In this moment, I’m thinking of Ahmaud Arbery’s parents. No doubt, they are feeling relief. The men who took Ahmaud away from them and their family and community are being held responsible.
Despite an abundance of evidence, like so many, I was nervous about this verdict. Our justice system has signaled countless times throughout history that it doesn’t value Black lives. It’s not hard to understand why.
Racism is at the very foundation of our justice system beginning with the 13th Amendment that abolished slavery “except as punishment for crime.” Racist fear of Black people inspired the creation of the first police forces, then known as slave patrols. It fueled thousands of documented lynchings, the creation of countless laws designed to oppress, including Jim Crow. In this trial, it led one of the defendants’ lawyers to try to ban Black pastors from the legal proceedings because their very presence was “intimidating.”
I’m not surprised that a system rooted in racial oppression continues to bear the fruit of racial injustice. Today is an exception, a reprieve. But it didn’t come without a price. Ahmaud Arbery’s parents, family members, and loved ones had to sit through testimony and arguments that intentionally obscured his humanity to justify white fear. Their grief is further burdened by the trauma of a defense centered on devaluing the life of their beloved.
We here at Equal Justice USA are uplifted by this verdict, but certainly not distracted from the magnitude of the challenge that remains. We continue our work toward a new vision of justice rooted in healing, accountability that repairs, and safety.
In moments like this, we remind ourselves of that commitment and reaffirm our pledge to keep fighting until that vision is real. That is what true justice for Ahmaud Arbery and so many others demands.
