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Opinion
Before I get to the differences between these two individuals, let’s look at something common to both. George Floyd and Ashli Babbitt were killed at the hands of police.
Floyd was restrained for almost nine minutes by officer Derek Chauvin who had his knee on his neck. At the time, Floyd was handcuffed and obviously incapacitated. Whether Floyd was drugged or not, why would you kneel and continue to do so even after the man was unconscious? Even more striking was that Chauvin had his hands in both pockets while kneeling as if he was out for a casual stroll. In addition, there were three other police officers present. Why didn’t they place him in the police vehicle? America and, by extension, the rest of the world paid a heavy price for that action.
Ashli Babbitt was shot without warning by a capital police officer in Washinton, D.C., as she climbed through a broken window at the Capital building. This happened during the January 6, 2021, protest that got out of hand.
Now the differences:
- George Floyd was black, while Ashli Babbitt was white.
- Floyd was a massive man, and Babbitt was diminutive.
- Floyd was convicted of multiple crimes spanning many years, including a five—year stint in jail. Babbitt was a 14-year air force veteran who had no criminal background.
- Floyd was killed by a white cop. Babbitt was killed by a black cop.
- Floyd’s murder set off nationwide riots, while Ashli Babbitt’s murder barely raised an eyebrow.
- Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 35 years for Floyd’s murder. Capital officer Byrd who shot Babbitt, was not charged with the killing.
- George Floyd has become a worldwide posthumous icon, while Babbitt has been portrayed as a right-wing extremist.
- In the name of George Floyd, the tearing down of American institutions was rationalized. At the same time, Babbitt’s death made no impact on the populace.
- George Floyd will be remembered—rightly or wrongly—as changing American history. Despite serving her country, Ashli Babbitt is largely forgotten, despite being the only person killed in the January 6 riots.
- George Floyd is a martyr, while Ashli Babbitt is an outcast.
The fact is that neither Floyd nor Babbitt should have died. Floyd was arrested for trying to pass a counterfeit note while Babbitt was trespassing through a broken window.
As reporter Julie Kelly wrote,
“But there was no moment of silence for Babbitt, an Air Force veteran and Air National Guardsman with eight deployments overseas, including to Iraq and Afghanistan, who actually was killed on January 6. There were no tears and table-pounding from crisis-actor cops or emotionally-fragile lawmakers mourning her premature death. Babbitt was just 35.”
Floyd received accolades, including donations to his family from the likes of Barbara Streisand. In addition, his family received a massive settlement from the City of Minneapolis, where the murder occurred.
George Floyd’s family receives $27 million settlement from Minneapolis over his death
The article states “that a Black person’s death at the hands of police “will no longer be written off as trivial, unimportant or unworthy of consequences.”
Okay, so my question is, what about the death of a white woman? Is that trivial, and can it be written off? It appears that way.
We hear about a two-tier system of justice in America. But which two tiers are they speaking of? There have been numerous instances of whites vilified, though they didn’t commit a crime. There was the case of Michael Brown, whose death resulted in the “hands up, don’t shoot” meme. The trouble was that it never happened. Brown tried to grab the gun of a white police officer, Darren Wilson, while in his police car. Wilson feared for his life as Brown was a much larger man; he didn’t have much choice. Also, Brown had a long police record. Yet, despite Wilson being exonerated, many would have gladly lynched him.
Does anyone remember O.J. Simpson? Now there was a travesty of justice if there ever was one. He killed his ex-wife, a white woman and her friend, a white man. He was found not guilty. Would the same have happened if the races were reversed?
Unfortunately, in today’s America, racism is rearing its ugly head. More blacks are involved in a confrontation with police, but the reality is that there is more crime in black communities. Racism is being directed at whites in increasing numbers.
Black Lives Matter (BLM) is all about destroying the white community. Dare to say that ‘White Lives Matter’ in American social circles and see what happens.
Of course, all lives matter; black, brown, white, pink, green, whatever. It’s just that today, there’s a much greater likelihood in America that a black man will get a pass, particularly with the new no-bail laws in many states.
Where this goes, nobody knows. Both the Floyd and Babbitt deaths need not have happened. Sadly, the life of Ashli Babbitt was treated as an afterthought, while Floyd’s was elevated to martyrdom. This chasm in American society will not resolve quickly.
