Denis Moynihan

Floyd's murder, in the crucible of the twin pandemics of COVID-19 and police brutality, has sparked a diverse rebellion against the scourge of systemic racism.

The pandemic lays bare what cell phone and body camera videos have increasingly exposed and communities of color have long known: racism is alive and well in the United States, and it is deadly.

These are difficult, dangerous times. The undocumented, the poor and communities of colour face COVID-19 infection on a daily basis, with practically no safety net.

Governor Kristi Noem supports armed vigilantes in states like Wisconsin. But if Native Americans dare to protect public health on their sovereign territory, Noem suddenly embraces "big government."

"The federal government announced that they intend to release a portion of funds ... to tribes to help fight COVID-19, but I'll believe it when I see it," said Navajo President Jonathan Nez.

"End the sickness of war and fight the disease that is ravaging our world. It starts by stopping the fighting everywhere. Now," United Nations Secretary General António Guterres said on March 23.

With the planet's climate on a human-caused precipice, the numbers demanding change are far greater than in 1970, and the organizing is global, but the time is short.

"(The officer) was like inches from my face, yelling that I should call him sergeant and sir, and with no mask or gloves on," Dr. Armen Henderson told Democracy Now!

Surviving this pandemic will require global solidarity, discipline and compassion. Grassroots social movements aren't deferring to the Biden campaign or the Democratic party.

Flattening the curve of COVID-19 will only happen through massive collective action. All levels of government need to quickly release as many prisoners as possible.