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MLK Day Protesters Block Traffic on the Bay Bridge

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U

User1608

Banned
Sibylus said:
BLM has really opened my eyes to just how little white people care. There is no real desire for change, no real hunger, and it took widespread protest like this to make that naked apathy so evident.

I wanted to believe we were better than this. We are not. We care more about tone we can tune out like television commercials, about polite concern we can disregard without a second thought, about feel-good MLK quotes that don't make us uncomfortable, about the "tradition" of confederate flags flying over government buildings, and about unimpeded traffic over bridges that don't interrupt our own private, curated existences than we care for all the lives of black men, women, and children destroyed by broken, racist systems.

We are a sick people, and no amount of tithing in our megachurches and our shopping centers, devil's advocacy, lip service, fuzzy feelings, and passivity will make us well. We stand motionless in the way and we are so passionate, so vocal to make sure everyone knows we're better than those ones who are throwing down black people and killing them, that we're not the bad ones. We wrap MLK's dream speech around us like a t-shirt, to conspicuously consume civil rights as though it were a part of our lives and important to us like our favorite sports, games, celebs, or electronic peripherals.

It's a lie. Black Lives Matter. But not to us.
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What a beautiful post in a thread full of disappointment and what ifs.
 
L

Lesath

Member
Chie Satonaka said:
Taken together, these two posts are the highlight of the thread to me. I'm watching people going around and around on this shit, advocating for situations that don't exist, for over 25 fucking pages now. It's depressing and pathetic, and a perfect example of why this shit will NEVER CHANGE.

And even knowing that, I support BLM, because the fact that it gets some of you so riled up is a bit of catharsis to your apathy of the plight black lives in favor of "approved disruption methods".
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You know, funny thing: I used to be on the side of people who think that protests should be as unobtrusive to my personal life as possible, but a cheesy shared facebook video I saw yesterday literally changed my mind on this. Change happens one person at a time. Keep up the hope.
 
J

Jmanunknown

Member
DarkHeartedKill said:
O come on! There's other methods of getting your point across that doesn't include making people late for shit. It's no different than the asshole Taxi drivers that were blocking traffic in Toronto and not even letting ambulances through. There is a serious problem with police brutality and racism, I get that. But blocking traffic isn't going to help, you're just gonna make people pissed off. Do a change.org petition, protest alongside the roads in areas that get grid-locked so lots of people see you, without you being the cause of it. Get celebrities and people with large platforms to help you spread the message. Don't delay a person's commute.
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Your being completely oblivious to the fact that all of those methods have and are being tried and guess what the majority of people do not care. Also it looks like the message is working your in here talking about the situation despite just saying blocking traffic isn't gonna help the cause. To first address a problem the majority of people have to actually recognize their is a problem instead of ignoring it hoping that it goes away.
 
P

PopeReal

Member
Goldenroad said:
Nah, I read the post, and decided to criticize the wording of the thread title. Not shit posting, merely criticizing, which seems a lot less mean than a good portion of the crap I've read in this thread.
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So out of all the discussion to be had you choose to go after the thread title.

Weird.
 
G

Gordon Shumway

Banned
PopeReal said:
So out of all the discussion to be had you choose to go after the thread title.

Weird.
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We all grieve in different ways..

gkgRtfy.png


😢
 
E

Enzom21

Member
PopeReal said:
So out of all the discussion to be had you choose to go after the thread title.

Weird.
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I imagine he didn't want to repeat any of the "This isn't the way to win support." "MLK would be so disappointed." "These pieces of shit are monsters." etc etc., so he went with the thread title.
 
B

BrianRoyale

Member
Jmanunknown said:
I hope they do arrest the protestors it just only further proves their point. In honor of MLK Day let my post one of MLK's famous quotes coincidentally enough from his letter from a Birmingham jail
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I know it won't show your quote of MLK, but i appreciate the quote you put in there, it's a good reminder I think of what it all means.
 
C

Chie Satonaka

Member
Lesath said:
You know, funny thing: I used to be on the side of people who think that protests should be as unobtrusive to my personal life as possible, but a cheesy shared facebook video I saw yesterday literally changed my mind on this. Change happens one person at a time. Keep up the hope.
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Sorry, I didn't get to watch the video until just now.

Here's the thing: It's awesome that this video (which isn't cheesy at all, but I digress) was what brought you to the table. Welcome aboard.

The problem here is that what she's saying isn't new. It's not some new cut road. It's not some new phenomenon, it's not some new way of thinking. If you were to talk to most BLM protesters, most people involved in this movement, most civil rights activists, ect, you'd hear this exact same frustration and anger. In fact, I know I've said something similar, as have many other people who are resorting to snark and mockery in this very thread.

I'm glad this video changed your mind, and yes, change happens one person at a time. However, history tells me that people like you are rare, in the minority, and for every you that exists with a rational mind that can watch that video and actually get it, there will be 200 more that watch it and say "All Lives Matter" in an attempt to shut down this conversation.

I have no hope, because people constantly do the wrong thing. This thread is a prime example of it, and this is on a website that "leans left".
 
C

Coffee Dog

Banned
Dicktatorship said:
Man there really isn't room for moderates in this issue is there?
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Because "moderate" in these conversations is a dogwhistle for "pro-status quo" or "pro-white comfort".

Making the mistake of thinking that this is a discussion with multiple equal positions is nothing more than a loud demonstration of privilege and ignorance, neither of which are deserving of conversation.
 
Tesseract

Tesseract

Banned
besada said:
People have been using the word monsters with a particular poster, because that poster literally called the protesters monsters.
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that was regretful, i forgot to take my painkillers

what i said was these actions make them look like monsters, probably should've used a different word. brutes maybe.

and to be fair, i'm active with blm across florida unis and will probably join in on a few highway blocks soon. i've been for the cause since the start, it's very important to me (my dad is black)
 
S

Slayven

Member
Tesseract said:
that was regretful, i forgot to take my painkillers

what i said was these actions make them look like monsters, probably should've used a different word. brutes maybe.

and to be fair, i'm active with blm across florida unis and will probably join in on a few highway blocks soon. i've been for the cause since the start, it's very important to me (my dad is black)
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14oiX7W.gif
 
P

PopeReal

Member
Tesseract said:
that was regretful, i forgot to take my painkillers

what i said was hese actions make them look like monsters, probably should've used a different word. brutes maybe.

and to be fair, i'm active with blm across florida unis and will probably join in on a few highway blocks soon. i've been for the cause since the start, it's very important to me (my dad is black)
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I understand it is important to you and that you are involved. I just don't see how blocking traffic makes you look like a monster.
 
D

Dicktatorship

Junior Member
Coffee Dog said:
Because "moderate" in these conversations is a dogwhistle for "pro-status quo" or "pro-white comfort".

Making the mistake of thinking that this is a discussion with multiple equal positions is nothing more than a loud demonstration of privilege and ignorance, neither of which are deserving of conversation.
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That's a dangerous presumption given that I haven't said a single thing about the subject.
 
Tesseract

Tesseract

Banned
NoblesseOblige said:
Tesseract is more entertaining when he's just making random snarky comments that get ignored rather than when he actually tries to discuss something.
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i'm being honest, really can't win with you guys

we're on the same team, denigrating everyone you disagree with ain't helping
 
A

A Link to the Past

Banned
Tesseract said:
i'm being honest, really can't win with you guys

would be nice to discuss this stuff without pathos potatoes getting flung around everywhere, we're on the same team
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It's because, as heated or hyperbolic or exaggerated as anyone got in here, a lot of what you said has been among the most extremely disingenuous and ridiculous posts in this thread. You created a situation where people are going to react to you in a certain way. I should know, I've done that myself!
 
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