The war on statues and the demoralising of America
by Arthur Goldberg, Mercatornet:
As a young man in the 1960s, I worked with others of my generation to enhance American democracy. As a mature person in 2020, I and others of my generation are offended to see on-going efforts to destabilize American democracy.
Back when we supported peaceful actions to end racial segregation in America, these activities included sit-ins to integrate public facilities, freedom rides to desegregate public transportation, and voter registration drives to end disenfranchisement. In the process, we willingly and peacefully accepted punishment for breaking existing laws with which we disagreed – laws that typically authorized segregation. Many of us were trained in methods of non-violent resistance, both physically and psychologically. Subsequently we worked to change the very laws we opposed through litigation and by developing legislation to assure equal opportunities for all.
By contrast, the agitators of 2020 who are wantonly destroying property effectively seek to dismantle government itself. They also seek to create equal results for all rather than simply providing for equal opportunity based on merit. To do so, the agitators converted peaceful protests about George Floyd’s death (protected by the First Amendment) into acts of violence through vandalism, riots, and looting. Instead of peacefully submitting to law enforcement for their law-breaking actions, these trespassers resist police, demand the defunding or elimination of police, and appear determined to tear down the essential fabric of America’s institutions while destroying our history. Rather than non-violence being their guide-star, they foment anarchy.
Regrettably, governmental supporters (mayors, governors, and legislative bodies) in so-called progressive cities and states, as well as the majority of the mainstream media, tacitly endorse these destructive non-peaceful actions. Local governments order law enforcement agencies to stand idle and to avoid engaging these forces of destruction. The net effect permits these cancel-culture warriors to create a situation of domestic terror as they loot stores, obliterate historical statues, burn our flag, destroy buildings, and attack churches and synagogues.
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