Iowa Gov. Kim Reynold's SUV hits Black Lives Matter protester

• Iowa Gov. Kim Reynold's SUV hits Black Lives Matter protester
  
  
• Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa is making headlines after the SUV she was being transported in reportedly hit a Black Lives Matter protester in Des Moines. The Des Moines Register reports that the incident happened Tuesday as a group of around “two dozen Des Moines Black Lives Matter activists” came to events Gov. Reynolds was appearing at in Steamboat Rock and Ackley. The activists were trying to get Reynolds to sign an executive order that would restore the voting rights of people who have completed their sentences after felony convictions. One of the group’s organizers, Jaylen Cavil, told the Register that he was standing in the driveway of Family Traditions Meat in Ackley, a processing plant where Gov. Reynolds was appearing. Cavil says he was standing in front of where Gov. Reynolds vehicle was to exit, hoping that the governor would roll down her window to talk with the Des Moines Black Lives Matter protesters.

  According to Cavil, he was surprised that the driver hit him, and while he was uninjured, he was hit hard enough to be spun around and lifted onto the hood of the car. Iowa State Patrol spokesperson Sgt. Alex Dinkla told The Hill that the protester created the contact himself and it was not the fault of the SUV driver. “As the vehicle began to turn away from the protestor and onto the roadway, the demonstrator intentionally stepped in front of the slowly moving vehicle. The demonstrator had little to no physical reaction to any contact he created and the vehicle then entered the roadway.”

  And while the Iowa State Patrol spokesperson says the act was unintentional, Cavil and two others say that there was no way the driver could not have seen him when accelerating through him. Cavil and other activists say that they will continue to follow Gov. Reynolds around from event to event until she makes good on the promise she made two weeks ago to restore voting rights to those with past felony convictions who have served time. Considering that the governor was once able to make a deal to get out of a felony DUI charge by pleading guilty to a lesser charge, one might hope that the personal experience would inform her decision making.

  This is the time when activism is arguably at its most important. So far, politicians like Gov. Reynolds have signed legislation and made overtures towards racial equality and justice, but only in relatively superficial ways. A lot more action is required to make things right.
• Who called the cops?
  
  
• The image of young Elijah McClain playing his violin for rescue animals in a shelter won’t leave my brain lately. I can’t stop thinking about his last walk, listening to his music and dancing as he went. I can’t stop thinking about his last words, recorded by the cops who killed him. “I can’t breathe. I have my ID right here. My name is Elijah McClain. That’s my house. I was just going home. I’m an introvert. I’m just different. That’s all. I’m so sorry.”

  “I’m so sorry.” He’s sorry that he was noticed as he danced down the street. He’s sorry that his difference made him an object of fear. He’s sorry that for absolutely no goddamned reason someone called the cops on him and for no goddamned reason, the cops are hurting him. Killing him. He’s sorry. What I want to know is what about the person—almost undoubtedly the white person—who saw this young man dancing down the street doing absolutely nothing to hurt a soul. “Why are you attacking me? I don’t even kill flies!” Who saw this lovely, slight young man—5’ 7”, 140 pounds—and saw something to fear. Something that had to be squashed. And why? And how do we stop that?

  Yes, by all means the cops who killed this young man, who killed George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Michael Brown, Dontre Hamilton, Eric Garner, John Crawford III, Ezell Ford, Dante Parker, Tanisha Anderson, Akai Gurley, Tamir Rice, Rubain Brisbon, Jerame Reid, Tony Robinson, Phillip White, Eric Harris, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Sean Reed, Steven Demarco Taylor, Ariane McCree, Terrance Franklin, Miles Hall, William Green, Samuel David Mallard, James Johnson, Antwon Rose, Stephon Clark, David McAtee, and on and on and on and on—those cops killing unarmed men and women and children must be held to account. They must. But the people who called the cops on all of these victims? What about them?

  Yes. Police have to stop seeing every Black or brown person as a threat. But how do we stop the first instance of that perception? How do we stop making Amy Coopers? At least we can put a name to that walking example of overactive white privileged imagination, thanks to a smart phone, and she’s been held accountable. She’s lost her job and her poor nearly strangled dog. How do we do that with all the people hiding in their homes, anonymously dialing 911 when they see melanin in their vicinity. Because, goddammit, something has to be done about white people calling cops on Black people living while Black. I don’t have answers. I can be responsible for my actions and reactions. I can check myself. I can talk about the problem here, with my friends. But I don’t know how to fix this society. Fines for people making nuisance 911 calls on innocent people? I just don’t know. But making everyone hear Elijah McClain’s last words might help. Might wake people up.

  "You all are phenomenal,” Elijah McClain told his torturers. “You are beautiful. And I love you. Try to forgive me. I'm so sorry. Ow, that really hurt.”
• New complaint ties Breonna Taylor warrant to Louisville gentrification plan
  
• Chip in $3 to support the Movement for Black Lives as momentum grows for holding police accountable, defund departments, and protect Black lives.
  
• The other 'Trump Effect': New polling finds Americans are becoming more pro-immigrant
  
• 'People with badges acting like thugs': Florida cops laugh after firing rubber bullets at protesters
  
• NASA renames its headquarters building for 'Hidden Figure' engineer Mary W. Jackson
  
• Migrant workers were deported after complaining about unpaid labor at greenhouse, lawsuit alleges
  
• Scripted crime TV shows give viewers a dangerously false perception of how cops operate
  
• Federal judge orders Dakota Access Pipeline shut down, drained until environmental review completed
  
• Sign the petition: Demand Congress protect the right to dissent for Black lives
  
• The strictest abortion ban in the nation targets communities of color
  
• More delays in voting rights restoration for formerly incarcerated Floridians
  
• More than 25% of adults in the U.S. think police departments should be defunded, says survey
  
• What is The BREATHE Act? This bill decenters incarceration and puts funds in communities
  
• New study says 30% of U.S. children do not have adequate internet access to learn from home
  
• Q&A: Patrisse Cullors and Kendrick Sampson on mental health, defending Black life, and Black joy
  

The Daily Kos Liberation League features highly recommended posts about racial justice, gender equality, and LGBTQ rights. Stories about 2020 presidential candidates do not equal endorsement.
Log in or sign up to post articles and comments on Daily Kos, the nation's largest progressive community.

Thanks for all you do,
The Daily Kos Liberation League