I think we've got to see that a riot is the
language of the unheard.
To justify the violent tactics of some of
the protesters in the demonstrations that
have swept the country over the past week,
Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous line has been
circulating once again.
Last Saturday, King's own son posted it to
Twitter.
But that quote has been widely misinterpreted
because it's taken out of context.
Nonviolence is the most potent weapon available
to the Negro in his struggle for freedom and justice.
I think for the Negro to turn to violence
would be both impractical and immoral.
King sought to make his position crystal clear
in his 1996 interview with 60 Minutes' Mike Wallace.
I would hope that we can avoid riots because
riots are self defeating, and socially destructive.
King considered violent protests to be self
defeating because as he argued in 1968, every
time a riot develops it makes a right wing take over more likely, and helps the segregationist George Wallace.
The violent clashes over the last week have
already created a backlash with 58% of respondents
to a recent poll saying they support the use
of military force.
Please, show me where it says that protesters
are supposed to be polite and peaceful.
Journalists such as CNN's Chris Cuomo and
recent Pulizter Prize Winner Nikole Hannah-Jones
have downplayed the seriousness of property destruction and violence by some protesters.
Violence is when an agent of the state kneels on a man's neck until all of the life leaves out of his body.
Destroying property which can be replaced is not violent.
But political leaders in some of the communities where the property destruction has taken place,
have shown that it's possible both to acknowledge the horrors of police brutality while at the same time
denouncing theft, violence, and destruction.
These people did this for no reason.
It's not going to bring George back here, George is in a better place than we are.
This is not in the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr., this is chaos.
A protest has purpose. When Doctor King was assasinated we didn't do this to our city.
Like King, the best political and civil rights leaders of the 1960's were able both to condemn rioting,
and to acknowledge the legitimacy of the greivances that brought protesters into the streets in the first place.
New York Mayor John Lindsey soothed racial tensions following King's 1968 assassination
by calmly walking the streets of Harlem with other civil rights leaders and reminding the public
of the fallen leaders' unwavering opposition to violence.
The city's current mayor, Bill de Blasio,
has lacked the courage to forcefully condemn both rioting and vandalism,
and the violent tactics of his own police force.
Minnesota official's initially deflected blame for the riots onto outside infiltrators
before the press exposed their misinformation.
And President Trump hid in a bunker and tweeted, out incendiary messages about the coming show of force
against the rioters.
If a city or state refuses to take the actions that are necessary to defend life and property of their residents,
then I will deploy the United States military and quickly solve the problem for them.
Politicians, like Atlanta Mayor Keisha Bottoms, have said the ultimate answer lies at the ballot box.
If you want change in America, go and and register to vote. Do it in November.
While voting for candidates who support policing and criminal justice reform could have
marginal impact in the long run, protestors are demanding immediate action.
When police harass and assault protesters, they should be held accountable.
Through anti-choke hold bills,
and by putting an ends to the legal doctrine that protects them from criminal prosecution.
The internet has further decentralized activism, which has made today's protest less uniform than ever before.
In the final analysis, a riot is the language of the unheard.
When King said this, he wasn't excusing riots, but imploring those watching them unfold in horror
to acknowledge the unjust conditions that contributed to their emergence in the first place.
Certain conditions continue to exist in our society, which must be condemned as vigorously as we condemn riots.
With no Martin Luther King Jr. of our own, we all bear the burden moreso of condemning the initiation of violence,
no matter the perpetrator, no matter the cause.
