DAVE ROSS

Ross: Which side will people choose as protests continue?

Jun 8, 2020, 8:46 AM | Updated: Jun 9, 2020, 7:55 am

Seattle police, machine learning, protests, complaints...

Protesters and police in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood in 2020. (Getty Images)

(Getty Images)

In Buffalo, district attorney John Flynn says he is playing it straight down the middle – prosecuting anyone who breaks the law, whether it’s the demonstrators who went looting, or those two Buffalo cops who pushed down a demonstrator.

“There may be some who say you know that I’m choosing sides here by arresting and prosecuting these police officers… and I say that’s ridiculous,” Flynn said recently. “I’m not choosing sides. I’m prosecuting 39 protesters. I’m on justice’s side.”

But as reasonable as he tried to be, 57 cops resigned from the riot response force in protest.

Meanwhile, clear across the country, the pastor of Seattle’s Plymouth Church said we can’t play it down the middle, and that we have to choose.

“This is about participating in a system that murders black bodies, or stepping out of it,” said Rev. Dr. Kelle Brown. “No justice, no peace.”

And then, I got this letter from an organization that’s raising bail money for demonstrators.

“As white progressives, we can’t express support for racial justice, but [then choose to] dwell on a broken window during a protest,” the letter reads.

They want people to take a clear stand by writing a check to bail out the people who smashed windows.

So, which side will people choose? My guess is it’s going to depend on which side of the window they’re standing.

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