A Long Run Observation

When thinking of spans of time, I've often thought of 22 years as being the rough timeframe of a generation. Fashions, styles, intellectual trends, political movements, businesses: if any of these things survive a 22-year span, it's somewhat remarkable. 

The commingled protests regarding excessive police violence and the prominence of discussion about whether or not athletes might take a knee during the national anthem (when sports return) remind me of how important things can shift over a generation. A few years ago, the dialogue, or lack thereof, regarding black lives matter and protesting during the playing of the national anthem ended abruptly and with something of a shout down. The athletes who knelt were labeled as un-patriotic and anti-military. Black Lives Matter was radicalized: a dangerous group rather than a statement. Anti-police, too. In 2020 there seems to be a pendulum swinging back, or a middle ground being forged. At the very least, protesting excessive police violence or protesting during the anthem is becoming normalized. At the very least, it won't cost some "son of a bitch" his job this fall. 

What to make of this? 

Nearly one generation ago, we were attacked on September 11. First responders, among them many police, were the heroes of that moment. And our response to the terrorists who plotted that attack was to send an all-volunteer military to war against that terror. A longer, cultural response was honoring the sacrifice that first responders make. Also, there was a significantly serious attempt to acknowledge the sacrifice of our soldiers which, in many ways, was righting a historical wrong from how soldiers during the Vietnam War Era were castigated. 

And now the tide is turning. Police and the flag, which became commingled in 2016 with the Armed Forces, aren't being venerated the way they have been in this past generation. And this is worth noting. 

I remain optimistic a cultural compromise can be forged. Veterans deserve our gratitude. Police deserve our respect, and the acknowledgement that most are effective, brave, and ethical in their work. A compromise that lands in a middle ground between acknowlegement of their bravery and sacrifice and an acknowledgement of the systemic structures that victimize people of color will do us a lot of good. 

Otherwise we'll see a generational shift that undoes the good that "thank you for your service" and the many tributes offered police have done for this past generation.