‘Black lives matter’ – so does the ‘rule of law’
Boston Police commissioner, clergy join message of calm
Boston’s Police Commissioner and several local clergy members spoke side-byside on Wednesday, flanked by other cops and clergy as they sent out a dual message: Black lives matter — and so does keeping law and order in the city of Boston.
“The rule of law is a core philosophical defense against a society’s descent into dystopian chaos and madness,” the Rev. Eugene Rivers said, slamming the “trust-fund anarchists” who stuck around after a peaceful Boston protest Sunday to start fires and hit stores with smash-and-grab looting. “And we’re here standing in solidarity with law enforcement.”
“We in the black community must demand justice from all concerned, and — in our own self-interest — insist on a rule of law to protect society,” continued Rivers, who’s black.
This comes as protests continue to rage following the killing of black Minneapolis man George Floyd by police last week. The killing, captured in a graphic video, showed an officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes. That now-fired officer, Derek Chauvin, is now charged with murder, and the three officers with him also face related charges and have been fired.
Nine Boston police officers were transported to local hospitals following Sunday night’s violent protest downtown. Dozens of additional officers were treated in the streets and 21 police cruisers were damaged — including one that was set on fire — and 53 suspects were arrested. Protests have continued, though very largely peacefully — unlike in several other cities across the country.
“That being said,” Rivers added after the condemnation of the rioters, “We support and salute the courageous young people who have protested, and legitimately challenge white supremacy and demand an end to racial injustice. These young people have functioned as the conscience of this society.”
Rivers, a longtime and often outspoken Boston pastor, and Boston Police Commissioner William Gross addressed the media at Rivers’ The Ella J. Baker House, a community center in Dorchester’s Four Corners neighborhood. Flanked the whole time by black and white clergy and police officers, Rivers called the BPD “the best police department, on balance, of any city of its size or larger.”
Gross, the city’s first black police commissioner, similarly criticized acts of violence by the protestors “hellbent” on hijacking the demonstrations for the ends of destruction.
“All people remember is that you destroyed your own neighborhood, your own cities. And that no one could ever return to those places because you destroyed it. But when you protest in peace, people hear you because of your words, and not because of those negative actions.”
But the commissioner also said he personally understands the anger and frustration of the peaceful protestors, as well as the chant of “black lives matter.”
“If nothing’s changed from the centuries past leading up to the decades now, you will have people using their voice to say ‘black lives matter,'” Gross said. “If you think your voice is not being heard, you’re going to have to tell somebody, as they say in church, who you are, and that your life matters, too. Thus: ‘black lives matter.'”
Of police departments, Gross said, “It’s time to have cold, hard discussions about our successes and failures.”
He vowed, “We’re on the road to change.”