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Not long into the official opening of State v. Derek Chauvin on Monday, the voices of community members who protested police violence in Minneapolis were invoked, starting with those at the scene of what prosecutors call the murder of George Floyd. Prosecutor Jerry Blackwell showed the jury a video still image of those witnesses: the teenagers who recorded Chauvins knee pressed into Floyds neck for eight or nine minutes as Floyd cried out for help, along with the others who were recorded trying to offer Floyd aid, and who chastised the officers for using their bodies to restrain a motionless man.

Chauvins defense, meanwhile, doesnt have to provide an alternative theory as to what caused George Floyds death. Yet in his opening statement Monday, Chauvins defense attorney Eric Nelson claimed that what killed George Floyd, in part, was an ingestion of drugsallegedly to conceal them from policeand that the people gathered, who watched Chauvin and the other officers move Floyds inert body onto a stretcherdidnt know the full story. In fact, Nelson told the jury, the angry crowd appeared to officers to be a threat. They called officers names, he continued, causing officers to divert their attention from the man they had restrained beneath them.

Nelsons characterization of the crowd was a revealing moment for the defense, one meant perhaps to appeal to some of the jurors who, when asked their views on Black Lives Matter, had responded, All lives matter. The same officers who perceived Floyds already prone body as an ongoing threat had also perceived the witnesses recording them as a threat. To follow the defenses logic, if Floyd was somehow culpable in his own death, so were the bystanders. To the extent that Black Lives Matter is on trial in this case, it will concern the conduct of the people who stood witness to Floyds death.

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Derek Chauvin Trial Opening Statements: Defense Puts Blame on Witnesses - The New Republic

I read the article about the St. ThomasAquinas student's mask-wearing in the school.

First off, St. Thomas has a set dress code, andthey have updated their policies to keep upwith the changes that occur in everydaysociety, as the article said. I applaud the

young man in having a strong sense ofcommunity involvement. I am wondering if the

paper would have run the story if he werewearing a Blue Lives Matter mask or maybe

even an American flag mask.

I and just abouteveryone that I know who works, unless self-employed, have to follow a dress code. This isa learning experience for the young man to learn from it and grow from it. To the young man:Please don't ever lose your wanting and ability to help people; that is something thathelps us all grow as a people and society.

Tom Eichler, Mogadore

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Letter to the Editor: Black Lives Matter mask dispute was learning experience - Canton Repository

Last month, 12 Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives voted against awarding Congressional Gold Medals to the Capitol police who protected the building and members of Congress during the events and aftermath of Jan. 6.

Among those representatives were some of Trumps strongest supporters in Congress, including Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA-R), Matt Gaetz (FL-R), and Bob Good (VA-R).

They chalked it up to the language in the bill. They disagreed with the inclusion of words like insurrectionists to describe the mob that attacked the Capitol and temple of democracy to describe the Capitol building.

But arent these people of the same camp that believes blue lives matter? The people who stormed the Capitol harassed and harmed the police officers protecting the building. One officer, Brian Sicknick, was killed. If the Republican party wanted to honor police officers, this was their chance.

Their dissent leaves one wondering, has Blue Lives Matter ever really been about protecting blue lives?

The Blue Lives Matter movement came to a head this summer in response to the Black Lives Matter protests. As horror stories of Trump supporters attacking more than 50 Capitol police officers began to emerge in the days following Jan. 6, its hard to believe that the Blue Lives Matter campaign was ever focused on protecting the men and women in blue.

Rather, it seems that Blue Lives Matter became a weapon of racism a way to push a narrative of violence on Black protestors and justify the white supremacy existing within the criminal justice system.

Throughout last summer, Republicans talked about Blue Lives Matter in equivalence to Black Lives Matter, arguing that blue lives were in as much danger as Black lives. However, theres no such thing as a blue life. Police officers choose their profession. They apply, train and work knowing theyre in a dangerous field. A Black person doesnt choose to be Black. No one murders a cop just because theyre a cop. Black people are killed simply for existing.

Blue Lives Matter is a scapegoat of sorts. It allows some people who are against the Black Lives Matter movement to mask their true feelings of racism and hatred toward Black lives with support for the police officers who oppress them. When the same people who supported Blue Lives Matter stormed the Capitol and beat up police officers, they made something clear blue lives dont matter to them unless those blue lives are suppressing Black lives.

The insurrectionists at the Capitol aimed to overturn election results. They hoped to harm and kill members of Congress. They erected gallows and yelled: Execute the traitors!

When police officers tried to fight back against this mob, they were pulled into crowds by their legs. They were punched. They were shoved down flights of stairs. They were crushed in doors and beaten with hockey sticks and flag poles. Sicknick was murdered.

What happened to those peoples support for police officers during last summers protests? It seems they only care about the cops when the cops are upholding pillars of racism that benefit white people and harm minorities, specifically Black people. When those same police officers fought off that violent mob of people who supposedly cared about their wellbeing, that support was forgotten.

Blue Lives Matter is about protecting white supremacy and the institutional oppression of Black Americans. Its about perpetuating a narrative that Black people are to be feared and justifying the murders of innocent and undeserving human beings. Its clear to see because when examining the events of Jan. 6, one thing is for sure.

Its never been about the cops.

Charlotte Matherly is a junior media arts and design major. Contact Charlotte at mathercg@dukes.jmu.edu.

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Opinion | Blue Lives Matter was never about cops - The Breeze

by: via Nexstar Media Wire, The Associated Press

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) Atlantic City says it will redo a Black Lives Matter tribute on a street because the original painting of those words across the entire road confused motorists who didnt know where to drive on it.

Instead, the words Black Lives Matter will be painted onto the repaved road in a manner that does not obscure lane divider markings, Mayor Marty Small said Thursday.

The City Council voted Wednesday night to spend $36,000 to repave the road, which police said had become so confusing to motorists that the city blocked it off at either end with barriers to prevent anyone from driving on it.

It was an oversight on our part, and when we realized it, we fixed it, Mayor Marty Small said. The words Black Lives Matter will still be on the street.

The road needs to be repaved because the type of paint used in the display cannot be painted over, officials said.

Last September, the city held an event in which volunteers donated paint, materials and labor to write Black Lives Matter in huge capital letters stretching from curb to curb on a section of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in the citys downtown.

But the giant yellow letters obscured the yellow dividing line of the four-lane roadway, as well as the broken white lines on either side marking travel lanes.

Acting Police Chief James Sarkos told the council Wednesday night that the mural violated state Department of Transportation regulations. He also said motorists had become confused while driving on it, to the point that police had to close the road to traffic to prevent accidents.

The road painting was a compromise that averted a potential confrontation between activists who wanted to paint the words Black Lives Matter on the famous Boardwalk, and city officials who would not allow it.

City Council member LaToya Dunston accused the city of wasting taxpayer dollars by painting the road without knowing the rules governing it.

Continue reading here:
Atlantic City to redo Black Lives Matter road paint that confused drivers - CBS17.com

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) Black Lives Matter 757 held a protest Saturday night regarding the recent officer-involved shooting at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.

The protest began at 19th Street after members of the group attended the Virginia Beach Police press conference.

The march was held to protest the officer-involved shooting and death of Donovon Lynch, who was shot and killed Friday night.

Members of the group chanted Lynchs name at their protest as well as Black Lives Matter. BLM 757 told 10 On Your Side they wanted the officer involved in the shooting to be arrested like the others who were arrested for the shootings that took place Friday evening.

The group also raised concerns about police conducting an internal investigation and want Virginia State Police to take over.

I dont understand how this officer didnt have their body cameras on just conveniently during the time of firing on this young Black king. But we need to make sure that all officers have body cameras functioning at all times, said Japharii Jones, with Black Lives Matter 757.

Jones also said that investigators should also be required to wear body cameras and brought up Virginia Beachs City Councils decision to not allow citizens on their Investigative Review Panel the right to investigate and discipline officers.

The group says they will continue to protest at the Oceanfront most weekends and on major holidays until their is justice.

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BLM protest officer-involved shooting at Virginia Beach Oceanfront - WAVY.com