DURHAM, NC—When Kelsey Miller, a local self-described “activist” saw the horrible video of George Floyd being murdered by the police while not even resisting, she immediately shared the video to her Instagram story. Given the speed with which she shared the video and the enthusiasm expressed by the glowing cursive caption “STOP POLICE BRUTALITY,” one must wonder: was she a little bit too excited?
Kelsey, who considers herself an active supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement while contributing nothing more than occasionally tweeting “#BLM” after news of a police brutality incident or buying a BLM t-shirt that she crops to fit her ‘activist-core’ aesthetic, absolutely lives for these kinds of moments. And because she, like many of her friends, needs to literally watch a grown man die to actually care about the movement, this video was perfect.
It has gone viral after being shared on every white girl’s Instagram story and performative teenage activist Twitter account. And while few of them care to research how to actually get involved and enact real change, according to their social media captions, they all agree on one thing: “this has to stop :(”
When The Fluke News staff asked one Twitter user whether they felt their public appropriation of black tragedy was appropriate, they admitted that they “should probably have used at least two sad faces.”
And though Floyd clearly could not consent to this video being seen by nearly everyone with Internet access, many people are still courageously fighting for “justice” by sensationalizing his literal murder to lure white people into caring about police brutality instead of respecting his privacy.
After inadvertently forcing Floyd’s family to constantly relive the tragedy so white people can feel like they’re a part of the BLM movement, Miller and her friends can sign off and return to hanging out safely with their own families, content in knowing they’ve done their part to help the black community today.
And while millions of African Americans are already traumatized by either personal incidents or constantly being exposed to videos like this, Miller thinks it’s just the perfect video for her Instagram story to let everyone know she really cares.
Editor’s Note: To be more constructively active than Kelsey, consider donating to Twin-Cities based organization Communities United Against Police Brutality or contacting Minneapolis District Attorney Mike Freeman at 612-348-5550 to request that he arrest and charge the officers involved in Floyd’s murder.