Another pandemic

The killing of George Floyd reminds me of an older “pandemic” — racism. Floyd’s murder is the most recent evil caused by it, like the genocide of Native Americans, slavery, segregation and countless lynchings. As these atrocities keep happening, we in the white community can no longer dismiss them as “just a few bad apples.”

It is clear they are being enabled by the system and its members; consciously or unconsciously. Former Officer Derek Chauvin was a 19-year officer with 18 “incidents” on his record. Why was he still there? In other incidents, officers involved were fired from previous police departments. Weren’t they ever vetted before hiring?

Our political institutions don’t seem to work for marginalized communities such as people of color. In states where Republicans hold power, they enact voter-suppression laws aimed at people of color.

Both political parties used gerrymandering to neutralize the black vote. Our Supreme Court recently said they can’t stop gerrymandering. In 2013, the Supreme Court gutted voting rights protection in the Voting Rights Act. After that, states added voting restrictions impacting people of color.

Congress has done nothing to fix the Voting Rights Act. President Donald Trump has demonstrated racist stereotyping and bigoted policies. What’s left that’s trustworthy? Join together in protest to demand justice and equality for all people.

LEO NAGORSKI

Ross