I was sent another message this week, this time coming from a person back home in Missouri, Brandon, and I was asked for my thoughts on the videos included in the article included below. As you have probably read in my other posts, I don’t condone the violence going on. I have also point out that although I don’t think it is helpful, I kind of understand. There is a history of race based violence in the country that continues today. I think we have just about reached the boiling point. So of course, I don’t like the tweets were sent out about killing cops and definitely don’t want to celebrate the death of two cops. I have trouble understanding how a human can celebrate the death of other humans, but I guess that has happened throughout history as well. For instance, the lady in the video says, “killing cops is only going to make them kill us.” That is true and probably what I agree with her most on. I don’t think the violence is helping. However, I know that revolutions often come from violence, at least past revolutions. They also come from mobilizing the masses. There are thousands of people involved in peaceful protests and they are going to make systematic changes. She believes the protestors are the problem and I completely disagree. If there was no protest there would still be racist policies and institutions throughout our country, but White people wouldn’t be hearing about them. I thank the resilient protestors for keeping me from remaining ignorant to the system that I have the privilege of not even knowing exists. Many of the points this lady makes are misleading from what protestors are actually hoping to achieve. “All these neighborhoods that are against the police, pull the cops out. Don’t answer no more 911 calls,” she said. “Let them police themselves and eventually they’ll all kill themselves off.” Those neighborhoods are against the police the racially profile them, charging them for excessive violations and in some cases, making up stories to pin against them. I’m not saying all cops do this, and neither are they. The protest is to address the systematic racism that leads some cops to treating people of color this way. “You people disgust me, supporting the murder of an innocent man. Mike Brown was not innocent. None of us are innocent.” First off all, Mike Brown was innocent enough. He did not commit a crime that constituted the death penalty. Second, what does she mean about nobody being innocent? Of course some people are innocent. I would say that most people are not going around committing crimes. Furthermore, I wonder how she is really feeling inside and what kind of thoughts could lead her to say that. She commented on Obama saying that Trayvon Martin could have been his son. She refuted that comment, saying he doesn’t even have a son. I just don’t think she understands why Obama had said that. There is a phrase among the black community right now that is “We are Trayvon Martin.” They say it because black people across the country know that they can be the next person in a similar situation. It is a constant fear that they will be racially profiled, mistreated, harassed, or shot by White people who miss the good old days where everybody knew their place. And yes, these angry white people still exist. Their impacts lives on in the policies, practices, and laws enacted in this country. I can’t even imagine having that thought run through my mind each morning. The lady claims that Al Sharpton is the cause of the problem, which I assume is a followup to allegations made that Sharpton contributed to the death of the two NYC police officers. I didn’t know much about this so Googled it a bit. I found that Sharpton made a statement for the National Action Network that said, “Sharpton has denounced the officers’ murders, of course. “We have stressed at every rally and march that anyone engaged in any violence is an enemy to the pursuit of justice for Eric Garner and Michael Brown.” I find it interesting that a black man can say he is innocent and people are not even offering a slight belief in his words, but when many White males have recently said they didn’t kill a black man or that it was in self-defense, there is no question in people’s minds. White people and Black people immediately said that nobody can no for sure because nobody was there. Well this lady was not there, I presume, so why isn’t the response the same… It’s because there is a double standard for black men. Or actually to rephrase that, we White men get away with a lot of things and others don’t and it’s been going on for generations. She commented on the mayor also saying that Mike Brown could have been his son. She says he should “keep his emotions separate from his job.” I don’t agree with that statement on many levels. First, I don’t think the people leading are communities should be emotionless. I think heart, compassion, and love are exactly what our country needs. They are the very emotions that drive communities to positive change. And again, people see that Mike Brown could have been their son because they know the reality of race in America. They know that 1 in 3 black males will be in prison during their life. They know that an even scarier statistic exists for how many young black men will die before prison even becomes an issue. The fear is perpetuated by the disproportionate accountability given to White people. White people actually commit more drug crimes, yet more people of color are in prison for drug crimes, and for longer sentences. I want to focus on the most troubling part of this post to conclude my thoughts. She finishes the second video by saying, “I have never experienced racism in my life. No White person has every called me [the n-word].” That is great for her, but her one experience does not account for all other black people. Just because she says racism doesn’t exist, does not make it true. I fear that is what this article is doing; it’s using one black person’s words against all other black people. More specifically many White people are using one black persons words against all other black people. This happens frequently to People of Color who have to choose their words carefully. They never know when their words are going to be used against them or all of their race. I think you agree that racism still exists in America. It may look a little different now days but it is here none the less. If anybody who reads this would like me to suggest readings about present day racism and how it has transformed throughout history, let me know. I have read quite a few. I offer this because it is my biggest fear that people will watch these videos and use it to tell other people that race isn’t an issue. Racism is definitely here and we are not in a post-racial society.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 00:50:20 +0000
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