemic social and legal change?
Will the institutions that propagate the ingrained racism continue to be protected in the name of ‘law and order’?
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