We all breathed a sigh of relief when, on April 20th, a jury found former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin guilty on the counts of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter for the death of George Floyd last year.
But just 30 minutes before the verdict was read, a police officer had shot and killed 16-year old Ma’Khia Bryant in Columbus, Ohio.
The whiplash of emotion from Black Lives Matter (BLM) and many others sympathetic to the cause of black people dying at the hands of white police officers, created a 180-degree mood swing in just a few hours.
“Here we go again!” cried BLM’ers and even some high-profile personalities, such as LeBron James, NBA star. The fact that Bryant was a 16-year old black girl and had been shot by a white police officer seemed to override any facts that would come afterward.
When the bodycam of the police officer was released, it clearly showed Bryant in the middle of a lethal swing with a knife in her hand, aimed at another young black girl pinned against a car.
At this point, many who had had knee-jerk reactions to the shooting changed their minds, and concluded that the shooting was warranted. End of story, right? Hardly…
“Sweet”, 16-year old Ma’Khia Bryant now joins the long list of black victims from the abuse of police force… just another victim of police brutality and racism.
Never mind that the police officer who shot Bryant arrived at the scene seconds before, had seen Bryant shove another young woman to the ground, and was too far from Ma’Khia as she began her murderous swing of the knife.
Never mind that the police officer who shot Ma’Khia had split seconds to act in a way that surely saved the other girl’s life.
No. As is the norm, the outrage continues to pour forth, depicting the “sweet” 16-year old as an innocent victim… and second-guessing what the officer could’ve/should’ve done.
BLM, whose cause I sympathize with, is doing itself no favors by going that route. In my opinion, it discredits the very cause they have been fighting for.
Typical of today’s society, where polarization is the norm… and common sense and rational thought are passé. You see it in politics… you see it in racial issues… you see it in every single topic where people do not agree.
Ma’Khia may very well have been a sweet 16-year old. But she wasn’t exactly exuding sweetness as she went at another person with the purpose of ending her life with a knife.
People want to point fingers? How about the adults from her foster home? Where were they, as sweet little Ma’Khia was about to stab another person to death?
Then they’re talking about “defunding the police”??
Oh… STOP it, BLM!