“Another killing of an unarmed minority, another summer of discontent = rioting, vandalism and violence.”

France is on fire once again, following the killing of a young unarmed 17 year old, Nahel Merzouk. Recorded and shared on social media, his killing resembled a summary execution after police stopped his vehicle before firing at him as he tried to escape that harrowing experience.

The crescendo of criticism against the ensuing riots is to be expected; some have raised valid concerns whereas others emanating from the white establishment are less so. They represent a psychosis of whiteness that exists across western societies. Look at the responses to previous riots in America following George Floyd’s very public killing at the knee of police, those that ignited national disturbances following the killing of Mark Duggan in the UK and countless similar events before and after these. The white middle classes of these societies lamented the destruction of infrastructure, equating protestors and rioters to uncivilised, animalistic underclasses who threaten their somewhat utopian ideals.

Dr. Anthony Baker has previously written about these fault lines among western societies and his latest article is equally potent and relevant to what we are seeing today.

Martin Luther King Jnr highlighted: ‘…a riot is the language of the unheard’ and the recent events across France illustrate this sentiment.

Centric and its affiliated companies will continue to lead in amplifying voices through effective empowerment at grassroots level via community research initiatives that are delivered by our communities for our communities.

Political leaders often fail to represent or speak to our challenges. Their attention is only attracted when the simmering embers of discontent, resulting from systemic abuse, ignite into flames that threaten their sanitised existence. Many among the urban locales continue to experience state suffocating infringements on their own realities and when incidents like this latest one occur, the need to exhale becomes unbearable – to the extent that it results in a coordinated scream – rioting.

It is an unfortunate reality that communities will only be heard when they become visible.

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• Dr Anthony (Abdul Haqq) Baker, PhD, is the Strategic Director of CenAlliance. Read the full article titled 'Wildfires & Youth: Nature vs. Nurture’