The Invisible Victims in the George Floyd Heinous Murder

Let us spotlight the adverse implications for community members, family, friends, and caring citizens across the globe who watched the televised version of a Black man being slaughtered in broad daylight, once again. At the rear of a police car where George Floyd begged for his life, the words “To serve and protect” were facetiously showcased. Secondary victims, that is, those who have been exposed to indirect trauma (Bourke & Craun, 2014), can suffer from what Bourke and Craun (2014) asserted is secondary traumatic stress (STS), an ailment with symptoms that parallel Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. The implications on surviving peers when homicide occurs include rage, inability to function, retaliation, loss of finances, loss of trust in police and other government agencies, feelings of having no value, loss of interest in day-to-day activities, nightmares, fear, a cry for justice, and susceptibility to intergenerational premature death.

Adolescents who watched the horrific episode during prime time experienced the traumatic exposure of police brutality, thus are at risk of having deteriorated mental functioning, as well as diminished brain development. Indeed, altering agents are chemically released when there is adverse interference before one’s brain is completely formulated. When law enforcement officers are called to the scene, no Black man is safe. This is not to say all cops are bad — nothing could be further from the truth. However, we have enough evidence to advise our sons not to stop on a dark, country road if the police try to pull them over. Since history is best qualified to reward our research, it would be naive to trust that a Black man is safe in the custody of police officers. Instead, in such circumstances, our children must know to call the chief of police and report the car number following them. Next, they should call their lawyer, a family member or friend; turn the inside lights on, drive 25 miles an hours, keep their hands visible on the wheel, and do not stop until they are in a well lit place with seasoned witnesses.

Secondary victims versus the sympathizers of the murderers signifies a weakened emotional infrastructure of America. Secondary victims are left untreated. They are the men who stood within six feel of the crime and watched George Floyd die. They will have to live with that every day of their lives. WE have to live with it. They wonder what they could have done. WE wonder what to do. They carry the image of the murder. We who never met George Floyd are deeply impacted. They feel helpless, destroyed, angry…and they are invisible. The lack of hope secondary victims may have for their communities and their feelings about their own longevity may be based on the devaluing of the black male that is sensed by those who remain behind. The question of who is next in line to be slaughtered has been found to exist in the minds of secondary victims.

Killing Black men has been normalized because Black men have been demonized. The normalization is evident since there is a lack of government support at the local and federal levels. Despite the documented stigma of murder that can place undue stress and increased states of despair, prolonged grief, comorbid clinical disorders such as major depression on those of us who remain behind, there are Americans who diligently work to criminalize the slain. These heartless perpetrator sympathizers collectively funnel millions of dollars to keep the leashes off of these cocky vigilanties. As such, a volcanic sized hole divides America. Along with the division, there is an absence of federal, local, and community programs to address the fact that a vulnerable population exists who are at risk generationally for premature death by human design.

Ideally, the reckless behavior would cease and repentance would follow. Yet, the frustrated masses who protest are called thugs, hood rats, and insolent. Unfortunately, we can expect arrogance, justification, victim-blaming, and hostility, followed by more brutality. Our continued trust that the leopard’s stripes will miraculously change because of the century is counter recklessness, denial, and naivete.’ A few benevolent Caucasians who are upset about the slaughter of Black men does not provide solutions. Some Caucasians are embarrassed to see their brethren committing these murders, but they are helpless to stop the rabid nature of the bloodthirsty killers who roam the streets wearing badges. Alas, be ye reminded of the words uttered earnestly by Thomas Jefferson, “I fear for my country when I reflect that God is Just, and His Judgment cannot sleep forever.” To compliment his words, neither can giants and lions in Judah sleep forever. So be encouraged, be excellent, and most of all, be safe.

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