WASHINGTON — Heritage Foundation President Kay C. James, writing for FoxNews.com, says the horrific and needless death of George Floyd must serve as a turning point to make Americans finally end the ugly racism that stains our nation’s history. James, who was part of the civil rights movement of the 1960s and helped desegregate her school, writes:
“The senseless and completely unjustified killing of George Floyd – an unarmed black man – by a white police officer in Minneapolis on Monday should shock the conscience of America.
“While I understand the frustration and anger, I do not condone the violence spreading across this country in response to Floyd’s horrific killing. Rioting tearing apart Minneapolis and cities coast-to-coast will never lead to anything but more suffering. Those who are committing crimes are distracting us from the even larger group of people who are peacefully demonstrating.
“But we cannot shrug off Floyd’s killing – along with the killings of so many other black Americans throughout our nation’s history and up through today.
“How many more black people must die, and how many more times will statements of sympathy have to be issued? How many times will protests have to occur? How many more committees will have to be formed until America admits that racism is still a problem in this country?
“Racism in America is a fatal wound. Every time another incident occurs we put a Band-Aid on it, but the Band-Aid keeps falling off. Band-Aids are not enough to ever stitch this country back together.”
