The Minneapolis Riots Are a Culmination of Various Latent Pains
My time at the riot zone yesterday ended with a confrontation.
I was taking a few final shots of the growing crowds facing the state police and national guard troops securing the perimeter of the zone. I asked one of the participants about his specific frustrations. I wanted to know if he was confronting these troops because they were now blocking off access to this area. Or was he simply mad at the sight of law enforcement period?
The question—asked to this young white male (not pictured)—was not received well. He challenged whether I was angry.
“Why? Aren’t you?!” he responded intensely.
My response—that I was there primarily to capture the scene—wasn't what he wanted to hear. In fact, he actually began to shake at the notion that I wasn't furious. He soon told me to “F*** off”.
As I panned the scene, another man and woman then became angry I was recording the crowd.
"Point your camera at them!" the woman said pointing at the police. She and the man expressed concern about being harmed by right wing people able to identify them. The man would add that there is no neutral. He told me if I'm not angry and against the troops here, I'm the enemy.
The twist in all this is that I was taking these last shots intending to capture additional donations and cleaning being offered by the people I saw arriving with brooms. I had seen throughout the day people in prayer circles, others sweeping up debris, and even some offering waters to the national guard troops. (And I’ll share this in a post soon.) Regarding the troop presence, it had seemed there was a general understanding that despite the city and police having serious issues needing immediate attention, arson and destruction aren't acceptable either. So, it's good the troops were able to pacify the area and allow firefighters and clean-up crews start to pick up the pieces from the smoldering devastation.
But that's not how these at the end folks saw it. The troops maintaining the perimeter received constant taunts and personal attacks. Some saw it to their desire to stand directly in front of a particular troop and belittle him or her for a minute. I heard the word "bitch" multiple times.
Leaving the scene at around 6pm, I wondered how/if the crowd would disperse considering the city-wide curfews to be in place two hours later. Last night’s chaos revealed that answer.
Many protesters are angry at the death of George Floyd. They are angry about prior racially charged deaths and the general, second-class status they feel in our society. They want the system to be fairer and more inclusive. They want the system to improve.
Others, however, weren’t interested in improving the system. They were there simply to tear this one down. Some may have an idea of what they wish to replace it with. (One man’s Communist Russia insignia arm tattoo indicated his.) But most have no idea or interest in rebuilding. Their desire is to destroy.
It’s what I’ve seen from those being interviewed as they partake in the riots. It’s the energy I felt as I left last night.
There are many starting points for being on this path of destruction, and all are coming together for these riots. Some are expressing years of feeling less-than. Some just wish to loot. Some are getting off on the thrill of breaking things. Some are expressing latent anger stemming from childhood abuse. That there are various motivations is made clearer today as we read that the Minnesota Governor has observed outside groups involved.
We ought to abandon the idea that these riots can be cleanly understood as reaction to a man’s death. That was just the spark all this varying underlying pain has needed to incinerate.
So why this naked and sole desire to destroy? Who knows exactly, but it’s the result of a lot of lost and unhappy people.
As long as they’re intent on continuing, hopefully the pointless destruction can be capped.
Then, we work on preventing it from fomenting again. This requires healthier homes, communities, and societies. And given how things are going, it seems more and more like we’re going to need some kind of reassessment of how we run things. The people whose pain has them want to tear down the system are just another indication of our need to recreate one.
Stay tuned for updates on my new nonprofit The Periphery Foundation.