In the wake of these past few days of terrifying and unjustifiable violence, it is difficult to know what to do. The deeply sad part of proceeding with all this is, as Stephen Colbert said in his response to the recent deadly shooting at Pulse in Orlando, there is a script to follow, and these tragedies have been happening so often that we know it by now. We know which friends will share what on Facebook, who will “like” what. Indignant articles and hashtags.
Social media is an important part of an inclusive dialogue in our community, allowing people to engage with each other and share information quickly. The issue is that, after a short while, these posts, and this dialogue, can start to die out. Once this happens, too often, we can be lulled back into complacency. A complacency which is deadly in a horrendous cycle of loss which has been continuing with alarming frequency throughout history but particularly, it seems, in recent years.
In the hope of providing resources for those who want more tangible ways of making their voices heard, and to offer some (modest, perhaps) means of change to those who are feeling helpless (as I do) in times like these.
Crowd Funding to Support Families of Victims:
Thanks to an outpouring of compassion, this fund has already reached its initial goal, which was to raise $200,000 for a scholarship fund for the children of Alton Sterling, who was shot by a police officer in Baton Rouge on Tuesday.
Lavish Reynolds and her daughter
Diamond ‘Lavish’ Reynolds and her four-year-old daughter were in the car with Philando Castile when he was shot by a police officer while reaching for his license.
Verquisha Powers, a friend of Lavish and Philando’s, who organized the GoFundMe effort, writes, “The funds from this will help cover moving/living costs, lost wages from Lavish being out of work, a college fund for her daughter, therapy, and savings for the future.”
After a peaceful protest by the Black Lives Matter movement started to die down, a sniper attack resulted in the deaths of five police officers and the injuries of twelve. You can find more information here and here (with the second link clarifying the distinction between the peaceful protest and the following attack).
While I disagree with the Blue Lives Matter movement, which is what this page is tagged as (I think it misdirects the conversation in an unhelpful way — no one disputes the value of these lives, but the black lives are the ones being systematically devalued in practice), I am unquestionably devastated, as are we all, over the senseless shootings of these officers. This page offers a way to support their families, and I think that transcends its association with any particularly politicized cause.
National Level:
Because of the systematic and cyclical nature of this violence, it is important to take action regarding the structures it is perpetuated by. On the national level, there is the option to contact your Congressmen/women.
Find your Representative here.
Voice your concerns and urge them to make stopping police brutality and gun violence a priority.
Local Level:
The Center for Popular Democracy and Policy Link have created a Justice in Policing Toolkit, detailing what your city can do to fight police brutality and foster peace in your community.
The report can be found in full here. There is also a breakdown of the steps provided in the toolkit here.
A post circulating on Facebook made by Ijeoma Oluo posed a series of questions about changes which can be made on the local level to prevent further police violence. She lists:
- Do you know your city’s police accountability procedures?
- Do your police have any provisions for citizen oversight?
- Is there a civilian oversight panel to review police shootings and misconduct?
- If you do not know this you can google your city with police accountability/review procedures.
- What is the threshold for indicting police for misconduct? (example: in Seattle, you have to prove willful malice)
- Do your police have body cameras?
- When you do your research, if you don’t like the answers to these questions, if they do not hold police accountable, here’s what you can do:
- Demand your city council make police reform a priority. If they won’t, vote them out — recruit friends to do the same.
- Demand that your mayor do the same. If they won’t, vote them out and recruit friends to do the same.
- Do not give money or votes to any candidate who will not make police reform a priority. Make sure they know that this is a requirement.
- Demand that your sheriff and local DA’s office do the same.
What White People Can Do as Good Allies:
It is hard to know what to say in the face of this violence when you benefit from white privilege and cannot possibly feel, at the same crushing magnitude, the fear and anguish resulting from these killings as people of color do. Still, times like these heighten the need for us to use this privilege and provide our support. Our silence is the loudest.
Here are a few links that I’ve found for if you are unsure how to offer support.
The Washington Post, “This is What White People Can Do to Support BlackLivesMatter”
Advice for White Folks in the Wake of the Police Murder of a Black Person
Being aware, listening, and having productive dialogue are vital, and take the participation of all members of our community.
For More Information about Police Brutality in the United States:
Here is the documentation of the Washington Post of police shootings in 2016. An explanation of their methodology in obtaining these numbers is available here.
Additional GoFundMe Support:
In addition to the pages in support of Lavish Reynolds and her daughter, and of Alton Sterling’s family, there are more GoFundMe pages to support the families of recent victims of police shootings.
Pedro Erick Villanueva
Anthony Nunez
I hope that this information is helpful and can make people feel less at a loss for what to do in the face of these senseless tragedies. This is far from a complete list, but there are things we can do as a community. This should never have happened. This can’t happen again.
