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Dig Bos

The Dig - Boston's Only Newspaper

CURRENT STREET EDITION

DIG 23.02 – 1/28/21

FREE RADICAL: THE INJUSTICE SYSTEM WORKS

Written by EMILY HOPKINS Posted December 2, 2014 Filed Under: Free Radical

FREE-RAD-TOP-599x300

Illustration by @imfabulous13

 

Last Monday, hundreds of thousands of people across the country held their breath waiting for the grand jury decision on whether to indict Darren Wilson for killing Michael Brown. As St. Louis prosecutor Robert McCulloch drew out the announcement and activists and agitators refreshed Twitter feeds, it became exceedingly obvious that there would be no indictment. And another thing was clear as well: Those paying attention were disappointed, but not surprised.

 
Time and again, we are provided tragic proof that the criminal injustice system works. When an unarmed black teenager is gunned down by a white cop, the system is there to make sure the officer stays free. Often, the police hide behind internal review boards and have the advantage of being pals with the people or offices examining them. Again, the system works. The injustice system, that is.

 

On a democratic level, many point to our having a black president as a sign of progress, and certainly it is. But let us not forget the outrage the past two elections have caused, the so-called “birther movement” that claims Barack Obama isn’t American enough to be president, or the reactionary trend toward voter identification laws that overwhelmingly affect people of color, who are less likely than white people to have a valid ID.

 

The so-called “signs of progress” in this nation are the exceptions, not the rule or the norm. As such, bit by bit, we must dismantle the system that allows—and encourages—this to happen. As evidenced by last week’s nationwide demonstrations, there will be a fight, but there will be resistance, and there should be no puzzlement over why we must indict America.

 

No justice. No peace.

 

 

FURTHER READING

WHY HARVARD STUDENTS ARE WALKING OUT WITH THEIR HANDS UP TODAY AT NOON

#BOSTON4FERGUSON DISPATCH AND ANALYSIS

COUNCILOR JACKSON HOLDS COURT IN THE MIDDLE OF #BOSTON4FERGUSON DEMONSTRATION

PICS FROM THE BIGGEST PROTEST IN THE HUB IN YEARS #BOSTON4FERGUSON

EVEN WITH FERGUSON BACKDROP, MASS MEDIA BARELY REPORTS COPS GETTING AWARDS FOR FATAL SHOOTINGS

PLEASE STOP COMPARING FERGUSON TO THE BOSTON MASSACRE

THE ROOTS OF THE PROBLEM IN FERGUSON

BOSTON SITS IN SOLIDARITY WITH VICTIMS OF POLICE BRUTALITY EVERYWHERE

EMILY HOPKINS
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Filed Under: Free Radical Tagged With: Black Lives Matter, Darren Wilson, Ferguson, Missouri, organizing, peaceful protests, police brutality, racism, Roxbury, St. Louis

WHAT’S NEW

SOMERVILLE MAYOR CURTATONE DROPS BOMBSHELL AHEAD OF MIDTERM ADDRESS

SOMERVILLE MAYOR CURTATONE DROPS BOMBSHELL AHEAD OF MIDTERM ADDRESS

CAMPBELL UNVEILS PLAN FOR POLICE TRANSPARENCY

CAMPBELL UNVEILS PLAN FOR POLICE TRANSPARENCY

SPECIAL FEATURE: THE CRUEL AND USUAL VIOLENCE AGAINST LGBTQ+ PEOPLE IN MASS PRISONS

SPECIAL FEATURE: THE CRUEL AND USUAL VIOLENCE AGAINST LGBTQ+ PEOPLE IN MASS PRISONS

INBOX: GROUP CALLS FOR BIDEN TO ABOLISH POLICE MILITARIZATION PROGRAM

INBOX: GROUP CALLS FOR BIDEN TO ABOLISH POLICE MILITARIZATION PROGRAM

WHAT WILL IT TAKE FOR THE CITY AND STATE TO FINALLY SUPPORT MINORITY BUSINESS?

WHAT WILL IT TAKE FOR THE CITY AND STATE TO FINALLY SUPPORT MINORITY BUSINESS?

HOMEWORK FOR BEACON HILL’S COVID EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS & MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

HOMEWORK FOR BEACON HILL’S COVID EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS & MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

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READ CURRENT MEMBER EDITION

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DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an e-mail blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: [email protected] To reach Editorial: [email protected] For internship opportunities: [email protected]