…Urges US, Trump To Rise To Occasion
By Gbenga Abulude
As demonstrations over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin, US persist, former Nigerian minister of foreign affairs and eminent Professor of International Relations, Professor Bolaji Akinyemi has sued for peace in the African-American communities, asking protesters to shun night protests.
The New Diplomat reports that on August 23, a United States police officer, Mr. Rusten Sheskey, fired seven shots at Blake’s back. Somehow, he survived it —but his body has been shattered and paralyzed from the waist down. According to some US tabloids, that condition may be for life, sparking fresh rounds of demonstrations in some US cities.
It came just months after another African-American, George Floyd was killed by police officers in Minnesota. His death sparked global protests about police violence in the US.
Following the spate of unrest and shootings during night demonstrations, Akinyemi, who is also a former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs(NIIA) said he feared there could be a break down of law and order from what he has observed, urging a halt on night demonstrations.
He called on President Donald Trump to rise to the occasion and address racial injustice in the US to further uphold the values upon which the United States was founded. The shooting of Blake has triggered widespread protests in Wisconsin and elsewhere. Some have profited from the night protests by looting stores and people’s homes, a development that has further escalated the mayhem.
Responding to questions from a host on podcast, monitored by The New Diplomat, Akinyemi, a retired professor of international relations and diplomacy noted that from what he could glean from the demonstrations, it appears some people hiding under the guise of the protest have been sabotaging the night demonstrations by African-Americans, a move that has resulted in more harm and looting of businesses of black people.
He observed that if the night demonstrations continue with more crime committed and law enforcement agents including sheriff spoiling for war to stem the tide, it may result in a break down of law and order.
“From what I have seen of the demonstrations at night, some people are doing the wrong things to demonize the blacks. Some protesters seem to be planted to demonize the cause of the blacks. I have seen some black protesters who are also armed. Some fields of the night demonstrations have also shown white (people) protesters. The shops and business that were looted are also owned by African-Americans.
“The governments are also saying they will use federal might to stop the demonstrators. My fear is that there may be a total breakdown of law and other. The president should rise above this, he should address this using the values the United States was founded upon. If they are the bacon of democracy they claim to be, they should show us”, he said.
Akinyemi, a former member of the National Democratic Coalition(NADECO) and deputy chairman of the 2014 National Constitutional Conference, while proffering a solution on what the blacks should do, suggested that the black community through their institutions, the churches, civil organisations, should call for a ban on night demonstrations, adding that a peaceful demonstration was embedded in the US Constitution.
It would be recalled that the killing of George Floyd on May 27 by a white police officer in Minneapolis had triggered a movement, Black lives matter. However, Trump while speaking recently offered his own perspective. “Your vote will decide whether we protect law-abiding Americans, or whether we give free rein to violent anarchists, agitators, and criminals who threaten our citizens,” Trump said while delivering his nomination acceptance speech at the grand finale of the Republican National Convention, Thursday. Trump was making reference to criminal elements who have a penchant for looting and crime, during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations which sometimes turn violent.
But his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden has been arguing that the President has not done enough to address racial injustice in the US. Biden also tried to dismiss Trump’s claim that Americans won’t be safe under his watch, tweeting: “When Donald Trump says tonight you won’t be safe in Joe Biden’s America, look around and ask yourself: How safe do you feel in Donald Trump’s America?”
Meanwhile, as the racial killings and sometimes violent protests continue in the US, politicians on both sides have been exploiting the divisions to score political points ahead of the country’s November 3 presidential election.
