“The Black Death” 6/8/2020

Warning: Self induced furry drama. Sensitive furries need not read further.

I have been silent about the current pandemic, but now that covid-19 seems to be dead on arrival, I thought I would finally add my two cents worth. Way back in March, the scientific community was scaring the hell out of us, referencing comparisons to the Spanish Flu of 1919, or even the Bubonic Plague, or “Black Death” of the Middle Ages… Oh, Ummm… When you saw the journal title “The Black Death” did you perhaps think I was commenting on George Floyd, the man who was killed by a police officer some two weeks ago? That would be… Oh! How creepy of you to think such a thing. After all, who am I to offer up my own opinion on- Oh, screw it! I suppose I could switch gears and talk about that as well, since the American pandemic of police killing [black] men does have an unexpected relationship with the covid-19 pandemic.

How so?

Yes, yes, the black community has a disproportionate rate of covid-19. But look at it in a positive way: Black people finally have more of something than white people, I mean, besides diabetes and high blood pressure. File that under “black privilege.” But that’s not the connection I’m interested in.

Moving on to more juicy material.

George Floyd’s death sparked something. The video footage went viral and captured worldwide attention. In the past few weeks we have seen a revolution of sorts. Protests, demonstrations, parades and people chanting: “I can’t breathe.” Artists painting murals of him with angel wings. Celebrities chiming in to support him. Kanye West paying for his six year old daughter’s college fund. Yes, George Floyd’s death has set the world on fire.

Really? Are you sh*tting me?

Let me just throw out a question for you. Be warned: This question is ugly, but I must, simply must ask it anyway.

Does the world really care that a man was killed by the police?

Oh, wait a minute. That question does not make any sense, does it? Let me rephrase the question in a way that makes sense.

Does the world really care that a [black] man was killed by the police?

There. That’s better. Now the question makes [more] sense. Now as fellow FurAffinity members, I know you are bleeding heart liberals and socialists, trained from birth, inculcated in the school system, to recoil in horror at the very question. “Dreamwindow!” you say, “How dare you ask such a question! How dare you even form such a horrible racist thought in your head. Who do you think you are? Um… let’s call that “white privilege.” (Yes. I said it. I used the term “white privilege” which proves I don’t have a racist bone in my body.)

Let’s explore the answer, shall we?

Your knee-jerk reaction, after vomiting in disgust, is to say: “Yes, Dreamwindow! Of course the world cares. Look at the outpouring of love, the outpouring of money, the outpouring of gasoline on those burning buildings. The revolution is being televised. Yes, yes it is being televised.”

Yes, but not the revolution you think.

If you scrape off all the liberal crap you were taught, like scraping off the sprinkles from a donut, you will find- when you search deep in your heart of hearts- that the answer is actually “No.” The world utterly does not care that another man was killed at the hands of the police. Let me rephrase that. The world utterly does not care that another [black] man was killed at the hands of the police. The fact that people have to keep asking year after year whether black lives really matter suggests that the answer is not "yes". So why all the fuss? Why keep up this pretense?

Look at it another way: If George Floyd had been white, do you think his death would be worldwide news? Would it even have made it on to the front page of the Minneapolis paper? Would there be parades, protests, outcry in the streets from Shanghai to Sao Paulo? No. Of course not. “But Dreamwindow” you say, “the police would never do that to a white man, so your argument is inherently flawed.” I say, all the more reason the killing of a white man by the police should be international news, since it is so rare. No one is shocked when a black man in America dies at the hands of authority, since it happens so regularly. (Again, you might call it “black privilege”.) But a white man? That would be news. (“More White privilege”.) But it’s not news.

And neither is the death of George Floyd. Not really. So what is going on?

It appears that one pandemic has merged with another, creating the perfect storm. Perhaps you didn’t notice, because it never got off the ground, but weeks earlier, before the death of George Floyd, there was something of a groundswell going on in America. Protests were popping up in isolated areas. What was being protested? The government’s response to the novel coronavirus. The economy was shut down, people lost their jobs, they were ordered to stay inside, their lives were disrupted and they were afraid. America as well as many other countries around the world, became a virtual prison on lockdown. Do you know what happens when a prison is on a prolonged lockdown? The prisoners protest. They even riot, having nothing to lose. These protests never got off the ground because they were politically incorrect. Their message went against the scripted government, media and celebrity driven mantra about public safety. And keep in mind, there was a lot more fear and a lot less information about covid-19 only weeks ago. (Yes, it seems like we have been dealing with this for an eternity, but in truth it hasn’t been that long at all.) Old people were still dying in droves, and there was simply no appetite to support such protests. The generous government checks didn’t hurt either.

If only there was some politically correct thing that the unwashed masses could rally around. Some sort of cover that would allow pent-up people with nothing better to do all day a legitimate reason to be out on the streets at all hours. Something that the media would latch on to. Something the governments of the world would be forced to tacitly support. Something celebrities would eat up and rally around.

How kind of George Floyd to appoint himself as the sacrificial lamb, the angel of mercy that the whole world desperately needed to receive absolution from their sins. Now protesters have the ultimate politically correct excuse to go out into the streets. Anyone can support this cause, I mean, who wouldn’t? Right? Those pesky rules like social distancing or wearing masks, forget about it. Want to loot and maim? Feel free! After all, a [black] man died, for God’s sake. Who would dare stop them? Nobody, apparently.

Perhaps the most ridiculous thing I have read: They were protesting George Floyd’s death in Linz, Austria. Yes, Linz, Austria. If ever there was a place where black lives did NOT matter, it is Linz, Austria. Did none of you see the “Keeping Up with the Kardashians” episode where Kim went to Vienna and we were treated to scene after scene where the locals made fun of her biracial family? No, the protesters in Linz are not really protesting George Floyd’s death. Nor are the protesters in Paris. Or in Washington DC, or in Minneapolis.

Every day the media participates in dragging this farce out, presenting footage of the throngs of [mostly] white people in the street holding up their signs of “I can’t breathe” pulled out of the recycle bin from Eric Garner’s death. (How quickly we forget.) Black celebrities piling on. Even President Obama was chiming in. (His presence was a sobering reminder of how impotent his presidency was in helping the plight of black men.) What exactly does anyone think these protests will accomplish? A leveling of the playing field? Justice for George Floyd? Please. We have already been through this too many times. I’ve seen some self-serving protests in my day, but…

I realize I am not the only person to make the connection between these two seemingly disparate pandemics. (Google Bill Maher.) But I am probably one of the few to call it out for what it is: hypocrisy at its finest. All under the guise of the moral imperative.

Perhaps one day the world will care that a man was killed by the police. I mean, perhaps one day the world will care that a [black] man was killed by the police, but I doubt it. Maybe if people who lived during the Middle Age knew about social distancing, the Bubonic Plague would not have been so potent. Who knows? But its effect was long lasting and far ranging. Covid-19 is hardly the “Black Death” but for a time, the world was acting like it was. As it lost its potency, we needed another “black death” to rally against-and got it with the death of George Floyd. Whether the effect of this “black death” will prove be as long lasting remains to be seen.

Love, -D.