This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jul/17/baton-rouge-deadly-race-guns-republican-convention
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Another deadly day in Baton Rouge. Will we heed the warning? | Another deadly day in Baton Rouge. Will we heed the warning? |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| The frequency of senseless gun-related deaths in America continues unabated. Despite countless pleas for calm and unity, three Baton Rouge police officers have been killed by an assailant armed with deadly weapons. | The frequency of senseless gun-related deaths in America continues unabated. Despite countless pleas for calm and unity, three Baton Rouge police officers have been killed by an assailant armed with deadly weapons. |
| The Republican National Convention is about to open, followed by its Democratic counterpart. America needs its political leaders to present peaceful, unifying solutions to this tragic violence, and not make statements that further division and increase national tension. | The Republican National Convention is about to open, followed by its Democratic counterpart. America needs its political leaders to present peaceful, unifying solutions to this tragic violence, and not make statements that further division and increase national tension. |
| Based upon the list of speakers lined up to address the Republican Convention in Cleveland, which includes former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and others who have demonized the Black Lives Matter movement, it is not hard to envision a week filled with divisive rhetoric. | Based upon the list of speakers lined up to address the Republican Convention in Cleveland, which includes former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and others who have demonized the Black Lives Matter movement, it is not hard to envision a week filled with divisive rhetoric. |
| Following the shooting in Dallas that killed five police officers, Giuliani upset many by labelling BLM “inherently racist because, number one, it divides us … All lives matter: white lives, black lives, all lives.” | Following the shooting in Dallas that killed five police officers, Giuliani upset many by labelling BLM “inherently racist because, number one, it divides us … All lives matter: white lives, black lives, all lives.” |
| Sheriff of Milwaukee County, David Clarke, an African American, is also scheduled to speak. He recently wrote an an op-ed denouncing BLM as a group that only seeks “one end – and that is discord, alienation among Americans, rise in hate, and destruction of community bonds,” blaming it for the horrific Dallas murders. | Sheriff of Milwaukee County, David Clarke, an African American, is also scheduled to speak. He recently wrote an an op-ed denouncing BLM as a group that only seeks “one end – and that is discord, alienation among Americans, rise in hate, and destruction of community bonds,” blaming it for the horrific Dallas murders. |
| And following the shooting in Baton Rouge, Trump posted a response that stated “We grieve for the officers killed in Baton Rouge today. How many law enforcement and people have to die because of a lack of leadership in our country? We demand law and order.” | And following the shooting in Baton Rouge, Trump posted a response that stated “We grieve for the officers killed in Baton Rouge today. How many law enforcement and people have to die because of a lack of leadership in our country? We demand law and order.” |
| It’s no surprise that a candidate for president will claim that the party he opposes lacks leadership, but the ambiguity inherent in his demand will only add to the problems. Maybe during the convention he’ll present his strategy for ensuring law and order, but if it includes increased militarization of the police and an authoritarian approach to law enforcement, especially among minority communities, he will be making things worse. | It’s no surprise that a candidate for president will claim that the party he opposes lacks leadership, but the ambiguity inherent in his demand will only add to the problems. Maybe during the convention he’ll present his strategy for ensuring law and order, but if it includes increased militarization of the police and an authoritarian approach to law enforcement, especially among minority communities, he will be making things worse. |
| In contrast, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi tweeted out a message with an emphasis on combating hate: “We mourn the tragic murder of three police officers in #BatonRouge. We must work to #DisarmHate in all of its forms.” President Obama has also condemned the killings, “in the strongest sense of the word” and stated that attacks on “public servants” have to stop. | In contrast, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi tweeted out a message with an emphasis on combating hate: “We mourn the tragic murder of three police officers in #BatonRouge. We must work to #DisarmHate in all of its forms.” President Obama has also condemned the killings, “in the strongest sense of the word” and stated that attacks on “public servants” have to stop. |
| There is a sense of inevitability about rising racial tension in America, but violence as a consequence of it isn’t inevitable. Right now our greatest hope is that people do not choose to express this tension with deadly force. We know, however, that the tension will not simply go away. Indeed, it resides in all of us as we grapple with questions about the nature of American society, the legacies of its foundation and our own identities. | There is a sense of inevitability about rising racial tension in America, but violence as a consequence of it isn’t inevitable. Right now our greatest hope is that people do not choose to express this tension with deadly force. We know, however, that the tension will not simply go away. Indeed, it resides in all of us as we grapple with questions about the nature of American society, the legacies of its foundation and our own identities. |
| Related: Obama condemns Baton Rouge, but what about the victims of police violence? | Steven W Thrasher | |
| Giuliani feels comfortable proclaiming that BLM is “inherently racist” and divides Americans because his idea of America is of a place that has always been united. Yet to black Americans who are all too familiar with the burdens of segregation and the struggle for equality, this idyllic image of a gentle country without racial strife sounds like absurd propaganda. The vision of an America that was once great perpetuates the oppressive structures African Americans want to shake off. | Giuliani feels comfortable proclaiming that BLM is “inherently racist” and divides Americans because his idea of America is of a place that has always been united. Yet to black Americans who are all too familiar with the burdens of segregation and the struggle for equality, this idyllic image of a gentle country without racial strife sounds like absurd propaganda. The vision of an America that was once great perpetuates the oppressive structures African Americans want to shake off. |
| Much conservative thinking about what it means to be American revolves around individual liberty. As a result of this people are more likely to identify individual instead of collective problems and solutions. They prefer to see racism or bigotry solely as an aspect of someone’s temperament, and not the product of a series of structures, laws, regulations and practices that disproportionately harm people based upon the color of their skin, ethnicity, or religion. | Much conservative thinking about what it means to be American revolves around individual liberty. As a result of this people are more likely to identify individual instead of collective problems and solutions. They prefer to see racism or bigotry solely as an aspect of someone’s temperament, and not the product of a series of structures, laws, regulations and practices that disproportionately harm people based upon the color of their skin, ethnicity, or religion. |
| This individualistic worldview also extends to gun control, an issue at the heart of these now quasi-routine tragedies. Countless Americans believe in a purity and infallibility of our right to bear arms, and therefore are quick to find fault with those who misuse the right. We have very little stomach for the idea of restricting gun ownership across the board, despite the obvious collective benefit. | This individualistic worldview also extends to gun control, an issue at the heart of these now quasi-routine tragedies. Countless Americans believe in a purity and infallibility of our right to bear arms, and therefore are quick to find fault with those who misuse the right. We have very little stomach for the idea of restricting gun ownership across the board, despite the obvious collective benefit. |
| America would rather talk about employing “good guys” with guns to combat “bad guys” with guns, yet police officers are supposed to be the good guys, and as a society we choose to leave them vulnerable because we prefer that bad guys still exercise their right to own an assault rifle. We prefer to ignore how our unreformed structures make it far too easy for citizens to become one of those bad guys. | America would rather talk about employing “good guys” with guns to combat “bad guys” with guns, yet police officers are supposed to be the good guys, and as a society we choose to leave them vulnerable because we prefer that bad guys still exercise their right to own an assault rifle. We prefer to ignore how our unreformed structures make it far too easy for citizens to become one of those bad guys. |
| There are seismic flaws in America’s ideological foundations, and the increased agency of black Americans has made it far harder to paper over these cracks. BLM and black activists point out the unjust and oppressive structures in our society. They can no longer be ignored. It seems that the process of coming to terms with them, if the past few weeks are a guide, will be beset by violence. There is some hope that this won’t be the case. | There are seismic flaws in America’s ideological foundations, and the increased agency of black Americans has made it far harder to paper over these cracks. BLM and black activists point out the unjust and oppressive structures in our society. They can no longer be ignored. It seems that the process of coming to terms with them, if the past few weeks are a guide, will be beset by violence. There is some hope that this won’t be the case. |
| I suspect that a weeklong Republican quest to glorify a past America that was somehow better than today will not dampen the tension and violence. But after that, the ball will firmly be in the Democrats’ court. They need to glorify instead a peace and equity that is possible but which we have never known. We shouldn’t underestimate the communal will required to achieve the complex but vital task at hand. | I suspect that a weeklong Republican quest to glorify a past America that was somehow better than today will not dampen the tension and violence. But after that, the ball will firmly be in the Democrats’ court. They need to glorify instead a peace and equity that is possible but which we have never known. We shouldn’t underestimate the communal will required to achieve the complex but vital task at hand. |