A protester watches soldiers pass as curfew approaches, Friday, May 1, 2015, in Baltimore.
In recent years, Americans have watched protests break out all over the world, and particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, demanding justice and for the State to recognize basic human rights. The media and politicians alike were quick to seize on the phrase “Arab Spring”, which had made the rounds on social media as a hashtag before it became a household phrase.
Now, the American Civil Liberties Union is doubling down on the observations that an “American Spring” is underway. They have boldly declared that this is the beginning of a “Black Spring” that is not going to die down any time soon.
As Baltimore continues to see extended protests for the death of a 25-year-old African American man who suffered a fatal spinal injury in police custody, the ACLU is announcing and distributing information for protesters – black or any other background – to “know their rights.”
#BlackSpring has begun. Protesters, #knowyourrights! pic.twitter.com/zUf8Vofu9s
— ACLU National (@ACLU) May 1, 2015
The protests that swept Baltimore seemed to directly lead to Friday’s announcement by State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, that criminal charges have now been filed against the officers involved in Gray’s death. Those charges range from assault to murder.
“To the youth of the city,” Mosby, 35, said, “this is a moment. This is your moment… You’re at the forefront of this cause and as young people, our time is now.”
Protests continued Saturday afternoon but now demonstrators were explaining that this was no longer just a protest of Gray’s death, but a “victory rally.”
The streets were filled with cries of “no justice, no peace, no racist police.”
In spite of the phrasing, the protests (and looting as well), have been racially diverse. The mainstream media bends over backwards for shots that are exclusively African American in composition, even though people of all backgrounds have flooded the streets in solidarity.
This is a #BlackSpring, and it is also an #AmericanSpring. Because addressing racism, equal rights and justice in America hits to the core of the problems, injustice and systemic abuses so latent in this society. Justice for African Americans, and police accountability in general, is in fact part of the natural evolution that must take place in America if justice across the board is to prevail and if the nation is ultimately to survive.
Watch the report below and pass it on using the hashtags #BlackSpring and #AmericanSpring!