KarunaNews Story

"America was jolted out of its pandemic stupor this week by a dramatic cycle of police violence, protests, looting and retaliation," Politico reports. While we've seen these scenes before, and many even draw parallels to 1968, it's hard not to feel something feels unsettlingly new this time. Politico asks a range thinkers: What's really different this time around? Naturally, some pointed to the pandemic. Others detected a more widespread embrace of violence across the political spectrum. Some suggested a more diverse and aware group of protesters. Others saw cause for hope from police reforms in recent years, albeit not enough to prevent deaths like George Floyd's. Still others disagreed entirely that anything is different. Two dozen experts across the U.S. weighed in on the nuances of race, police brutality, systemic failures and evolution in the backdrop of a global pandemic.