White people really don’t care about law and order. Sure, they may be big fans of the work of detectives Elliot Stabler and Olivia Benson, but in the real world it’s clear they believe that the law is a mandate for Black and brown people and simply a suggestion for them. This mentality was firmly on display in Oregon, where a state legislator is facing charges for letting rioters into the state capitol in December.
According to Slate, on Dec. 21 a group of people against coronavirus restrictions were protesting outside the Oregon state Capitol while legislators held an emergency meeting to discuss coronavirus relief. The Capitol was closed to the public at the time because of the deadly virus they were there to discuss. State Rep. Mike Nearman apparently had no regard for the safety of his colleagues, as security camera footage from the day shows him opening a back entrance to the Capitol and letting some of the rioters inside the building.
As you can see in the video, the rioters confronted members of law enforcement, and wouldn’t you know it, their lack of compliance didn’t result in anyone being shot. Crazy how that always works out for white people. Nearman was charged on Friday with official misconduct in the first degree, and criminal trespass in the second degree.
One of the wildest aspects of this story is that Nearman still hasn’t resigned in the four months since the incident, even though his colleagues have called on him to do so since seeing the surveillance video for themselves. State House Speaker Tina Kotek stripped Nearman of his committee assignments and called for his resignation, rightly saying that he “put every person in the Capitol in serious danger.”
The calls for Nearman’s resignation have only intensified after he was charged.
“Nearman should have resigned in January, the moment that security footage confirmed his involvement and assistance in the attack,” Oregon House Majority Leader Barbara Smith Warner said in a statement. “Given today’s charges, it’s clear that he’s got to go. I urge every one of my colleagues, in every caucus, to call this out for what it is and join me in demanding that Nearman resign immediately.”
It’s Nearman’s complete lack of shame, for me. How do you endanger all your co-workers, face criminal charges as a result, and essentially just be like “Sorry, not sorry.” Boy I tell ya, whiteness is one hell of a drug. Nearman must appear in court on May 11 or he will face arrest.