Joe Biden held a private meeting with Jacob Blake’s family

When the president was there Tuesday, he did not meet with the family of African American Jacob Blake, who was shot seven times in the back by Kenosha police and is now paralyzed from the waist down. He didn’t even mention Blake by name during the entire visit.

Joe Biden and his wife Jill, on the other hand, had a private meeting with three of Jacob Blake’s brothers, as well as their father, Jacob Blake Sr., shortly after arriving in Milwaukee, where Biden’s partner arrived. According to The Guardian, Blake’s mother, Julia Jackson, and the family’s attorney were also talking on the phone.

The same newspaper also reported that neither Biden nor the family were expected to tell the public what they discussed at the meeting, which should have lasted about an hour and a half. However, Biden revealed that, among other things, he spoke with Jacob Blake, who will now be out of intensive care, by phone for 15 minutes.

I spoke to Jacob Blake

The presidential candidate said the 29-year-old had told him that he had decided that nothing would get over him.

– He said regardless of whether he won’t be able to go again, he won’t give up, said Biden, who also says he’s impressed by how the family has handled the situation. Especially his optimism and strength.

– Jacob’s mother offered a prayer. Not only for her son, but also for the police officers involved.

Before the visit, Biden has stated that he believes charges should be brought against the police officer who shot Blake.

– A president’s word means something

After meeting with the family, Biden headed to Kenosha, which is located near Lake Michigan, for a meeting at a city church with representatives of the local community. There he came, among other things, with a stab at President Trump, who Biden believes has used rhetoric that has created more riots, not less.

– First of all, I want to say that the words of a president mean something. Whether good, bad or neither party. It doesn’t matter how competent or incompetent a president is. They can create peace and they can send a country to war. They can make the stock market go up and down, Biden said.

The former vice president went on to talk about when Trump, after the 2017 rallies in Charlottesville where right-wing extremists marched through the streets and shouted racist slogans, said that “there are good people on both sides.” One person also died in the demonstrations at that time.

– I’m not saying it’s all his fault, but he legitimizes the dark side of human nature, says Biden, and continues to refer to hatred and racism.

Criticize violent protesters

He also says that he believes the United States has come a long way in recent decades, but expresses that he realizes that the fight against racism is eternal:

– I was wrong. I thought hatred could be beaten, but it only goes in coverage.

Biden also criticized those behind the violent parts of the demonstrations after Blake was shot.

– No matter how angry you are, if you loot and set things on fire, you will be responsible. Point! We just can’t accept that on either side of the fence.

Drept

The Jacob Blake shooting has sparked large demonstrations in the city. Both peaceful and what more must be called riots, where, among other things, several businesses were burned. When Trump visited Kenosha, he was tough on those behind the destruction.

“These are not protesters, but national terrorists,” the president said.

After the police shooting, right-wing counter-protesters also appeared in the city. Many of them equipped with automatic weapons. Everything took a fatal turn in the end.

A 17-year-old is charged with murder after three people, two of whom were killed, were shot during the demonstrations. It is said that he armed himself and left the neighboring state in order to “protect the city” from protesters. The 17-year-old’s lawyer claims that he fired in self-defense.

I didn’t want any of them to visit

One thing that is common to the visits is that the local authorities did not want any of them to visit anymore. They feared this would lead to an upsurge in the riots that have taken place since Blake was shot.

It is true that Kenosha Mayor John Antaramian stated before Trump’s visit that if the president came anyway, as he did at the end, he understood that Biden would do the same.

Although none of them were wanted in the city, there is little indication that they caused further disturbances. Both during Trump’s visit and during Biden’s visit, things went smoothly in the city.

Here are photos from Trump’s visit two days ago: