The Futility of Seeking Justice After Police Murder
I can’t find solace in Derek Chauvin’s guilty verdict when police continue to kill Black people
Update 6/7/22: Level has a new home. You can read this article and other new articles by visiting LEVELMAN.com.
Rattled by the emotional dichotomy of the Derek Chauvin moment, I found myself questioning the nature of justice: how fluid and elusive it is when its recipients are Black, how it can’t seem to find us most days even when we call out for it by its Christian name. I considered how when justice does manifest, Black folks so often question its credentials. It appears so frequently on our doorsteps selling snake oil that we dare not trust it entirely when it offers us the real thing.
The whole world seemed pregnant with angst waiting for the Chauvin verdict, as if everyone who’s been fighting the good fight since last spring were clenching teeth in unison. People were buried in their phones more than usual yesterday, scanning for updates. I noted some Black folks front-loaded their workload for the day to make room for the inevitable crush of disappointment to come.
As for myself, I could feel my fingers charging up with words of furious resignation, preparing to decimate a system so clearly incapable of doing the…
