Who would’ve thought that George Floyd’s racially motivated killing at the hands of the now-arrested former police officer Derek Chauvin and his three accomplices in Minneapolis over a week ago would bring the United States to a standstill? Never has such widespread civil unrest been witnessed stretching from the East to West Coast as far as living memory is concerned. From luxury stores being ransacked to shopping centres being looted in numerous cities such as Washington DC, New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle, it was akin to watching some nail-biting Hollywood production. Not mentioning the activation of National Guards across numerous states, the mobilisation of United States Army’s 82nd Airborne Division and law enforcement agencies using heavy-handed techniques to deal with even those peacefully protesting with visuals as disturbing as those in totalitarian states. Social media platforms such as Twitter were abuzz with horrific clips and pictures of state legislators, state senators and journalists being threatened, hit or fired upon with rubber bullets and tear gas canisters. Apart from this, white supremacist groups are openly seen brandishing weapons with police officials acting as bystanders. Reports also indicated that some officers belonging to police departments such as the NYPD flashed ‘white power’ hand gestures which itself is an ominous signalling. These are just a small fraction of what’s really happening in the Free World’s leading power. On another unprecedented note, President Donald Trump indicated to deploy active military personnel in states and cities where local authorities ‘fail’ to quell protests. This happened while loud bangs were being heard in the background as Washington DC was tense with seething protests. Soon afterwards, Lafayette Square near the White House was tear gassed to push back angry protestors for President Trump’s alleged photo-op session at the battered St. Johns Church. This follows his conference call with governors of several states in which he forcefully asked for ‘crushing’ the protests. Media commentators and politicians nationwide termed it an indirect dictatorial measure. The state’s responsibility is to protect its citizens no matter what but what was witnessed across the US in the last couple of days shook the entire world where law enforcement agencies acted more or less like private militias What needs to be understood is that the unrest has largely been fuelled by white supremacist groups and their supporters-including those serving in the police. This has been endorsed and stated by state authorities in Minnesota and other states such as Washington where the Mayor of Seattle Jenny Durkan confirmed via a tweet. However, President Trump’s notion that ‘radical leftists’ and Antifa were behind the strife is unsubstantiated since it turns out that white supremacists have posed as members of the latter during online interactions. While some members of the minorities did play a part in criminal behaviour, the role of far-right groups has been much worse and against the very ethos enshrined in the US Constitution. Their sole purpose was to spread discord and drive a wedge between people belonging to various segments of the society. Twitter may have some regulatory measures but other social media platforms such as Gab have become a den for far-right extremists. No wonder it’s nicknamed the Twitter for Neo-Nazis. The state’s responsibility is to protect its citizens no matter what but what was witnessed across the US in the last couple of days shook the entire world where law enforcement agencies acted more or less like private militias. There are other factors as well for this disturbing turn of events. They’re mutually exclusive to a greater degree and include the rise of fascism in key parts of the world, the COVID-19 pandemic which resulted in mass unemployment figures far exceeding the numbers of the 1930s Great Depression, the economic inequality stemming from mass poverty and reduced purchasing power parity over the years and an aggressive US foreign policy adopted in the Post-9/11 period which had a negative impact on domestic front, leading to suspicions on minorities and exacerbating xenophobia and religious hatred. As someone who has visited the country several times, it was mind-boggling for me to witness what’s currently transpiring over there given how I came to admire its liberal values and amazing people while growing up. During my last visit, I had the privilege to live with members of the African-American community in New York City and Los Angeles. In the former, I stayed in a modest apartment in Harlem while in the latter, lived in the affluent neighbourhood of Ladera Heights. What’s common in these two stays was the hospitality and courtesy bestowed upon by the hosts who treated me like a family friend. Hence, the kind of stigmatisation and overall stereotypical prejudice against the African-American community is unjustified and against the basic norms of humanity. Perhaps, this is the reason the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s and the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in the modern era were necessary to counter racial segregation and Neo-Nazism. Perceptions based on race, colour and religion are an antithesis to liberalism and political cohesion. The irony is that racism exists even in minority communities or in countries where one ethnicity happens to be the majority group. It stems from the politics of domination which is ingrained in societies where insecurities are high enough to trigger racist behaviour. Growing up I became an aficionado of American pop culture which had a deep personal influence. Hence, there are several examples to be given here in the context of the incumbent scheme of things. First and foremost, the actions of law enforcement agencies could be akin to those of the OCP mega corporation’s private militias in Robocop series or even the First Galactic Empire’s stormtroopers from the Star Wars saga. Secondly, can we call it Biff Tannen’s America? Perhaps, yes and no. President Trump is often compared to the fictional character from Back to the Future series especially when he became a wealthy businessman during an alternative timeline in the second film, but I would personally term him to be a rather eccentric version of Tannen. Then we have the Neo-Nazis and far-right groups who live in some utopia of their own. The best example to correlate them with fiction from recent times is an extremist group called the ‘Project at Eden’s Gate’, which terrorises a fictionalised version of Montana in Far Cry 5, a highly popular console game released some two years ago. What about The Man in the High Castle, the widely popular Amazon Original show? Well, to some extent we can compare reality in bits with the show since it features a dystopian version of North America addressing the issues of racial ‘purity’, racism and totalitarianism under Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan’s rule in an alternative timeline where they happen to win the Second World War. One of the main characters called John Smith could well define how America could steer ahead had its leadership been rather ‘mature’ yet dark in its own right as somewhat seen in India at this point. The Oscar winning film Joker starring Joaquin Phoenix as the titular character can best describe the current anarchy witnessed across American streets especially in the context of its climax. On an interesting note, I happened to stumble upon a short clip on Twitter where exact scenes were re-enacted with one of the rioters standing atop a vehicle. Award winning Japanese game director Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid series could be partially compared to the happenings in the real world since it addresses some of the most unconventional issues that focus on global strife and usage of weaponised artificial intelligence. By using pop culture as a determinant, the point is that film, television and gaming industries are way ahead in determining the idea of future conflicts and pressing issues faced by humanity. The United States is at historical crossroads and its future depends upon how the Trump Administration chooses to proceed. Divisive politics and high-handedness aren’t the answer and it’s high time that President Trump asks for cohesion and unity by addressing the grievances of legitimate protesters who only want the best for their country and the world at-large. Presidential elections are due to be held in November and whatever policy the state adopts in current course would have a deep impact. As the leading global power, America needs to fix itself fast since instability on domestic front would have a domino effect on the Free World’s power structure which is already engulfed by far-right nationalism as witnessed in places like Hungary and the United Kingdom where Brexit had polarised the state and society to an irrevocable degree. The writer is Associate Editor (Diplomatic Affairs), Daily Times. He tweets @mhassankhan06