Anyone with a shred of human decency who has seen the video of George Floyd cruelly having the life choked out of him by police officers was horrified by the sight. Because of that, millions have joined protests across the country, some of which have become more a revolt than a protest after dark. In response, the current leader of the White House has made threats, inflamed hatred, and used military force against peaceful protesters out during the day.
READ: Former President George W. Bush's statement on the death of George Floyd https://t.co/pP7CHxqWNq pic.twitter.com/PjnX4vXDah
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) June 2, 2020
Former President George W. Bush took the time to speak to a grieving nation, both offering sympathy for the people hurting and protesting and a message to Donald Trump. In his public statement, he wrote that:
‘It remains a shocking failure that many African Americans, especially young African American men, are harassed and threatened in their own country. It is a strength when protesters, protected by responsible law enforcement, march for a better future. This tragedy — in a long series of similar tragedies — raises a long overdue question: How do we end systemic racism in our society? The only way to see ourselves in a true light is to listen to the voices of so many who are hurting and grieving.’
President George W Bush: “It is a strength when protesters, protected by responsible law enforcement, march for a better future. This tragedy — in a long series of similar tragedies — raises a long overdue question: How do we end systemic racism in our society?”
— Ali Velshi (@AliVelshi) June 2, 2020
In response to Donald Trump’s orders to tear-gas and hit peaceful protesters with rubber bullets for a photo-op, as well as his inflammatory, tough-guy threats, Bush said “those who set out to silence those voices do not understand the meaning of America — or how it becomes a better place.” He also said that racial injustice is “America’s greatest challenge.”
‘America’s greatest challenge has long been to unite people of very different backgrounds into a single nation of justice and opportunity. The doctrine and habits of racial superiority, which once nearly split our country, still threaten our Union. The answers to American problems are found by living up to American ideals — to the fundamental truth that all human beings are created equal and endowed by God with certain rights. We have often underestimated how radical that quest really is, and how our cherished principles challenge systems of intended or assumed injustice.’
From President George W. Bush re: #GeorgeFloy & his thoughts on moving forward: pic.twitter.com/JHcxazvhWy
— Adrianna Hopkins (@AdriannaHopkins) June 2, 2020
Bush called on the country to remember times of unity, times when Americans joined together – anti-segregationists, Civil Rights protesters, and all movements seeking peace and equality for all Americans – and to use those examples to make real change come from the protests across the country.
‘The heroes of America — from Frederick Douglass, to Harriet Tubman, to Abraham Lincoln, to Martin Luther King, Jr. — are heroes of unity. Their calling has never been for the fainthearted. They often revealed the nation’s disturbing bigotry and exploitation — stains on our character sometimes difficult for the American majority to examine. We can only see the reality of America’s need by seeing it through the eyes of the threatened, oppressed, and disenfranchised.’
Former President George W. Bush statement: "We love our neighbors as ourselves when we treat them as equals, in both protection and compassion. There is a better way — the way of empathy, and shared commitment, and bold action, and a peace rooted in justice."
— Ryan Struyk (@ryanstruyk) June 2, 2020
Featured image screenshot via YouTube
