Source: RT
Although there is likely to be an appeal, Derek Chauvin has been found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter in relation to the death of George Floyd. Justice has been served. But, clearly, justice is not enough for the heads of the executive branch of the United States government.
Immediately after the verdict was handed down, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris held a press conference where they delivered a verdict of their own. They framed the very country that they serve as racist, and made clear that the only way to address this is to pass legislation.
“We still must reform the system,” said Harris. “America has a long history of systemic racism,” she claimed, adding that it’s “holding our nation back from realizing our full potential.”
Biden was in agreement. He said systemic racism “is a stain of our nation’s soul, the knee on the neck of the nation’s black Americans.”
Strong words. But let’s keep something in mind here. Both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have spent pretty much their entire careers within the United States government, in one way or another. It seems to me they’re a little too comfortable with getting a paycheck from this supposedly ‘racist’ country.
What I find most insulting is the absolute ignorance of what happened in court. Race was not established as a factor in the death of George Floyd. The scary part about Floyd’s death is that it could literally happen to anyone, and yet we have the leaders of the US acting as if race was unquestionably a factor.
I would be curious if any single member of their administration could show me any point within the trial which conclusively showed that the death of George Floyd was racially motivated. I have a feeling they wouldn’t be able to do it. And that’s what makes Harris and Biden’s comments doubly insulting. They don’t see George Floyd as a person. They see him as a pedestal.
Their speech covered the same themes put forward by Barack Obama during his presidency. The US is apparently a racist country, and the only cure is to pass the laws that they advocate. Never mind that by calling America a place that suffers from systemic racism, you are calling every single person you want to vote for that legislation racist. Never mind that you’re framing your own constituents as racist. All that matters is that you give them what they want, and maybe they’ll stop insulting you.
I feel horrible for George Floyd’s family. It’s one thing to lose a loved one. It’s another thing completely to have politicians across the country take this member of your family and use him to try to establish laws that wouldn’t have prevented his death in the first place. The absolute insincerity of it all is stomach churning.
Yes, there are lessons to be learned from this case and Chauvin’s conviction. But these are lessons for law enforcement in how to handle situations like they encountered with George Floyd in a better manner. There are also lessons to be learned about the importance of the right to life that is detailed within the Constitution. We should be discussing those, but instead an entire country is being branded as a racist because one bad cop is going to jail.
