NYC: The Reality of the Black Lives Matter “Riots”
Sebastian Marciano
A blanket of silence draped over Times Square, the center of the City That Never Sleeps, as thousands of protesters dropped to their knees with their fists pointing to the sky, in solidarity, mourning the loss of far too many black men and women to America’s most lethal weapon: police brutality. It was perhaps the quietest Times Square has ever been, and for two minutes, the world seemed to have stopped moving. Tears dropped from the eyes of many protesters while others clenched their fists in outrage. After the eternal two minutes of silence, the leaders of the demonstration spoke, reminding the New York Police Department and all of the protesters the true purpose and intentions of the movement: not looting and burning every major American city to the ground but to peacefully protest against injustice, police brutality, and the racism that plagues the black community has dealt with for eternity.
I have been protesting every day since Friday, May 29th, and I have not seen one act of violence upon a police officer from any of the protesters. In fact, any sort of disruption among the protesters is quickly shut down and scolded by other protestors in order to prevent a misunderstanding. Protest leaders often remind everyone that this is a peaceful movement, and if anyone sees someone else trying to incite violence, one must immediately point them out so they can be held accountable because “they are not us.”
The movements generally consist of meeting at a location, such as Washington Square Park, before marching through the streets of New York City. Upon arriving at the meeting point, protest organizers will speak to the crowd of thousands of people, laying out demands for change and calling on the media to do a better job at representing the true nature of the protests and to show that the protests and the looting are mutually exclusive. After a while of speaking, protesters take to the streets, shutting down traffic. Popular chants consist of: “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”, “No justice, no peace!”, “Black lives matter!”, and “Say his name! George Floyd! Say her name! Breonna Taylor!” The front of the march consists of many bikers acting as a barricade between traffic so cars do not parade into the marchers. Periodically, the marchers will take a knee in the street, which overtakes major Manhattan intersections. Sometimes the kneeling will hold for a moment of silence while other times the chants continue.
With that being said, the demonstrations are not perfect. I have witnessed various instances of vandalism and destruction of police vehicles but only in the earlier days before leaders emerged. At the same time, however, the NYPD often act as agitators. The police intimidate protesters with their batons, threaten to arrest protesters for peacefully demonstrating, and, in a few instances, steal a peaceful protestors’ bicycles without explanation.
Being on the streets of New York every day, peacefully advocating for change and seeing the way the NYPD and police nationwide have dealt with these protests has opened my eyes to a serious need for nationwide police reform. Even the NYPD, perhaps the most highly regarded police force in the country, has failed with crowd control and mistreatment of peaceful protesters. I understand that it is a difficult and very stressful job, and I appreciate the sacrifice that comes with being a police officer, but it is concerning to see so many officers letting their emotions overcome them and attacking innocent people.
The current movement of Black Lives Matter protests is overwhelmingly peaceful. Americans are sick and tired of police brutality that has bedeviled our nation for generations. The peaceful demonstrations will continue until justice is served. As a white man, I am not in the position to fabricate on the definition of justice, but I am prepared to continue to fight for justice alongside the African American community. Everyone who has a voice can and should use it because justice needs to come now, and the more people who support the movement, the quicker justice will be served.