WASHINGTON — On Thursday, a Georgia father and son, who saw themselves as protecting their own neighborhood, were arrested and charged with murder in the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery that we have now all witnessed, thanks to video shot by a fellow protector.
It’s due to this video, that arrests were made. But make no mistake, the pair weren’t arrested for what they did in the video, they were arrested for our outrage: Yours and mine!
Ahmaud’s life ended 76 days ago. And if the original District Attorney, George E. Barnhill, had his way, the case would have ended April 1. That was the day he issued a report saying that after viewing the same tape, he saw no grounds for any arrests. That this trio of armed men had every right to pursue him and hold him, civil rights be damned. That Georgia law made it all perfectly legal.
Thursday's arrests have been called the first steps towards justice. We know from past experiences, that they are small ones. That by no means is justice guaranteed to be served. We know where to expect the blame to be placed. We know that his character will be attacked. That his friendships will be questioned. That his life is about to be laid bare, turned inside out.
We know how his killers will be portrayed as heroic figures, defending their neighborhood. And we know that they may never see a day in court, and if they do, it’s highly probable that they will walk out free men, to the surprise of no one. We know this, because we’ve seen this: Trayvon, Tamir and now Ahmaud.
But that's not good enough, because on Friday my anger lies not with the perpetrators -- there will always be those among us who stray -- but with a criminal justice system that made them feel they could get away such an act and then conspired to prove them right.
Because justice in this case doesn't just involve an indictment of those holding guns, but everyone holding a pen in the district attorney's office who didn't use it in the pursuit of justice for Ahmaud and his family. Never forget: These arrests aren't because they saw the video; it's because we did. So where does that leave us moving forward?
By the way, Friday would have been Ahmaud Arbery’s 26th birthday. Happy birthday young king!