06-03-2020, 06:35 AMThe__Y-man__100 Wrote: @jRuutu I feel you man and personally share a similar stance on the situation. If a middle eastern group started doing the same exact thing because they are being oppressed, society would immediately label it as an act of terrorism. But apparently it’s different when it’s for an African American cause.

But hey, maybe I’m not seeing the full picture, but how is robbing a Rolex store standing up for black rights? Was Floyd all about that drip?

To address your first point - honestly I think it's a great starting point. The key thing is, no, it should not be treated differently. Nobody protests and riots for no reason at all so we cannot label protests and riots as good or bad based on who it is leading them. We must judge them based on why they are happening, what efforts have been made before to address the issue peacefully, and how the powers that are being protested against responded to peaceful attempts. We can't just make a judgment on any claims of oppression based on the identity of the group claiming to be oppressed. Their claims must be listened to (because you aren't just going to have masses of people risking their lives for nothing - not now and not ever), heard, and actions must be taken in order to fix the problem in a productive manner.

When you try to silence these protests by dismissing the concerns, responding with force, by pushing narratives designed to delegitimize the claims, that is when there is a big problem. And, right now, you are part of that by feeding the narrative of robbing a Rolex store - not just pushing a narrative that these protests are all about looting but also, intentionally or not, utilising a stereotype of African Americans as part of this tactic to delegitimize the true purpose of the protests - which is to affect real, positive change to address police brutality and institutional racism.

The pillaging and looting is a common tactic to force government to have absolutely no choice but to hear out the concerns raised by these protestors because their voices have been shut out for so long. Yes, it's unfortunate that businesses have to be used as collateral to get the government to listen and take action but, at some point, you can only take so much shit and sit by quietly and take it. Besides, ever heard of the Boston Tea Party?