Keep on Walking

Maybe it is a sign that I spent too much of my formative years in cities like Hong Kong and New York when I was surprised to read that 80,000 Belgians marched on the street in protest of a young man's murder over his MP3 player. Maybe this is worth a section B report but the largest march in a decade? Isn't that a little over doing it? That was my first reaction. It is, of course, a horrible reaction to a tragedy. The sad thing is that the strong reaction the Belgians showed invokes not so much sympathy but nostalgia, nostalgia for the mythical time murder was a remarkably horrible thing. I am not sure how many of the 80,000 marched because they thought, mistakenly, that the killers were North African, but for a little country like Belgium, that is still a lot of people when discounted the racists. After feeling bad about my initial reaction and feeling sorry about the young man's death, I still find the demonstration puzzling. I understand putting out flowers, building monuments and holding vigils, but a march? What are they marching for? If they were all racists and they march against immigrants, that is a reason, wrong but a reason nonetheless. But to remember someone who they do not know? Is that not overdoing it a little? If this murder is a common place event, an unremarkable part of our everyday experience, there may be a good reason to march, to urge all into action to combat it. The strange thing is this kind of marches happen mostly in places where there is no need for it. Murder rate in Belgium is very low so they feel something must be done when one happens. This is good news for them but bad news for places with high crime rate--because you can use a march, you won't have one. That is truly the sad part.