Three days after a police officer shot and killed 20-year-old Daunte Wright in Minneapolis, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene proposed that officers in major cities across the U.S. — including Minneapolis — be awarded gold medals for “protecting” cities from anti-racism protestors.
On Tuesday, Greene introduced H.R. 2446 in a press release, a legislation that proposes Congressional Gold Medals to “honor over 2,000 law enforcement officers who were injured while defending American cities during the [2020] riots” from what she described as “Black Lives Matter terrorists.” In addition to the Minneapolis and Portland Police Department, the Congressional Gold Medals would also be awarded to the Smithsonian Institution for preservation purposes, according to Forbes.
“Starting in May 2020, Black Lives Matter launched a domestic terrorist campaign to burn down American cities, loot small businesses, and murder citizens,” Greene noted in a related statement. “In the face of this dangerous threat, our men and women in blue have stood strong by defending our streets, protecting storefronts, and restoring order. […] This week I introduced legislation to honor the bravery and sacrifices of police officers across America who have quite literally put their lives on the line and fight back against Black Lives Matter terror. Congress should boldly and proudly BACK THE BLUE by passing H.R. 2446 immediately.”
However, Greene’s proposal, which has also been cosponsored by Republican Reps. Yvette Herrell and Andy Harris, comes almost one month after she and 11 other Republicans in Congress voted against awarding medals to three officers for defending the U.S. Capitol during the January 6 insurrection. Greene stated that she did not agree with the use of the word “insurrectionists” to describe the white supremacists who stormed the Capitol, but unsurprisingly, has confidently claimed anti-racism protestors to be “terrorists.”
There is no shortage of irony — or outrage — here. Greene’s effort to protect white supremacists from police, but honor the cops who are “defending” cities (read: terrorizing protestors) is merely another not-so-veiled effort to demonize the Black Lives Matter movement. And it’s even less of a surprise that this legislation was introduced not even a week after Wright, a Black man, was shot and killed by a police officer in Minneapolis.
Here’s the reality of what is happening with police in Minneapolis, where Greene wants to award officers: In the days since Wright was killed, the Minneapolis Police Department has upended peaceful protests around the area by using pepper spray and flash bombs, according to CNN; Tuesday night alone saw the arrest of 60 protesters. As the city continues to grieve yet another Black man shot by police, just a few miles from where George Floyd was killed less than a year ago, in the midst of the murder trial for his killer, police have patrolled the area in riot gear, enforcing a 10 p.m. curfew.
Greene has yet to publicly comment on Daunte Wright’s death, but her legislation makes enough of a statement. Her priority is not only to defend a police force that is fraught with racist killings, but to reward officers for their actions in the form of Congressional Gold Medals. And what’s most frightening: She is gaining support.
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