The ongoing public anger in France is quite understandable given the nature what happened to the 17 year old boy – and while some may try to bring in some bizarre equivocation, what we all must remember is that the police are employed by the public, by the taxpayer! Their job is to keep us all safe and they (the police) are extremely necessary in today’s society both as a deterrent but also to enforce the law. But they must never, ever become executioners or judge, jury and executioner. If the boy – as the videos suggest – was at no point an immediate danger to anyone, why not just let him drive away and then, go and pick him up at his home the next morning? Afterall, they say he was known to the police, they had his details, they could also follow the car at a safe distance. There were so many options and none should have come near to what ended up happening!
The anger felt by anyone who has seen that video would be quite understandable and the resulting public display of that anger, via mass protest, is also quite justifiable, but such protest should be limited to public disobedience e.g. all workers refusing to go to work, protest marches etc., anything but actions that cause destruction to own communities; burning or vehicles, looting etc. It is very difficult to see what such wanton violence will achieve. It has never achieved much in the past and is highly unlikely to achieve anything now.
For those asking why the family of the dead boy haven’t urgent calm, well, I doubt that is top on their grieving plate right now! They are presently in unimaginable pain. Words cannot possibly adequately express what the boy’s mother, his friends are going through right now, seeing how cheaply his life has been snatched off him! It really is deplorable. But the rioting & destruction of property is most unfortunate
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