OPINION:
As George Floyd’s family visited the White House this week, at the same moment in Minneapolis — and at the exact location of Floyd’s tragic death — there was a brazen gun shootout. The irony is that Floyd’s death was supposed to have stopped the violence. Yet it instead let to demands for defunding the police, which have resulted in this current surge in violence.
Despite all police reforms, marches and commitments from organizations to increase economic investments, seeing this shooting makes me wonder, What was the benefit of all the protests over the last year? Nobody, not even the White House, is willing to offer reforms that solve the root problem, which is the high level of Black-on-Black crime.
Unless our policymakers start offering legislation that restores the family unit (possibly with tax incentives for couples based on their years of marriage) the past year of protesting will fall short of having had any meaningful impact.
Maybe we should focus on developing motivations and techniques that reduce the likelihood of people resolving issues with violence. If we hoped the George Floyd tragedy was going to have a positive effect within our community, it appears we were wrong.
GREG RALEIGH
Washington
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