In wake of Floyd, distrust in police makes world crazy

The images of America on fire, with violent clashes between protesters and police, looting of shops and some antisemitic overtones, are deeply disturbing to Israelis.

By JPOST EDITORIAL
A NYPD police car is set on fire as protesters clash with police during a march against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, U.S., May 30, 2020. (photo credit: JEENAH MOON/REUTERS)
A NYPD police car is set on fire as protesters clash with police during a march against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, U.S., May 30, 2020.
(photo credit: JEENAH MOON/REUTERS)
Modern life can be filled with uncertainty and anxiety. The dizzyingly-paced chain of events and the immediacy of the heartless social media beast only contribute to a sense of helplessness as events seem to be spinning out of control.
The world is in the midst of such a period of time right now with the coronavirus pandemic. We’ve been forced to drastically change our lifestyle, and the very foundations upon which society is built – work and economic viability, human contact – have been challenged as never before.
But even as we cope with shutdowns, isolation and death, there are some basic tenets upon which society is based and which people depend on to get them through these increasingly disturbing times. A major one is that the function of the police is to protect them and keep them safe.
When it emerges that this isn’t always the case, then the world can start to spin off its axis. That is what’s happening in the aftermath of last week’s horrifying death of George Floyd, a black man in Minneapolis whose final minutes of being suffocated to death by city policemen were captured on film.
The images of America on fire, with violent clashes between protesters and police, looting of shops and some antisemitic overtones, are deeply disturbing to Israelis. As Herb Keinon wrote this week in The Jerusalem Post, Israel wants and needs a strong United States, and seeing what is taking place there is akin to the sadness one feels for a close friend battling a bad illness.
The only way out of this morass is the hope that justice will prevail – justice for those who caused the death of George Floyd, and justice for those – both black and white – who are taking advantage of the pain and anger that has been exposed in America by looting, rioting and promoting anarchy.
Closer to home, although the circumstances are totally dissimilar to the George Floyd case, we also urge justice in the distressing case of Iyad al-Halak, the 32-year-old autistic man who was fatally shot by police officers in the Old City of Jerusalem on Saturday morning, after they mistakenly thought he was armed and dangerous.
According to the autopsy, Halak was shot twice in the chest. Although the Border Police and Israel’s security forces are in the unenviable position of making snap judgments to keep the public safe, and generally do an exemplary job, cases like this one demand a full inquiry to see if regulations were followed and to calm the fears of the Palestinian residents of Jerusalem, who deserve to walk the city streets without dread.
Now is the time, for people both in the US and Israel, to take a deep breath and reboot. Think before you accuse or write a hurtful post. Ask yourself: are you helping to improve the situation or damage it? And, most importantly, put empathy above ideology.
Recall the words of Hillel the Elder who wrote in Ethics of the Fathers: “Do not judge your fellow until you have stood in his place.”
That is desperately needed at this time, when it really does seem like the fast-changing world and national events that we usually are able to adapt to are hurtling us into a morally ambiguous and blurry orbit.
Israeli-American Rabbi Barry Leff has composed a prayer for his congregation in Mercer Island, Washington, and it should be distributed and read widely by anyone who cares about where we are headed:
“Compassionate One; Replace hearts of stone with hearts of flesh; Help all of us see that we are all created in Your Divine Image; Black, brown, white, or any other color of the rainbow…; Christian, Jew, Muslim, or any other religion..; May our police keep us safe while showing compassion, and without excessive force; Turn the hearts of those who would loot and destroy; Show them that this is not the way to build a better, fairer, more just society…; Keep us all safe; Safe from violence and safe from virus; May we speedily see the day when we live together; In peace, harmony and love. Amen.”