Charles Farley
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I Can't Breathe

6/4/2020

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With all the teargas in the air, it's getting harder and harder for all of us to breathe.  
So what do we do when all this police violence continues to occur? George Floyd being one of the most recent victims, as peaceful protests in the aftermath of his tragic death continue to be met with teargas, rubber bullets, flash bangs, night sticks, and bellicose threats--all condoned and encouraged by the bully-in-chief, the guileless thug #1, the bigoted, Bible-toting Donald himself.
As in past civil rights protests, most of the violent protests are incinerated by police who continue to embrace a militant, combative, us-against-them mentality.  Hell, what are you to do if you're a God-fearing, peaceful protester and are met with an army or storm-troopers, complete with shields, helmets, flack jackets, nightsticks , guns, tanks, and armored vehicles?  Looks like war to me.  Armed to the teeth, it's only too easy for the cops to take a I-dare-you stance, so they'd have still another excuse/chance to bash some black and brown heads.
What to do?
Continue speaking out.  We can't let this thing drop.  Until people of color are stopped being murdered, beaten, abused, and marginalized, everyone needs to protest.
Listen to our real leaders.  The fearless few who continue to fight for equal rights and respect for people of all colors and classes.  Just to start with, those we marched with over the Edmond Pettus Bridge in Selma a few months ago:  stalwarts John Lewis, Jesse Jackson, and Al Sharpton, as well as the new breed:  Stacey Abrams, Doug Jones, Kamala Harris.
​Get involved locally.  Join civil rights organizations, attend city and county government meetings. volunteer to serve on police oversight boards.  Make a difference.
Vote.  Like George Floyd's brother admonished.  Vote the scoundrels out and the good guys in.  Here in Alabama, don't let an inexperienced, unemployed, ex-football coach replace a true civil rights hero in the U.S. Senate.
Don't give up.  Or, as the old saying goes, "don't let the bastards grind you down."  We've had more than 400 years of racist exploitation in this country, and it's not going to end tomorrow.  But, for God's sake, lets do what we can to make it better for the next generation.
As Eldridge Cleaver warned, "If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem."


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    Charles Farley is an author who lives and writes in Huntsville, Alabama.

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