What A Day - Protesting 1, 2, 3

Episode Date: June 1, 2020

Protests in response to the police killing of George Floyd continued throughout the weekend. There were demonstrations in over 75 American cities, leading local officials to activate the National Guard in at least 11 states, and impose curfews. At one point, Trump hid underground. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for his role in George Floyd's killing, but three other officers who stood by have not been charged. And in headlines: Trump says the US will stop working with the WHO, the CDC releases guidelines for how to reopen offices, and Chrissy Teigen demonstrates the ‘spite donation.’Where to Donate:Minnesota Freedom Fund: minnesotafreedomfund.org/donateBrooklyn Bail Fund: brooklynbailfund.org/donateReclaim the block: reclaimtheblock.orgBlack Visions Collective: blackvisionsmn.orgMass Defense Program: nlg.org/donate/massdefense

It's Monday, June 1st. I'm Akilah Hughes. And I'm Gideon Resnick, and this is What A Day, where we're honored to induct anybody who's protesting into the WOD Squad. Yeah, you're fam for life. Thank you for representing and standing up for what you believe in. We are blood relatives now. I'm sorry, and also congrats. On today's show, protests spread across the country in response to the police killing of George Floyd. We're going to explore the protests and the reaction to them and then some headlines. We do not want to go through this anymore, okay? I want to be able to go in a white

neighborhood and feel safe. I want to be able, when a cop is driving behind me, I don't have to clench and be tense, okay? I want to be able just to be free and not have to think about every step I take. Yeah, wow, that was a protester on Saturday night in Minneapolis speaking on CNN. It. So good to hear from protesters about what's at stake here. It's important. So, you know, please, if you're covering the news, let's hear from the protesters. But let's go through some of the latest on the protests. Yeah, so this is obviously enormous.

We saw protesters that were gathering in cities and towns across the country. So that's Minneapolis, but also Louisville, New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Columbus, Ohio, Chicago, New Orleans, and even smaller places like Fargo, North Dakota. There were also protests in other countries like the U.K. and Germany, something like 75 American cities in all over the past couple of days. Now, in some places, including Minneapolis, New York City, and Los Angeles, what were largely peaceful protests got dangerous at times. There were fires. There were instances of looting and property damage. In Indianapolis, three people were killed following multiple shootings on Saturday night.

In response to all of this, mayors in more than two dozen cities have imposed curfews. The National Guard has been activated in at least 11 states. Now, police have been a huge presence and an important part of the story, and we've seen documented evidence of police escalation throughout these cities, including the use of rubber bullets, tear gas, and at least one instance of two NYPD police vehicles driving into a crowd of demonstrators. Additionally, there have been instances of this kind of aggression and violence towards members of the press. In the midst of all this, we've heard a number of different responses from local elected leaders. Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms made an at times very emotional plea reminding residents of the special legacy of the city.

It's a place that has been built up by black people and many businesses are black owned. She called for people not to destroy property in the process of their protesting. It's worth checking out what she had to say. In New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio, who ran on police reform, didn't immediately say the police acted inappropriately and defended their actions broadly, something that has angered a lot of people, though he did later call for an investigation after that disturbing incident. Yeah, and the killing of George Floyd is central to the protests. But this also comes after several other high-profile cases of racist violence, including the murder of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia, the killing of Breonna Taylor in her apartment in Kentucky by Louisville police.

So, yeah. That's exactly right. And like Floyd, those two cases you mentioned are also unresolved. Three men have been charged in connection with the murder of Arbery, but it took over two months and several different prosecutors to get even that far. And in the case of Taylor, the FBI is investigating, but there have been no charges against the officers who were actually involved in that. Another story, Tony McDade, a black trans man allegedly killed by police in Florida last week. No charges have been filed there.

And then overhanging all of this is the coronavirus pandemic. It has claimed the lives of over 100,000 people in the United States and has disproportionately affected communities of color and her city. It's worth mentioning the use of tear gas and pepper spray by police at these protests could enhance the possibility of transmission due to coughing and more secretions when they spray it in people's faces. Yeah. Meanwhile, President Trump, after disgustingly tweeting that looting leads to shooting, has spent much of the weekend blaming Democratic mayors and governors and urging them to be tougher. Yeah, that's right. And as protests approached the White House over the weekend, The New York Times reported that Trump was also put in an underground bunker that is typically reserved for terrorist

attacks. This is his 9-11. Yes. Yeah, I mean, his response is his response. In the coming days, we'll be examining more closely how these politicians have been responding or not responding. But a couple of early ideas that emerged in recent days just about how to handle the enormity of all this. Senator Cory Booker said that he was working on legislation that would set up a national registry for police cases of misconduct, use of force, and people killed by police. Additionally, there was talk among House Democrats about legislation

that would impose a federal ban on the use of chokeholds or pressure of any kind on the neck by police officers. So much more on this to come. But for now, Akilah, there was a lot of coverage and conversation this weekend that was around how the protests were happening, but not why. The coverage lacked this focus on the inciting incidents from law enforcement that have gotten us to this point. How are you thinking about all this? Yeah, I mean, I think that the truth is we just have to get back to Justice 101. Protest is definitively reactionary.

It's a response to an injustice. And that's why it's so important that in every single critique of what happened at the protests and uprising, there needs to be a reminder that this is only happening because once again, a police officer has murdered a suspect violently and for several days or weeks or months or ever, you know, no charges followed. And the charges that have been filed in the case of George Floyd are seen by protesters as incredibly limited. For example, three other police officers who were on the scene haven't been charged at all. So to even begin a conversation about a Starbucks on fire, we have to start with the fact that a man was murdered and the officers may not face any consequences at all. And it's not the first time.

Right. But we also, I think, need to discuss the why. You know, the why politicians and pundits are so quick to condemn protests for not being peaceful. Protest is never supposed to create peace for perpetrators. It's supposed to be confronting the issue, which I will reiterate, is murder with impunity at the hands of publicly funded police forces. So that's why it rubs anyone interested in justice the wrong way when Mike Pence tweets that protest has to remain peaceful since, you know, this is the same guy who walked out of an NFL game in October 2017 because players knelt through the national anthem, you know? Couldn't have been more peaceful of a protest, and yet it was still too spicy for Mike Pence,

the vice president of an administration that just fumbled this pandemic so hard that more than 100,000 Americans are dead. So when you hear people in your life say they don't respect the protest because violence erupted, be swift in reminding them that, one, peaceful protest has always been criticized. So really, what they're saying to you is that they just want to go about life without having to think about how easy, you know, it is for black people to get killed in this country. Two, you know, Martin Luther King's peaceful protest resulted in his murder. And three, if they've spent more breath complaining about a trash can fire than complaining about the police officers who lynched that man on video, then they themselves are the trash fire. All right. That's the reason why we protest. Right. I mean, that's a really important point to always remember when you're watching these news reports and how they're putting things in context or if they're not putting things in any context at all. Right. And we did see reporting and interviews with small business owners expressing solidarity with protesters saying they could rebuild their

properties and they agreed with the statements that they were making. There were also people out this weekend who were cleaning up after protests. There was also footage of protesters trying to prevent dangerous situations and destruction because they felt that it could get in the way of their message that they were trying to convey. Though additionally, there was also some reporting about some small business owners, and these are not people who own Nike stores or Target stores, but immigrant or minority small business owners that have also pleaded that their property not be destroyed in the process of this. Yeah. And in my neighborhood, they boarded up all of the black-owned businesses and marked them to be passed over.

So I think people are all thinking about it. You know, the losses experienced by business owners are a part of the story. And, you know, they're not a small part of the story, but got to reiterate, they are not the story. So what we're talking about here is where the focus goes. Should it be on property damage or should it be on generations of lives lost? Right. I agree. All right. Well, let's return to what sparked these protests. And that's, you know, the killing of George Floyd. So what's happening with the cases against Minneapolis police officers? And, you know, what can we expect next? Yeah, so there's actually a lot to update folks on since Friday.

It's been an obviously crazy 48 hours or so. So Derek Chauvin, the officer who held his knee on Floyd's neck for almost nine minutes, which includes almost three minutes in which he was unresponsive, was charged with third degree murder and second degree manslaughter. So that carries a maximum sentence of 35 years. And in 2019, actually, an officer in Minneapolis was convicted of the same charges in what was believed to be a first in the state's history. Now, Floyd's family said that they wanted a first-degree murder charge,

but that would require prosecutors to prove in the process of this that Chauvin intended to kill Floyd and planned it. Additionally, though, as you mentioned, there is an eagerness for the other officers who were on the scene who were all fired to be charged as well. They still remain free. And yesterday, Minnesota's Governor Tim Walz said that Attorney General Keith Ellison will be brought in to lead the prosecution of this. So this comes after calls from activists and some local city leaders. So it does look like protests do something. But we also got more information on Chauvin's background and the Minneapolis Police Department since Friday. So let's go over what we've learned. Yeah, so this is kind of what we know so far.

Chauvin, over the course of his career, was the subject of almost 20 police conduct complaints. In 2006, he was among a group of officers who opened fire on an armed stabbing suspect, and a grand jury found the use of force to be justified. That suspect died. Two years after that, Chauvin also reportedly shot an individual while responding to an alleged domestic dispute. Now, all of this starts to shed light on what police accountability looks like in Minneapolis. This guy was still on the force. And this is what happens in plenty of other cities, too. There's reporting, though, that in Minneapolis over the years, a civilian review board would at times recommend discipline of all different kinds.

But police chiefs at various times would refuse to impose it. So that civilian review board didn't really have an enforcement mechanism there. And that board was replaced by a different review agency in 2012. And according to the New York Times, that agency has fielded over 2,000 misconduct complaints. But since then, only 12 have resulted in any kind of discipline. Wow. Well, we'll definitely dive into this more soon. But for now, that's the latest. Hit is Monday, WOD Squad. It was a heavy weekend.

I barely even consider it to have been a weekend. But it is time for a much-needed temp check. Okay, so, Giddy, there are so many ways to get involved from protesting on the street to talking to people in your community that need to hear it, to taking time, especially if you're on the receiving end of these injustices, just to take care of yourself. But let's talk about some of the organizations working to support protesters and promote racial justice. Okay, so are there any in particular that you are backing right now? Yeah, so for now, I started with Minnesota Freedom Fund and the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund.

They're both collecting bail for folks that are out in the streets in these last couple of days. I also heard about Reclaim the Block, which is working on police divestment in Minneapolis, I believe. So those are the ones I started with for now. I had a lot of conversations with people too, that I respected a great deal who were talking about protests and other people who felt some amount of discomfort because they didn't know if, you know, they could be posing risks to other people because of COVID or, you know, vice versa. And so I think at the bare minimum, you know, taking a look at these organizations and having some sort of consciousness of the stuff that they're trying to do is, you know, something that can kind of make you feel

a little bit more connected, as it were, to everything that's going on. Yeah, absolutely. I think that, you know, I feel lucky and privileged to be able to give and to give my attention to this. And so I totally feel you. I think that we all got to do what we can from where we are. Yeah. What about you, though? Are there others that you recommend that you're looking at right now? For sure. So in addition to the bail funds, I guess the step after that is, you know, if there are charges brought against any of these people, they're going to need legal defense. So Mass Defense Program is part of the National Lawyers Guild, but they help set up, you know, jail and bail support programs. They also can provide some pro bono relief for people who have been arrested, who, you know, will have to appear before the court.

And so I definitely think people should just look into that. There's also just on Twitter, I saw a lot of just lawyers offering their support in that way. And I think that when you see that, it is your duty to at least retweet it. Like it's the least you can do is, you know, let people know what's available to them. But yeah, just trying to stay focused

on getting people out of jail when it took forever for this cop to go to jail. And there are other cops that should be in jail right now. Yeah, absolutely. I think that's the very least that I or anybody else can do. For sure. Well, everybody, we checked our temperatures. You know, it was very hot this week.

It was very, very hot. But you know what? We'll put a link to some of these groups in our show notes. We'll check back in with you tomorrow. I hope you're doing okay. And now for some heads. Let's wrap up with some headlines. Headlines.

Last Friday, President Trump said the United States would terminate its relationship with the World Health Organization. The announcement came in the same week that the U.S. officially passed 100,000 deaths from COVID-19, and over 40 million people have filed for unemployment assistance since March. In his 10-minute address, Trump took no responsibility for either outcome and instead blamed China. Congressional Democrats, public health experts, and medical groups all came out against the move, saying it would hamper international efforts to fight the pandemic and develop a vaccine. Only one Republican senator backed them up, which makes sense, because you to be pretty brave to come out as anti people getting sick. It's unclear whether the president can actually withdraw the U.S. from the WHO without congressional approval. The CDC has released their guidelines for how to safely

reopen offices, and they describe a very different kind of workplace than the ones we're used to. The highlights? Face coverings should be worn at all times, desks should be six feet apart, and there should be no seating in common areas. High-touch communal items, like the bulk bags of dried mango that once brought us so much joy, plus moderate to serious stomach pain, should be replaced with safer alternatives, like snacks that are individually wrapped. Employees should drive to work alone if possible instead of carpooling, which is good news for you if your carpool buddy likes to put on drowsiness-inducing non-WOD podcasts. You know, God bless. No disrespect, but eh.

The CDC also suggested a ban on fist bumps, which will have absolutely devastating effects on millennial workplaces like ours. You know, I'm a bumper. More bad news about Trump deciding things. He took to Twitter on Sunday to state his intent to designate a group of far-left activists known as Antifa, meaning anti-fascist, as a terrorist organization. Up for debate whether someone who's anti-Antifa is automatically pro-fa? There are just a few problems with Trump's epic online clapback, though.

Antifa isn't actually an organization since it lacks a centralized structure. And for better or worse, there is no law that allows the federal government to apply the terrorist designation to domestic groups, only international ones. Trump's beef with Antifa comes as his administration puts the blame for escalation at protests squarely on far left activists, not mentioning police officers who seem very eager to use their batons or the justified anger of protesters. Trump's Attorney General William Barr said the DOJ would work with the FBI's Terrorism Task Force to identify members of Antifa, which again, considering that it's not a group, means almost nothing. Yeah, wow. Well, our country's beloved celebs are getting involved in this weekend's protests, some with posts and some with donations totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars. On Twitter, Chrissy Teigen pledged $100,000

to the bail funds that are helping activists get out of jail when a dude got in her mentions and said her money was going to, quote, rioters and criminals. She doubled it. So it's a good reminder that spite donations are just as good as other donations. If your dollar can piss off a racist

and help people protesting police killings, that's like you discovered a cheat code for real life. NFL quarterback and activist Colin Kaepernick established his own legal defense fund. His Know Your Rights Camp Legal Defense Initiative will help protesters arrested in Minneapolis pay for legal representation. It should make Pence give money to it. Absolutely. And those are the headlines. That's all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, give us an individually wrapped dried mango,

and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just Chrissy Teigen announcing spite donations like me, what a day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at cricket.com slash subscribe. I'm Akilah Hughes. I'm Gideon Resnick. And thanks for being in the squad. We love you. Seriously. Yes. And protect yourself and be nice. What a day is a product of crooked media. It's recorded and mixed by Charlotte Landis. Sonia Tun is our assistant producer. Our head writer is John Milstein and our senior producer is Katie Long.

Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.