By JULIE CUNNINGHAM
Photo provided by New England Peace Pagoda
(Leverett, MA) Sister Claire Clark, Buddhist Nun at the New England Peace Pagoda, opened up about her thoughts on the George Floyd murder and the resulting global unrest.
“This is unprecedented,” said Clark. “I have never seen anything like this in my lifetime.”
Clark said she has attended some of the George Floyd protests, but did not attend last night’s protest in Springfield, where an officers did not take knee.
“In the Buddhist tradition we do worship humanity,” said Clark.
Clark said she believes training is partially to blame for police brutality in the country, and called for a change in how the police force is created to insure a more humanitarian and sympathetic force.
“It takes a lot out of policemen and women to live with this firepower, and the belief that people are out to get you,” said Clark.
During the years of 1998-1999, Clark took part in a global interfaith pilgrimage to learn the history of black slavery and racism. Clark said she learned how dehumanizing the slave trade in Africa was and talked about long process of bringing a black African to America for the slave market. Once captured, victims of the slave trade were forced to make long marches to what was called “holding pens,” where they were kept for months at a time. Then, they were transferred to slave ships to bring to America. Once in America, they were then sold to white masters. Participants in the interfaith pilgrimage also walked to Brazil and the Caribbean Islands.
“The language that was used treated these African people like animals,” said Clark referring to the term “holding pens” that was used to describe the intermittent waiting period between capture and transfer over to a slave ship.
Clark is horrified by the events that took Floyd’s life but hopeful of a global movement to end racism once and for all.
“We have to keep it going,” said Clark. “It can’t just be about one incident.”
Regarding the Springfield officers who did not take a knee, Clark said her approach would be to create dialogue and get their perspective, as well as give them hers.
“If I could sit down and talk to them I would,” said Clark.
Ryan Walsh, public relations officer for the Springfield Police Department, explained why officers did not take a knee even though the crowd was chanting and asking them to do so.
“Our officers look at it as that was the way George Floyd was killed, and they do not want to replicate that,” Walsh explained. Walsh said that there is no set rule on whether and officer should or should not take a knee, but that his officers did not want to replicate the way George Floyd was murdered and that the officers at the Springfield Police Department do not do that.