BY OLIVIA SIMPSON

George Floyd was killed on May 25th in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A deli employee called 911, accusing him of money forgery.  Eight minutes after the cop car arrived, Floyd was dead. His cause of death was one of the officer’s legs on his neck.  He asked for help multiple times.

Following this event, many people of color and white allies began protesting across the country, and the world, to end police brutality and to ensure equality for all. In Cincinnati and surrounding areas, protests began Friday, May 29th and have happened everyday since. A curfew has been put in place for 11 pm to discourage protests at night (for more info about Cincinnati protests click here).

Protestors hope to bring awareness to the issue of white privilege. White privilege names the idea that white people do not have to face challenges because of their race. This is not to say that they don’t face challenges but that these challenges aren’t dependent on the color of their skin. 

White privilege can be hard to understand, particularly for people who benefit from it. The reporting of the issue has been widespread. A list of statistics below, examine just a few key topics of racial injustice. 

Criminal Justice System:

• Young black men (age 15-19) are 21 times more likely to be shot and killed by police than young white men (2012 FBI supplementary homicide report)
• African Americans make up 14% of regular drug users, but they are 37% of those arrested for drug offenses, and 56% of those in state prison for drug offenses Black kids are 10 times more likely to be arrested for drug crimes than white kids (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program Data and U.S. Census Data)
• 1 in every 15 black men (and 1 in every 36 Latino men) are currently incarcerated, as compared to 1 in every 106 white men 
• A study in Georgia in the 1980s found that more than 20% of black defendents convicted of murdering white victims received the death penalty. However, only 8% of whites who killed whites and 1% of blacks who killed other blacks received the death penalty 
• Black offenders receive sentences that are 10% longer than white offenders charged of the same crimes 

Education:

• Black college graduates have significantly more debt than white graduates)
• In Illinois, Nevada, New Hampshire, and North Carolina, school districts with a poverty rate of 30% received at least 20% less funding per student than districts with a 10% poverty rate 
• While black students make up only 18% of student population, they are 35% of those suspended once, 46% of those suspended more than once, and 39% of those expelled
• https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/08/24/us/affirmative-action.html

Employment: 

• A black college dropout has the same chances of getting a job as a white high school dropout 
• A white male with a criminal record is 5% more likely to get a job than an equally qualified person of color with a clean record 

Wealth:

• The average net worth of black households is $6,314, compared to $110,500 for the average white household (2011 census data) 

For more information:

Read: 

White Fragility: Why It’s so Hard for White People to Talk about Racism  by Robin DiAngelo 

The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson 

So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oulo

Watch: 

13th (Netflix)

The Hate U Give (Hulu)

When They See Us (Netflix) 

Explained: The Racial Wealth Gap (Netflix) 

Listen to: 

1619 – NY Times

About Race 

The Diversity Gap 

To help: 

Donate: 

Cincinnati Bail Fund (bail is the temporary release of an accused person awaiting trial, sometimes involving a sum of money, the bail fund donates money to people who can’t afford theirs)

Cincinnati Relief Fund (helps support those who have been detained and incarcerated during the Coronavirus pandemic and ongoing protests)

George Floyd Memorial Fund (funds collected will be donated to the Floyd family, those who donate are also able to send a letter to the Floyd family) 

Minnesota Freedom Fund (pays criminal bail and immigration bond for those who can’t afford to)

Run with Maud (money donated will be given to the Arbery family and to support more campaigns; Amaud Arbery was jogging Sunday afternoon, on Feb. 23, 2020 when two white males stalked him and shot him)

National Bail Out (funds pay for criminal bail)

Campaign Zero (money donated supports the analysis of policing practices across the country, research to identify effective solutions, technical assistance for accountability campaigns, and the development of model legislation) 

Sign Petitions: 

Text FLOYD to 55-156

Educate children on racism throughout the school (petition to create a bill for the School Board of Education that adds the history of racism and impact to American education)

Justice for Breonna (Breonna Taylor was in her home on March 13th when police stormed in and sprayed her home with 20 rounds, killing her. They had been looking for someone who had trafficked drugs, someone who didn’t live with or in her proximity. Link is a list of ways one can take action, e.g. petitions, donations, and numbers to call)

Justice for Breonna Taylor (Petition to have the officers that shot her charged)