Pandemic Diary Entry #15

From Twitter

Sunday, May 31 (Day 81):

I'm hopeful that justice will finally be served for Breonna Taylor, killed by police in her own home in March. Those police officers have not yet been arrested. If you're interested in donating to the GoFundMe set up by her sister, please go here. If you'd like to take action, go to #JusticeForBreonna. 

What you probably didn't see last week: Peaceful protests about the killings of George Floyd and other Black Americans.

That's right. Peaceful protests. 

The main stream media mostly didn't show you those last week when they were showing images of riots and clashes with police and tear-gassed crowds. 

Hundreds of people gathered peacefully in places like Washington, DC (from The Guardian):

Rochester, NY (from the Democrat and Chronicle):

And even Minneapolis, MN (photos from my cousin):

Not much social distancing going on in any of these protests, and I hope the virus doesn't come roaring back. It's still with us, people! Of course, "Racism is far more deadly than Covid." - Kunaal Hathi (on Facebook)

Monday June 1 (Day 82):

Then there was Trump's "photo op" in front of an Episcopal church near the White House (a church long considered the church of Presidents). Before he and his (all white) companions walked to the church, police moved in with pepper spray and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd, a crowd peacefully and lawfully protesting in the public park across the street. Using their first amendment rights! And it wasn't even 7 pm yet (the curfew).

Episcopal Church leaders were quick to condemn the incident. From Religionnews.com:

The Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, the bishop of Washington who helped organize the clergy presence at the church, said Trump’s arrival at St. John’s happened without warning and left her “outraged.”

“The symbolism of him holding a Bible … as a prop and standing in front of our church as a backdrop when everything that he has said is antithetical to the teachings of our traditions and what we stand for as a church — I was horrified,” she told Religion News Service.

“He didn’t come to pray. He didn’t come to lament the death of George Floyd. He didn’t come to address the deep wounds that are being expressed through peaceful protest by the thousands upon thousands. He didn’t try to bring calm to situations that are exploding with pain.”

Tuesday, June 2 (Day 83):

Yesterday, I emailed my cousin who lives in Minneapolis. Today, he replied with photos and a long email thread about the mostly peaceful protests, but also looting and violence since then. He suggested the people smashing windows were young white men. Shame! 

The main stream media probably didn't show you this peaceful protest in Minneapolis!

Lovely walk after dinner. The weather is beautiful, although it was cloudy and cool this morning.

A peaceful stream down the hill from us, and wild roses

Wednesday, June 3 (Day 84): 

Threatening to rain all morning and finally rained by noon. Power went out over a good part of eastern PA. But we didn't lose power ourselves. Received an email from Giant, that our grocery delivery scheduled for tomorrow has been canceled because of the outage! They saved my list, though, and suggested I try for a new delivery. Was able to snag Sunday morning. Luckily, we have leftovers to eat, and burgers in the freezer. 

Currently reading LONG WAY DOWN by Jason Reynolds, the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. I'm making an effort to read more books by black authors.

A friend sent me these: Anti-racism resources for white people. Important stuff! All white people need to read this.

Thursday, June 4 (Day 85):

Very hot by the afternoon. The first really hot day this year. 

Watched a Kidlit Rally for Black Lives (live Facebook event) sponsored by The Brown Bookshelf and SCBWI. Many kidlit authors spoke about the protests, about being anti-racist, and about what books by Black authors all children should read. Some of my favorite authors spoke. Jacqueline Woodson, Jason Reynolds, Kwame Alexander, and lots more. A lot of tough words. And a lot of love! Black Lives Matter because Black lives are the ones in danger.

Friday, June 5 (Day 86):

As of 12:01 am, my area of Pennsylvania entered the Yellow phase of the pandemic recovery. But I don't think it's over, by any means, so I'm still not going anywhere. My husband and I have agreed to continue staying home for now, at least until June 15th. That's the date we've picked to reassess the stats from our area to see if the virus is getting better or worse after so many gatherings in public places all over the country. Not just the protests, but all those people who insisted on going to the beach on Memorial Day weekend! Seems pretty selfish, doesn it?

Rainy day. Decided to bake Honey Oat bread. Turned out fine, but it tasted a little bitter. Still trying to figure out why. The recipe called for only 1/4 cup of honey and I suspect it should be more than that.

Finished reading LONG WAY DOWN by Jason Reynolds. What a powerful novel! Whew. If you've never read it, I highly recommend it. Don't want to give away the plot, but it takes place in a brief time, and mostly in an elevator going down to the lobby. 

 Saturday, June 6 (Day 87): 

Beautiful day, sunny and warm. Started reading WE DREAM OF SPACE by Erin Entrada Kelly. 

Took a long walk in the evening -- and surprised a deer crossing the road!

Seemed a fitting end to the day. I was amazed she didn't seem at all afraid of me.

COVID-19 World Stats as of June 6 (from WHO):

Confirmed cases: 6,750,521

Confirmed deaths: 395,779

US Stats as of June 6 (from the CDC):

Confirmed cases: 1,891,690

Confirmed deaths: 109,192

How was your week? Were you involved in any protests? Did you read anything interesting (a book or perhaps an article on how to be anti-racist)? Please share with us. Thank you!

Pandemic Diary Entry #14

The sky from our deck on Saturday, May 30th

Week of Sunday May 24 to Saturday May 30: It's been a week of protests and violence in the US, after the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, in Minneapolis, by a white police officer who kept his knee on Floyd's neck for more than eight minutes, even after it was apparent that he had died. It's just the latest in a long line of murders of black men and women at the hands of white officers. No, not every police officer is racist. But too many of them are. And too many white people have stayed silent about this kind of treatment for too long.

The protests in Minneapolis have gotten the most attention, but what started as peaceful protests over Floyd's death turned violent. Mostly from outside agitators, many of whom came from out of state and are apparently white supremacists, hoping to foment a new civil war. This is horrible and outrageous. And no, I don't have words enough to deal with this.

Instead of talking about my own white, admittedly privileged, existence this week, I'm turning this blog over to Black voices.  Let their words be heard!

From an unknown author on Facebook:

You want to know why Black people are angry...
We can’t be handcuffed and put in the police car unless we are dead (#GeorgeFloyd)
We can’t go bird watching in Central Park (#ChristianCooper)
We can’t go jogging (#AmaudArbery).
We can’t relax in the comfort of our own homes (#BothemSean and #AtatianaJefferson).
We can't ask for help after being in a car crash (#JonathanFerrell and #RenishaMcBride).
We can't have a cellphone (#StephonClark).
We can't leave a party to get to safety (#JordanEdwards).
We can't play loud music (#JordanDavis).
We can’t sell CD's (#AltonSterling).
We can’t sleep (#AiyanaJones)
We can’t walk from the corner store (#MikeBrown).
We can’t play cops and robbers (#TamirRice).
We can’t go to church (#Charleston9).
We can’t walk home with Skittles (#TrayvonMartin).
We can’t hold a hair brush while leaving our own bachelor party (#SeanBell).
We can’t party on New Years (#OscarGrant).
We can’t get a normal traffic ticket (#SandraBland).
We can’t lawfully carry a weapon (#PhilandoCastile).
We can't break down on a public road with car problems (#CoreyJones).
We can’t shop at Walmart (#JohnCrawford) .
We can’t have a disabled vehicle (#TerrenceCrutcher).
We can’t read a book in our own car (#KeithScott).
We can’t be a 10yr old walking with our grandfather (#CliffordGlover).
We can’t decorate for a party (#ClaudeReese).
We can’t ask a cop a question (#RandyEvans).
We can’t cash our check in peace (#YvonneSmallwood).
We can’t take out our wallet (#AmadouDiallo).
We can’t run (#WalterScott).
We can’t breathe (#EricGarner).
We can’t live (#FreddieGray).
We’re tired.
Tired of making hashtags.
Tired of trying to convince you that our #BlackLivesMatter too.
Tired of dying.
Tired.
Tired.
Tired.
So very tired.




Here's the late Toni Morrison on Twitter:

"If I take your race away, and there you are, all strung out. And all you got is your little self, and what is that? 

What are you without racism? Are you any good? Are you still strong? Are you still smart? Do you still like yourself?" —Toni Morrison

Here's a Democratic activist, Abdul El-Sayed, talking in the Guardian:

“Look, the police have been executing black men in this country for a long time. We’re just now understanding it in the last five to 10 years because everybody’s got a camera in their pocket,” El-Sayed said. “I think people are sick of it but then it’s not just that, it’s the fact that you look at Covid-19, which has been the story for the past four months, rightly so, 100,000 lives lost. Those lives are disproportionately black folks’ lives. As a function of the same exact structural forces that have allowed black people to be executed by law enforcement.”

(Edited May 31 to add:) Here are some powerful words from YA author Kekla Magoon on Facebook (thank you, Nicole Valentine):

"Living through an uprising is upsetting for white people because the tables have been turned. Seemingly random violence is occurring, and you don’t know when, where, or how it might affect you. There are people moving through the streets who you fear may not take your needs or your humanity into consideration before they act in their own interests.

Welcome to how it feels to be a Black American.

The difference is, what you’re getting is only a glimpse. It’s temporary. You can watch the horrific news and fret-tweet your attempts at allyship with the confidence that the system itself will find a way to protect you. Black Americans have no such confidence."

Kekla Magoon from her website

And here's Shola MRichards, talking on Facebook about what it's like to walk his dog around his neighborhood, and how if he takes his 8-year-old daughter with him, he feels safer.

Next week, I'll go back to talking about staying home during the pandemic, which is still very much with us.



COVID-19 World Stats as of May 30 (From WHO):

Confirmed cases: 5,934,936
Confirmed deaths: 367,166


US Stats as of May 30 (From the CDC):

Confirmed cases: 1,737,950
Confirmed deaths: 102,785


How have you been this week? Does this news affect you as much as it affects me? Do you want to help? Do you want to try to be anti-racist? Here are some suggestions.