Here's my 2 cents, take it for what it's worth. Note I'm from Canada, parents are Indian and came here in the early 70s.
Racism always has and will exist, therefore the fight for against it will always go on as well. It's like hot and cold, light and darkness etc. This world is one of duality, you cannot have bad without good and good without the bad, that's just the way the way it is in my eyes. Is racism acceptable? No, it is not, regardless of what form it is.
The Situation
The way the cop had his knee on the man was wrong. Why so much pressure? He should have been charged with first degree murder, he knew what he was doing. The cops around him who refused to check the man's status in terms of health while pinned messed up to and should be charged accordingly as well, whether it be with 3rd or 2nd degree murder. The message we should be taking here is
no one is above the law whether it be officers, officials or civilians. It applies to us all equally, and that is what needs to be enforced. Letting people get away due to money and ties as made a mockery of the justice system, not only in the U.S but Canada as well.
Protests
Freedom of speech is the greatest gift of all. If you can have a discussion in a civilized, academic and mature manner based on facts and merits then you have something good going on. However not everyone has the mental capacity for this.
You want to protest, go ahead, protest, you have the right to. However, when you start going around looting, advocating violence and so forth, you deserve nothing less than a baton to your head. I don't care what your skin colour or religious beliefs are, if you're disturbing the peace (looting, violence, taking on innocent civilians and destroying peoples livelihoods) you need your *** beat.
I know, for a fact, people are using the BLM movement to carry on inhumane actions which give the movement a bad name. But let's be real here, there are members in that group who advocate for racism towards white people regardless of their political stance etc. It is wrong to say the BLM is completely innocent and there are not members in there with ulterior motives. Are all BLM protesters bad? Hell no. Some are there to push the right message, that is for sure. Same with cops, there are some amazing cops out there and there are those within their ranks who do not protect and serve the people.
You cannot paint an entire ethnicity, religion, group etc with a single brush. That is absurd, it really is. That's like saying all Indian people smell of curry, fun fact, we don't
Racism
I do not promote racism of any kind, hate breeds hate. My mom told me stories of her living in a all white area when growing up here in Canada. Her family was one of the first Indian families in that area. They were called all sort of names, denied all types of opportunities etc. However my mother and her family knew not all white people are like that, that you cannot paint everyone with the same brush.
My mom still has family in the area, they along with the white people all get along just fine! BBQs, invited to family weddings etc. I just
hate how white people are made to seem like some sort of racist demons on the media. I've had enough of this "white man bad" bull crap and how they are constantly told to apologize for crap that similar coloured people did to other people of other colours decades or centuries ago. Like wtf is that about?
White privilege? Does it exist? Sure, but not to the extreme the media makes it out to be. I've been treated better by white people than how they treat their own. I've seen brown and black people treat white people bad due to their skin, it's absurd and stupid. To say white people do not experience racism is idiotic as well, anyone that supports that ideology either hasn't travelled the world or is just an idiot. If there is white privilege then there is also brown privilege, black privilege etc.
I always hear how white people are racists etc, sure, there are some that are but not all of them are. Do me a favour, take a trip to India, a land where it is mostly all brown people. You have a damn caste system, where fellow Indians are thrown into categories based on their caste. Everything from marriage to job opportunities revolve around it, and these are people who are the same colour or different shades of it. Can you imagine that crap here? There would be riots everyday. . . Does this make Indian people racists? You tell me. . . What do you say as a white/black person when an Indian parent tells you that you can't marry their daughter/son because of your skin colour? Are you allowed to call them racists? Or is that there right? Dilly of a pickle huh?
Then you have religious differences and people will outright ridicule you and your belief. It never ends. Racism is VERY heavy in parts of Asia, people are just afraid of calling it out because well, then they are racist too! How ironic. Is it a good thing? Of course not, it needs to be changed for the better.
I see people still complain about slavery and use it in their arguments. Slavery was a terrible thing in America and there was a civil war to end it. Apologies have been made and I do not think anything else needs to be said about that time. Recall it in order not to repeat the same mistakes but we should not use it as a "trump card".
The British had India under its thumb, am I going to cry about how my ancestors were rapped and looted? No. That was the past and things happened and now we have to put our best efforts forward to ensure it does not happen to us or anyone again. Am I going to blame Brits today? Pfft, no, why the hell would I do that? The Brits of today are not like the Brits of past trying to spread British imperialism etc. Some people have to let **** go, it may not have been pleasant to read about and for people to go through but the past can't be undone.
It takes little effort to hold a grudge but it takes a big person to forgive and let go. I get people are angry about things but damn, don't riot and leave destruction in your path.
These days you have a different opinion than someone else you are deemed a racists or a nazi, makes no sense and it's the go to card for many people. Which is a pathetic move and sad.
In conclusion
People have the right to protest peacefully. People have the right to be upset. However don't go around being a moron about things.
Not all communities can be painted with the same brush. You have to look at individual actions and then add them up and come to a sum, sort of like an average. When I do that, the good always outweighs the bad, for any group. Racism won't die unless we kill the part of ourselves that feeds it. As long as racism is prevalent I will do my part to fight it on all fronts as any decent person would and should do.
If you are in riot cities be safe, pray as well if that is your thing. We all will get through this injustice, but we have to go through it together and learn from it together, that's how the best of lessons are learned. I just find it sad how humans can find anything to divide ourselves, skin colour being one thing, and we call ourselves the most "intelligent" species on this planet. Sure.