All Lives Matter!
- May 25, 2021
- 6 min read
Updated: May 13, 2022
Lying on the side of the road. Face down. Wrists in handcuffs behind his back. With one knee over his neck. "I can't breathe!".
One year ago today, George Floyd suffocated to death after his back and neck were being pressed by ex-policeman Derek Chauvin's knees for nine minutes and twenty-nine seconds. In that span of time, Floyd's many cries for help were simply ignored. His repeated words, "I can't breathe!", later became a slogan to voice out police brutality and racism at the rallies for the Black Lives Movement.
Stephen Curry (NBA player for the Golden State Warriors) on Instagram:
George didn’t deserve to die. George pleaded for help and was just straight up ignored, which speaks loud and clear that his black life didn’t matter. George was murdered. George wasn’t human to that cop that slowly and purposefully took his life away.
George Floyd's death sparked the Black Lives Movement. But sadly, we know he is not the only (African-American) victim to succumb (police) violence, nor will he be the last one. Say their names:
Trayvon Martin had just bought a pack of Skittles from the convenient store, when his neighborhood watchman (his killer) noticed him - walking in the rain, on his way home, and wearing a gray hoodie. His killer thought he was "up to no good" and "was on drugs". The killer approached Trayvon Martin. They got into a physical fight. Trayvon Martin ended up being shot point-blank and was killed.
Michael Brown got into a physical fight with a white police officer in the patrol car. Already, the bullets started flying inside the car. Moments later, Michael Brown was shot six times by the same officer, twice in the head. He was left bleeding and dead in the middle of the road, with his bullet wounds exposed.
Ahmaud Arbery was hanging around at a house renovation site and jogging in his neighborhood when he was shot and killed by two white men (father and son) who "mistakenly" recognized him as a "thief".
Breonna Taylor was shot and killed in her apartment (in her sleep) by white police officers dressed in civil clothes who, once again, "mistakenly" believed she was in possession of drugs.
George Floyd allegedly paid with a counterfeit twenty-dollar bill at a local convenient shop before being asphyxiated by a white police officer on the side of the road.
In all five cases, the killers played God! They believed they had the right to command their victim's death! These were five preventable deaths! The excuses of the subjects are unacceptable, however!
Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd have all been referenced to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Indeed, the 1960s was the era of segregation in the United States. "Colored" people were treated so differently, so inhumanely, so unjustly, and were considered as "inferior" to the "white race". Six decades have passed. Yet, racism is not gone! It is still present!
In George Floyd's case, using a counterfeit bill is illegal. However, this does not (and should not) justify the ex-policeman's inappropriate and violent actions that led to Floyd's death! This behavior highlights the improper police training that Derek Chauvin went through and the carelessness of the Police Hiring Department, including lousy background check. This also illustrates why the African-American community has a hard time believing that policemen are there to keep them safe, when impulse and racism are killing their youths!
Black Lives Matter!
COVID-19: conflicts and tensions
The current COVID-19 crisis has made the Chinese community so vulnerable to stereotypes and threats, labeling them as "the coronavirus originators and transmitters". With the recent incidents happening in the United States among the African-American community, uprisings have been the voice of fear and anger to say that "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!".
The following segment is an incident I wrote about (an act of racism targeting my family) that occurred on May 8th, 2020:
Note: This is the original version, written for and copied from IG. I had to limit the number of characters to 2,200. Sorry for the abbreviations! 8 PM. Celebrating the hardcore efforts of the medical staff - wrestling to care for the COVID-19 victims at the hospital while battling to keep themselves safe from this invisible foe.
8:02 PM. Only 3 days before the French deconfinement date - May 11th. Yet still, 2 North-African / Middle-Eastern men in their 20s or 30s dare yell at my parents, [my sister and me] : "C'est à cause de vous, le coronavirus!!!" [translation: "The coronavirus is because of you!!!"]. I mean, they were NASTY and RACIST! I wonder whether they had their lockdown permission forms on them. That's not for me to judge, but for them to be responsible for. Anyway... This 8-PM reference point was a routine for the world during this COVID-19 crisis. It wasn't as if we were doing anything wrong. We were cheering on the medical staff's tireless actions. Time they could've spent with their loved ones if it wasn't for the coronavirus. In short, we were deflated. Not that we had just experienced racist accusations for the very first time, but by how crazy the world is, and cruel people can be.
I was struck by this "incident". TBH, I wanted to get even. If I were to do so, that would be the enemy's work, and not what is pleasing to God. At the end of the day, these unrighteous people's unintentional goal is to get into our heads. If so, they would've taken the W and the L would automatically be labeled on our foreheads. That's certainly not what I want! Longing on those bitter moments would break us, as well as our relationship with others.
People believe in stereotypes. They tend to put people in boxes. "You're Chinese, so you have coronavirus." This is what causes tensions, wars, genocides. "You're Chinese, so you have a Chinese passport" or "You're Chinese, so your thoughts are Communism-based". These 2 thoughts may be true, but aren't 100% applicable - especially for Chinese living abroad! People have to learn how to think outside the box.
When facing racial remarks - sometimes, the only solution is to stand up for ourselves peacefully. Other times, silence is the best weapon.
Aly Raisman (retired American gymnast and two-time Olympian) in an interview:
That's why we really have to continue talking to educate everyone, especially [the] young kids, from the time they were very little.
The Asian community: victim of racism
Earlier this year (January, February, March 2021), the United States faced a sudden surge of hate crimes, targeting Asian elders. The assailants were caught on surveillance cameras as being African-Americans in their twenties or thirties.
Vicha Ratanapakdee (pictured left) was taking a morning walk in his neighborhood area in San Francisco, California, when he was pushed violently to the ground (head first) and later died from his injuries.
Pak Ho (pictured right) was taking a morning walk in his neighborhood area in Oakland, California, when he was attacked, robbed, and later died from his injuries, too.
Learning about these tragic and preventable deaths (ones that should have never happened in the first place) on social media was excruciating and heart-wrenching for me!
These two sweet-elderly faces shown on media coverage could have been my maternal grandparents - had not they been in Taiwan during these tragic events. Otherwise, my grandparents would have been either living in San Francisco (where my uncle resides with his family and where the events unfolded) or in Toronto (my home base).
The fact that these COWARDS targeted the elderly is infuriating! They dared take on the physically weaker individuals when they knew full well they had the advantage. Yet, being so focused on their 'mission', the assailants did not care about the consequences, because they believed they can get away with it - being experts in recidivist offense. But CCTV cameras do not lie! Thanks to them, the assailants will serve time in jail.
Asian Lives Matter!
Closing remarks
I wanted to use the time to articulate my thoughts, to reflect on this serious matter that so many people are eager to address, but yet are so ignorant. This is bigger than discrimination and racism. This is life vs. preventable death.
Let me leave you with a quote I found that is relevant to this article. Hopefully, this will give you some perspective on life:
Those who died yesterday had plans for this morning. And those who died this morning had plans for tonight. Don't take life for granted. In the blink of an eye, everything can change. So forgive often and love with all your heart. [source unknown]
Black Lives Matter! Asian Lives Matter! All Lives Should Matter!
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