On Monday, a white Minneapolis police officer named Derek Chauvin knelt on George Floyd’s neck until his body went limp. The assault was caught on video. Floyd, 46, shouted that he could not breathe, but Chauvin did not let up, and Floyd died from his injuries in police custody. It was the third in a string of similar deaths to make its way into national headlines this month: In March, police in Louisville, Kentucky, burst into Breonna Taylor’s apartment in the middle of the night. They shot the 26-year-old eight times, killing her in her own home. And in February, two white men in a pickup truck gunned down Ahmaud Arbery while he jogged through their Georgia neighborhood. The pair admitted to fatally shooting Arbery, but were only arrested for his murder in May.
It’s an unfortunately familiar pattern in the United States; this week, anger has boiled over. Minneapolis has seen massive protests over the past few days, while demonstrators across the country have gathered to demand immediate action to stop racist policing. Amid an ongoing pandemic, gathering to support one another carries unique risk, although for many, the calculation comes down to which danger is more immediate: the coronavirus, or police brutality. With that in mind, here’s what you can do to safely support protests right now.
Demand police accountability from your legislators.Make ending police brutality a litmus test for your political support. Campaign Zero — which is also accepting donations — has a comprehensive guide to policies that aim to correct broken windows policing, excessive force, racial profiling, for-profit policing, and much more. Familiarize yourself with laws in your area, and contact your representatives — at the local, state, and national level — to press them for their plans on ending discrimination in law enforcement.
If you’d like to support accountability in the Minneapolis Police Department specifically, Reclaim the Block — a Minneapolis organization devoted to reallocating the city’s money away from the police department and toward “community-led safety initiatives,” to which you can also donate — has a petition that asks the city council to defund the police force, freeing up resources to promote the safety and health of the city’s marginalized communities.
Make a donation.If you have money to spare right now, consider making a donation. George Floyd’s family has started a GoFundMe to cover funeral and burial costs; counseling services; legal fees; and continued care for his children. There’s also a GoFundMe raising money for Ahmaud Arbery’s mother, donations to which will similarly fund the family’s legal battle, and a GoFundMe for Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, in his legal fight against the Louisville Metro Police Department .
Or, you could direct your donation to an organization. A few suggestions:
• The Bail Project, a nonprofit that aims to mitigate incarceration rates through bail reform.
• Black Visions Collective, a black, trans, and queer-led social justice organization and legal fund based in Minneapolis-St. Paul.
• The Minnesota Freedom Fund, which pays criminal and immigration bail and bond for people who cannot afford it.
• The Brooklyn Bail Fund, which helps pay bail for those who cannot afford it.
• The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, which supports racial justice through advocacy, litigation, and education.
• Communities United Against Police Brutality, which operates a crisis hotline where people can report abuse; offers legal, medical, and psychological resource referrals; and engages in political action against police brutality.
• Northstar Health Collective, a St. Paul–based organization that provides health services and support at protests.
• The ACLU, which provides legal services and support for a broad range of people with civil rights complaints.
In addition to their day-to-day operations, many groups will need personal protective equipment right now, particularly those participating in protests.
Join a protest, if you feel you can do so safely.If you have symptoms of the coronavirus, or if you have been exposed, or if you live with or regularly come in contact people who are at particularly high risk of contracting the virus, the best thing to do is to isolate yourself. And while it is generally true that we should continue to keep our distance from others right now, the desire to show up for your community and your loved ones is understandable. For many people, police brutality poses an immediate risk to their health and well-being, and potentially also a fatal one.
So, if you decide to participate in a local protest, wear a mask. Bring hand sanitizer, and if you can, maybe pack a few extra water bottles, for yourself and for others who might need them. Try to maintain as much distance from others as possible, and not to touch anyone else if you can. Keeping in mind that the coronavirus appears to spread primarily through droplets expelled when people talk and shout and sneeze and cough, do your best to keep your mouth covered, and to refrain from chanting if you find yourself in close quarters with others. You might also check out Vice’s guide to protest participation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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May 30, 2020 at 05:11AM
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How to Help Demand Justice for George Floyd - The Cut
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