I appreciate your thoughtful response, Ryan.

I noted this earlier in the week, but I strongly recommend you watch "13th" on Netflix--it answers all the questions you're asking. I'm very much in agreement with every example they've referenced in New York City, and the white fear and panic that rose up as early as the 60s and became ugly with the crack epidemic in the 80s and the mass migration to the suburbs.

I think we agree on the fundamentals--we want systems and structures in place that protect the rights and dignities of all people. And we also want a police force that is held accountable to and by the communities they're protecting and serving. We want to feel safe. We want our individual rights and liberties protected.

Essentially, what black people are demanding is to be treated like humans--and this history of slavery to Jim Crow to Civil Rights and mass incarceration shows that at every turn they're either dehumanized, easily criminalized, and suppressed by the government (both Democrats and Republicans are accountable for this) and the government's very deliberate influence and impact on state and local government.

Re: defunding the police. Like all rhetoric, some have taken this to extremes. I would listen primarily to Black leaders on the topic, who offer up cogent thoughts. I can offer up a list of people who are thought leaders and educators online--Rachel Cargle immediately comes to mind. And, of course, there's a pile of literature on the extended topic of police and race relations in the US.

Again, I strongly encourage you to watch "13th" on Netflix. It's worth your time and sheds light into the complexity of the issue and how blacks feel about the system that's failed them and the cops that have dehumanized them--and how no one of the above is ever held accountable.

Cheers, Felicia