Coronavirus has exposed many things that have been happening around the world. Because of the covid-19 pandemic, we have become more aware of domestic violence, homelessness, unemployment, poverty, and the challenges faced by the healthcare system.
But most importantly, the pandemic has exposed racism in all its ugliness and police brutality on people of color, particularly, black people.
On the news we witnessed a video recording of George Floyd, an African American man, killed by a white police officer during an arrest in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck for over 8 minutes, until he died. His death sparked protests across the United States and around the world.
Thousands of people across the UK, Europe, Canada, Tokyo and other countries have taken to the streets as part of the Black Lives Matter movement against racism and police violence.
The Black Lives Matter Global Network fights for justice and freedom for all black people and are against institutional racism and police brutality against black people.
Institutional racism, according to Wikipedia, is defined as “a form of racism which is embedded as a normal practice within society or an organization. It can lead to such issues as discrimination in criminal justice, employment, housing, health care, political power, and education, among other issues”.
A good example of institutional racism is racial profiling by the police. This is when the police target people if they are suspected of a crime based on the colour of their skin. It may also be based on the individual’s religion, ethnicity, or country of origin.
Another example is the barrier to gainful employment because of race, religion, or ethnicity. For instance, if a person does not have a “white” sounding name, then they may not get a job interview.
We live in the 21st century. Racism should be a thing of the past, a distant and unpleasant memory. Black people should not be suffering like this. We should not be discriminated against because of the colour of our skin.
We should not have to live in fear of being killed by the police just because we are black. We should not be held back from achieving our true potential just because we are black.
We should be treated equally and fairly. We should have access to the same opportunities in life, regardless of our ethnicity. This world needs to change the way it treats black people.
So how do we end racism? Many of us may agree that racism has no place in our society, but it is very difficult to stop people from being racist. I believe that the key to ending racism is through education. People need to be made aware that racism and racial inequality do exist in our society and that we need to work together to end it.
We as black people have come a long way from since the time of slavery. Our people have been through a lot and we have survived. We have been oppressed, persecuted and treated unfairly. And yet we are still here, we rise up and we continue to fight for freedom and justice for our people.
As it is written in the Bible (NIV): “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
The death of African American George Floyd sparked a wave of anger against racism all over the world. Let us hope that this incident will be the catalyst to change the world’s view of racial inequality and police brutality. We can no longer stand by and be silent while we watch our people be killed because of the colour of our skin.
Change starts with us. We need to educate ourselves and be aware of our own prejudices so that we can change the way we think and act towards other people who are of different ethnicities, races, religions, and countries of origin.
If we want to end racism, then we all need to work together and act now to bring about a positive change to our communities and to the rest of the world.
