The time for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanza had arrived- and the United States opened these festive observances with an absolutely miserable outlook. In no time at all, Thanksgiving week took a noticeably diminished focus in the face of a torrent of civil strife at home and abroad- chief among them the results of the Ferguson trial verdict and the slew of mass protests in heavily trafficked areas across the country.
However, amidst the barrage of opinions and media attacks, a stark attitude change must be noted- and checked: the ugly “Us versus Them” rhetoric contaminating every facet of American society and more so the radicalism that festoons it and exacerbates the danger. Already, by seeing oneself as a member of a specific group, one creates a mindset that doesn’t allow a person to see all sides of an issue or topic and adds bias to an argument. Partisanship and progressive activism has added fuel to the fire by dividing people in this country so much that even media and journalism is poisoned by strong bias, and it compounds itself further and further through new social media outlets and organizations.
With a small yet not negligent number of violent protests, and signs blaring slogans such as “Ferguson Police, you can’t hide- we charge you with genocide!” and “NYC Students Fight Racist Police Terror” (Bloomberg Politics). This coincides with a less vocal opposition slandering the protesters’ zeal as dangers to society; the Ferguson case exemplifies this image of disunity. However, as is all too often in contemporary America, the issue has been inflamed by generalizations and blame on racial profiling from both sides of the issue, inflating it to spurn interruptions of functions such as shopping at malls (the 100 person incident in Pentagon City) or blocking major roadways (I-395) and irking thousands. If people were to temper their drive for retribution and take time to find more objective means to review their arguments and investigate the facts, incidents like these not necessitating any measure of the violent image they have taken could be mitigated.
Nowhere is the “Us versus Them” rhetoric more prevalent than in Syria, Ukraine, and Mexico. Although Ukraine is a special case, and Syria is embroiled in a conflict predestined to occur, they lie as examples of what happens when too little is done to fight government and social shortcomings. In Mexico, however, the true definition of “police brutality” is vividly shown as of late, in the wake of the gang- affiliated police crackdown on 43 college students, killed and incinerated by police, as they protested the corruption of the local government. In the wake of these crimes, thousands have responded by taking to media to voice their anger, peaceful marches, and the more violent seizure of an Acapulco airport and an attempt by thousands to force their way into the presidential palace. This attack included Molotov cocktails and, “A small group of protesters [using] metal barricades as battering rams in a failed attempt to break open the door of the palace”, said L’Agence France-Presse (AFP) correspondent Leticia Pineda. In context, their efforts and language to bring justice and bring about the end of a conflict that killed nearly 80,000 warrant the situation, yet even they do not evoke claims of ‘genocide’, highlighting a desperate need to put U.S. woes into perspective.
The best course of action on the police force issue is to stop and think. Citizens should have taken time to enjoy the holidays, lighten their hearts, and used logic and reason to prepare their stands on the crisis- a truce that should not have been breached until calm prevailed.