As the nation enters its third week of demonstrations calling for justice in response to police violence and racism, Congressional Democrats have introduced the Justice in Policing Act of 2020, legislation that addresses a few of the concerns protesters have raised.
Democrats showed up to the Capitol’s Emancipation Hall in their graduation-appropriate kente stoles, kneeled in silence for nearly nine minutes in honor of George Floyd, before unveiling the proposed bill.
Watch video below:
video credit: abc news live
Kente cloth has shown up in Congress a place that loves a fashion statement before.
In 2018 the Congressional Black Caucus donned kente cloth provided by designer Titi Wreh, a Liberian immigrant, at the State of the Union address, in protest of President Donald Trump’s comments disparaging African nations, Haiti, and El Salvador as “shithole countries” a fair demonstration of protest considering kente is a traditional Ghanian fabric, with other African nations having their own distinct textiles.
But with so many public figures and companies currently offering empty statements of solidarity with Black Lives Matter protesters and apologies that they will “do better,” whatever that means, white members of Congress wearing kente cloth can’t help but seem unnecessarily performative and, at worst, pandering.
Source: Atinkaonline.com | Ishmael Obidihyie Kwaku Atiemo
