TO THE EDITOR:
In your editorial “Contextualizing violent protests,” you talked about how the problem with Black Lives Matter protests are not the form of protest, but rather the reason for protesting.http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2016/10/opinion-contextualizing-violent-protests
These BLM protests are in response to violent acts by police officers, so it should make sense to counter violent actions with violent objections. But the question isn’t “Are violent protests OK?” — it’s “Why are people protesting?”
The answer to this question is simple: people protest because they feel like they cannot turn to the law to make this situation right.
You’re right to claim that protesting is a violent cycle. It is law enforcement that’s causing the problem, so it makes sense that the oppressed join together to fight this corrupt system.
I believe they are necessary to raise awareness of the injustice that black people in our society face, and the first step in countering this injustice is recognizing the problem.
Americans have the freedom of assembly, and should take advantage of this right to make our society a better place to live in.
Anushka Sukhramani
First-Year
