Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has refused to press charges in the shooting death of Hakim Littleton. In an unusual, lengthy press conference to justify her decision, Worthy presented a powerpoint, referring to testimony from witnesses and video clips from body cameras to support her conclusion that the officers “acted in lawful self-defense.” Acknowledging that the case is controversial, Worthy said “we cannot let that deter us from making the right decisions in cases where some people would like to see charges.”

This week the trial of Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd unfolded with painful, haunting testimony from eyewitnesses. Ranging in ages from 9 to 61 years old, witnesses explained what they saw, and the burdens they now carry. Not since the killing of Emmett Till have Americans as a whole been brought face to face with the brutality that routinely moves through the lives of African Americans and all of us who are the marginalized and disrespected people of our land.

A coalition of activist organizations is calling upon us to join in a reflection on the direction of our country and what we can do collectively to advance justice and peace. They are inviting us to listen to the words of Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech on Breaking the Silence read by a diverse group of people dedicated to King’s ideas. The reading will be followed by a conversation among activists from around the country. The event is set for April 4th at 7pm. You can connect at: kingandbreakingsilence.org.

As people in Minneapolis struggled with questions of jury selection, prejudiced judgments, and appropriate places for a trial for the killer of George Floyd, another young white man picked up a gun. He ultimately killed 8 people, six of them Asian-American women. His actions were explained by the local sheriff as the result of a bad day. 

This week the people of Detroit achieved an important victory. U.S. District Judge Laurie Michelson threw out an outlandish, dangerous, and costly effort by the Chief of Police, Mayor Mike Duggan and the majority of the City Council to squash dissent. This lawsuit was an obvious effort to intimidate those who dared to stand up against police brutality. It was a petty “pay back,” aimed at punishing Detroit Will Breathe and activists who successfully challenged Detroit Police violence in court.

Just a few days before the anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge where John Lewis and hundreds of others were beaten by Alabama State troopers as they demanded voting rights, Mayor Mike Duggan announced his budget proposals to the Detroit City Council. Nearly sixty years have passed since that vivid explosion of police violence, but it seems Mayor Duggan has learned nothing from it.

On Saturday the Detroit Charter Commission voted to advance its newly crafted document to state officials for review. The Commission hopes that, after review, the Charter will be adopted by a vote of the people in August. The document reflects three years of work by the elected commission. They held countless public meetings, offered opportunities for citizen engagement, heard expert testimony, and have worked with city officials and lawyers to meet their responsibilities. 

This week the United States will have lost 500,000 people to the Coronavirus. This is more than all the deaths we experienced in World War I, World War II, and Vietnam, combined. We have endured these losses in 1 year, touching people everywhere. This week we are also witnessing the dimensions of suffering in Texas, and surrounding states. The loss of electricity, combined with extreme cold, has revealed the fragility of our basic infrastructure yet again. People are without heat, food, and water. Hospitals are collapsing. Needed emergency supplies cannot be delivered.

The impeachment trial is over. The outcome was clear before the first words were spoken. In spite of overwhelming evidence of Trump’s responsibility for the Capitol attack, only 7 Republican senators had the courage to acknowledge his guilt. After voting against impeachment, Senator Mitch McConnell felt compelled to try and salvage his position by saying “There’s no question — none — that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day.”

February 1 is the anniversary of the Greensboro sit-ins. In 1960 four young African American students at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, inspired by the actions of Dr. Martin Luther King, decided to do something about segregation. They decided to go to the white only lunch counter at the local Woolworth and order coffee. This simple act sparked some of the most courageous and imaginative organizing in defense of human rights in this country.

Since the attack on the Capitol, many people are acknowledging that mob violence is a part of who we are as a people. Recognition of the violence imbedded in American culture is crucial to changing it. It is also essential in understanding that we are facing accelerating conflicts as the right-wing terrorists are morphing from mobs to military forces.

This year Martin Luther King’s birthday falls the day before the inauguration of Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris. The Capital has been turned into a “green zone.” More than 25,000 National Guard troops are securing the grounds. This is 5 times the number of US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is nearly triple the number called out after the assassination of King in 1968. The National Mall, that once held King’s tent city of the Poor Peoples Campaign, is closed. Security forces are on high alert as right-wing extremists plot violent attacks, including efforts to storm state capitals and blocking Biden’s entry to the White House.

The mob that stormed the Capitol this week was as old as America. It climbed the steps carrying the shadows of the lynch mobs that have terrorized people for centuries. It echoed the mobs that ran through towns, attacking black people, killing, and destroying any trace of black lives.

As most of us shift our attention to family, friends and the deep rituals marking the turning of time from darkness toward light, we face an uncertain future. The longing to return to “normal” is evident everywhere. Yet most of us realize that the past is gone. We know “normal” is what created these crises. All the signs are that perilous times are accelerating.

Detroit Water Warriors achieved a major victory this week. Mayor Mike Duggan announced a moratorium on water shut offs for the next two years at a press conference on December 8. The news was welcomed by water rights activists.

The pandemic has enabled people to see the extraordinary inequalities and dysfunctions built into what we call the “normal” way of doing things. We are recognizing that the federal system of government is filled with limitations. It is a system that is increasingly moving toward authoritarian methods of governing, while benefiting a smaller minority of corporations. Since 1980, this shift has been carried out by policies loosely termed “austerity.” In the name of fiscal responsibility, the Federal government has been systematically withdrawing support for the most basic services and responsibilities of collective care. It has been allowing states to determine their own responses to shared problems.

As we move through these next few months of uncertainty, some things are clear. At least  12 million working people are likely to face the New Year without unemployment benefits. Another 30 to 40 million people are facing the possibilities of eviction. As many as 54 million people are facing food insecurity. These crises are most acutely felt in our cities, among Black, Indigenous, people of color, and children. They represent human trauma on a scale we have not experienced since the Great Depression. Long standing structural injustices have been accentuated by this global pandemic and the ineffectual responses of the current administration.

The Detroit Coalition for Police Transparency and Accountability  (CPTA) held a public hearing on police brutality November 21, 2020. For more than 3 hours people recounted the history of violence embedded in the Detroit Police Department. In story after story, spanning more than 50 years, we heard details of unprovoked, life-shattering encounters with physical and psychological assaults suffered at the hands of police.

President Trump continues to stoke hatred and violence. He refuses to acknowledge reality and concede the election.  He continues to claim widespread voter fraud. On Saturday he drove through a rally of supporters who shouted, “We Love Trump” and “Stop the Steal.” Later those supporters attacked Black Lives Matters demonstrators and challenged counter protestors. Fistfights and bottle throwing broke out and several people carried guns.

I was preparing for a meeting with the National Council of Elders on Saturday morning when the banner from CNN flashed across my screen. Biden Elected President. Minutes later as I watched commentary about Pennsylvania putting Biden over the top in the Electoral College count, I surprised myself by crying. I have no illusions about electoral politics, and none about Joe Biden, but the broad and deep repudiation of Donald Trump brought forth a flood of relief, allowing a grief I didn’t even realize I was holding, to pass.