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@MrsSCB: What the fuck. It's like they're going out of their way to make this shit happen.
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@Madison43: yeah that's how I see it too. It's for white people to help them realize the privilege. Not to make black people understand. They clearly already get it!
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@LindsayInNY: not 100% sure because you didn't reply directly to me; but if you are referring to the real-life situation I posted I disagree the "kid" should have been let off.
The young man was not a child. He was still living at home with his parents in the neighborhood, but he was already out of HS. He was old enough to know right from wrong. He trespassed on our property. He not only wandered into our backyard, but opened a door to further enter a deeper part of our property. He took something that didn't belong to him. He stole, he disrupted our peace of mind, and invaded our privacy.
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@mediagirl: good example. In fact what you described as to always wondering if you had been black or brown if more would have happened is often how black & brown people feel when they are stopped & questioned & searched especially for mundane things.
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I'm sorry, but that is just a stupid tag to make and fuels the fire. There is no need to "prove" that it's easier as white to get away with things. If they want to prove a point and try to create peace, the tag should be #crimingwhileblack to find evidence that it's not JUST whites getting special treatment, and that it's just PEOPLE and circumstances that are taken into consideration. I find it hard pressed to believe that not a single black kid doing something petty has not been let go with a stern talking the same as a non black kid has been.
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@PurplePumps: Common, no one is saying that black people never get away with things... The point is that black people are far, far less likely to get away with things than white people.
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@.twist.: on my phone, so I can't link but google Akai Gurley ... this kid was literally just walking through his stairwell and was shot and killed by a police officer. I had assumed that this story didn't get as much traction because the shooting was accidental (police officer was allegedly startled by his presence in a dark stairwell and accidently discharged his weapon) but the details about what happened after the shooting are distressing if true.
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@PurplePumps: Again, no one is saying "not a single black kid doing something petty has not been let go with a stern talking the same as a non black kid has been." It's about the pattern and the rate at which this happens to black people, which far differs from the rate at which it happens to white people. That's a verifiable fact. Take these stats, for example -- white and black people use marijuana at roughly the same rate. In fact, in a certain age group white people use marijuana more than black people. And yet, the marijuana arrest rates for black people FAR outstrip the rates for white people. Why? Because of racist stop and frisk laws. Because certain people look at all black kids as suspicious. Because of preconceived notions based on the color of a person's skin.
This isn't about "fueling the fire," it's about bringing awareness to the systemic racism that exists. Yeah, that's gonna make some people angry or uncomfortable, but so be it. Sometimes things that seem like fueling the fire are necessary for change.
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@PurplePumps: You are missing the point. I don't think that the hashtags are trying to "prove" this, so much as they are trying to spread awareness of this great divide in racial treatment.
Sure black people have been let go before and white people have been charged/arrested/fine before. But, by far and large police treatment of white people is very lenient in comparison with black people. As a black woman, I have been pulled over multiple times by cops. I will admit that a few times it was justified, running a stop sign, making an illegal turn on a red light. But there were also times when I was stopped and not given a reason as to why I was being pulled over. I was made to wait while my license and plates were read. The very first time I was pulled over I was 18 and asked the officer why I was pulled over. He yelled at me and told me not to question his authority. Now, whenever I get pulled over I just sit quietly with my hands on my steering wheel and give yes and no answers to the officer. And you know what? This would be fine and well with me if this was how everyone was treated. But, it is not. I have never been let go with just a warning, but several of my white friends have for serious infractions.
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@Madison43: This story was very unsettling. What really disturbed me was that several articles I read about it used an old mug shot of the victim instead of or in addition to his many other photos (like ones with his 2 year old baby girl). It seems that even when it's admitted that a mistake occurred and the man was innocent, something has to be added to try to tarnish the victim's image.
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@cait: Ugh, the image tarnishing drives me crazy! Trayvon Martin and Mike Brown used marijuana, Tamir Rice's father and mother have criminal histories...it goes on and on. So what? Does that mean all criminals deserve to be shot to death, regardless of the crime? No one said they're perfect, but apparently in order to not be justifiably killed you must be.
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@MrsTiz: It helps by bringing awareness to the disparities that many are unaware of or refuse to acknowledge, like @PurplePumps.
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@cait: exactly. A lot of the stories also mentioned how often he had been arrested in the past. WTF difference does it make?? There's no question that he was just walking through the stairwell when he was shot.
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@MrsSCB: thanks for the links you added to this post.
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