Following the death of George Floyd, the world started to open its eyes. While people may think that police brutality is just a problem in the United States this could not be further from the truth. The death of George Floyd sparked many global movements because of the horrifying video that was captured during the time of his death. The world saw this and decided we can’t run the truth anymore. I believe these movements connected to the BLM movement this summer because of their common goal of eradicating police brutality.
While listening to the podcast “The Global Legacy of George Floyd” one story really caught my attention. It is the story of a 14-year-old boy names Jon Pedro, who was playing outside his aunt’s house, when all of a sudden, the police started spraying the house with bullets because they got a tip that gang members were in the house. Not only was the 14-year-old boy almost immediately dead on sight, the police officers didn’t contact his parents who were looking for him for the next 24 hours only to find him dead in a hospital.
One societies movement can help spark change in another because the message of that movement could resonate with people in different society and now, they can start their own movement for change. The Age of the Enlighten was an intellectual and philosophical movement during the 17th and 18th century in Europe. The Enlightenment included a range of ideas centered on the power of reason and using our senses as the primary sources of knowledge and advanced ideals such as liberty, progress, toleration, and a constitutional government. This movement helped spark the American Revolution and the ideas in which The United States was founded on, but has failed to uphold. We must continue to make strides in trying to fix the mistakes of the past and bring a new era of true equality for all.
I think it’s really interesting that you mentioned the video of George Floyd’s death. It makes me wonder if there hadn’t been a video, would it have had the same impact? The story of Jon Pedro was also very shocking to me because he was only fourteen years old. He had a whole life ahead of him was was shot and killed by police who are meant to serve and protect the community. The tragedy really emphasizes police brutality of being a problem that is not limited to one city or country and that continuous efforts must be made in order to save more lives.
I was shocked to hear the tragic story of Jon Pedro as well. It is hard to understand how the police, who is meant to serve the people and to protect many of the same people they end up killing, can act so carelessly. The fact that Pedro’s family was not contacted immediately shows an inhumanity of members of the police force that we need to fix. I also liked your example of the Age of Enlightenment because while it spread around the world, the impact was also monumental.
Really good point in bringing up the story of Jon Pedro shows how there is a lack of humanity. Also a very good connection with the enlightenment. The ideas that were created in that time period are still seen today in almost every society around the world.
I strongly agree with what you said about the world not being able to run from the truth anymore. Before the BLM movement, many countries, not just the United States, were acting as if they had no racial problems in their countries. It feels like ever since BLM stood up against racism, it has given courage to many others all around the world.