The dust has now settled somewhat. We’ve all by now seen the tape of George Floyd being killed. Some might call it a “lynching” in the public square. But no one has asked this question: while the remaining three officers seemingly did nothing to stop Officer Chauvin, why did no civilian standing there take the bull by the horns and physically intercede? Why didn’t someone approach Chauvin, as Reverend Al might say, and actually pull Chauvin “off his neck”! Yes, a newer disturbing video shows that several onlookers were urgently demanding that Chauvin get off Floyd and that his fellow officer Tou Thao stop it, with no reaction whatsoever—except “back away.”

Still, I dare say, even Reverend Al would have gotten in the middle of that? No disrespect; had but he done so, he, maybe especially he, would have risked becoming another victim. And, had there been any physical approach by a bystander to do something when all else failed, would it have mattered if the bystander were white, not black? Maybe not; but also maybe.

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