Observations from covering Ferguson and Baltimore.
 | | Protesters confronting the police in Minneapolis on Tuesday.Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Star Tribune, via Associated Press |
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I’ve spent this morning catching up on the protests and riots in Minneapolis and other cities, precipitated by the on-camera police killing of George Floyd, an African-American man. Having covered the 2014 Ferguson, Mo., and 2015 Baltimore protests firsthand, I have a few thoughts on what has happened so far. |
First, these protests are never a result of just one offense. Michael Brown’s shooting in Ferguson and Freddie Gray’s death in Baltimore were set against a backdrop of pervasive abuse and violence from law enforcement. The same is true of Minneapolis, which has had years of struggle with unaccountable police violence. Floyd’s public, shocking death was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. |
Second, police aggression is a key ingredient in turning peaceful protests violent. The situation in Minneapolis began with nonviolent demonstrations, but the police responded with tear gas and rubber bullets, and as was true in Ferguson and Baltimore — where police met protesters with military equipment — this changed the dynamic of the confrontation. When crowds feel threatened, they get agitated, and agitation creates the conditions for property damage and other forms of disruption. |
Last, it is impossible not to note the contrast in how the Minneapolis protesters have been treated compared with armed demonstrators protesting lockdowns in Michigan and other states. I wrote earlier this month about how the idea of “freedom” is shaped by race and racism. Here, we have a perfect example of exactly that: how the perceived legitimacy of protest and dissent is shaped by who is doing the protesting. Screaming, gun-toting white people can demonstrate with little resistance. Mourning black people, on the other hand, are liable to face state violence. |
I have been struck by the lack of any public mourning over the Covid-19 dead and wrote about what that might mean. |
| The president’s indifference to collective mourning is of a piece with a political movement that denies our collective ties as well as the obligations we have to each other. If Trump represents a radical political solipsism, in which his is the only interest that exists, then it makes all the sense in the world that neither he nor his allies would see or even understand the need for public and collective mourning — an activity that heightens our vulnerability, centers our interconnectedness and stands as a challenge to the politics of selfishness and domination. |
Francesca Mari on the 2008 financial crisis in the New York Review of Books. |
An interview with political scientist Chryl Laird on Joe Biden and black voters at Vox. |
If you’re enjoying what you’re reading, please consider recommending it to friends. They can sign up here. If you want to share your thoughts on an item in this week’s newsletter or on the newsletter in general, please email me at jamelle-newsletter@nytimes.com. |
 | | Local police gather to confront protestors in Ferguson, Mo.Jamelle Bouie |
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I’m dipping back into the archives, this time with a photo from 2014, taken during the demonstrations in Ferguson. At this point, there has been no serious destruction. There are just people in the streets grieving and voicing their discontent. But instead of understanding, they are met — as you can see here — with an overwhelming show of force. |
Now Eating: Grilled Eggplant Salad |
This, from the Zahav cookbook, has been on a regular rotation in my house since grilling season started. The key is to grill the eggplant for as long as possible. You want the interior to be like pudding, which can take as long as an hour depending on the size of the eggplant. You can easily double the recipe, and while it doesn’t require tahini, I think it’s enhanced by a generous drizzle of good tahini as well as a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. |
- 2 large eggplants, halved
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup chopped Italian parsley
- Juice of 1 lemon
- ¼ cup tahini
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Place the eggplants, cut-side down, on a hot grill and cook until the flesh is puddinglike in texture; the surface will be completely charred. Let the eggplants cool, then remove the charred surface and spoon the flesh (scraping it off the skin) into a medium mixing bowl. |
Add the garlic and olive oil and stir it vigorously, breaking up the eggplant, until the mixture is creamy and smooth. Stir in the salt, half the parsley, the lemon juice and tahini; sprinkle the rest of the parsley on top as a garnish. Serve with grilled pita bread. |
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