Pray for Charlotte, NC

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:African Americans experience PTSD at a higher rate than any other ethnic group, according to a study published in 2010 on PubMed, the online archive of the National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine.
And considering the prevalence of violence perpetuated by criminals AND the police in poor black communities it's not surprising.
Maybe cops should take that into consideration next time they come across a black man "acting strangely" when they pull up lights flashing and sirens wailing. Maybe cops should take that into consideration next time they come across a black man "not complying" when they're shouting at him with guns drawn escalating situations.

i'd encourage you to ask your local PD if they offer crisis intervention training. i know a few local jurisdictions do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Y'all act like this shit is new.
The press and politicians and idiotic debaters on social media...this shit ain't new.
In the ‘I have a Dream’ speech on August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King referenced police brutality in that very same speech. You then go to the assassination of Fred Hampton by cops in Chicago. And then all of a sudden you go to the 1980s and you have rappers like NWA and Iced Tea and others talking about ‘F the police’ and also talking about police brutality. And so you’ve had this in each decade. You’ve had the Rodney King beating in the 1990s. Now all of a sudden is you’re in the 2000s. The difference here now is you actually have video of officers in action. That’s the game changer because nobody believed blacks before and cops had decades to develop the habits of brutality that they're now getting called out for. Habits that need to be brought to an end.

Sounds good. MLK also promoted a poor people's campaign and a campaign against war. Excited to see your efforts in those spaces too

He also campaigned against true deep seated police brutality like Kent State and African Americans being shot with fire hoses while peacefully protesting. He did this at a time when African Americans were still treated as second class citizens and segregation was rampant.

To compare those times to today is shameful.

Wait. I don't understand. What is shameful?

[Anonymous]

^^^ to clarify..CIT is for law enforcement.

some local jurisdictions offer a similar program for citizens if anyone is interested. it's usually called Mental Health First Aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:unfortunately, it seems like this conversation will never get anywhere. one side is not willing to concede that maybe, just maybe, the community has work to do just like the police do to improve things. so long as the "always a victim" mentality continues, things will never get better.

even when someone does something bad to you, there's almost always something you could've done differently or better. acknowledging that doesn't take away what the other person did, or make it ok.

flat out refusal to take any sort of personal responsibility stalls progress.

The community?
What community is home to all the black Americans in the U.S.?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:African Americans experience PTSD at a higher rate than any other ethnic group, according to a study published in 2010 on PubMed, the online archive of the National Institutes of Health's National Library of Medicine.
And considering the prevalence of violence perpetuated by criminals AND the police in poor black communities it's not surprising.
Maybe cops should take that into consideration next time they come across a black man "acting strangely" when they pull up lights flashing and sirens wailing. Maybe cops should take that into consideration next time they come across a black man "not complying" when they're shouting at him with guns drawn escalating situations.

Why so they can be shot by that guy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:unfortunately, it seems like this conversation will never get anywhere. one side is not willing to concede that maybe, just maybe, the community has work to do just like the police do to improve things. so long as the "always a victim" mentality continues, things will never get better.

even when someone does something bad to you, there's almost always something you could've done differently or better. acknowledging that doesn't take away what the other person did, or make it ok.

flat out refusal to take any sort of personal responsibility stalls progress.

The community?
What community is home to all the black Americans in the U.S.?

i said the community because officer-involved shootings is not something that only happens within the Black community. ALL of us have work to do/something we could do to improve relations between the police and the public. that includes all races (and all police).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:unfortunately, it seems like this conversation will never get anywhere. one side is not willing to concede that maybe, just maybe, the community has work to do just like the police do to improve things. so long as the "always a victim" mentality continues, things will never get better.

even when someone does something bad to you, there's almost always something you could've done differently or better. acknowledging that doesn't take away what the other person did, or make it ok.

flat out refusal to take any sort of personal responsibility stalls progress.

This.

The other side has conceded and finds it horrifying that there are malicious cops out there.

But in this case? Michael Brown? Dillon Taylor? Etc. Seriously why can't the other side see that those men caused their own deaths.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:unfortunately, it seems like this conversation will never get anywhere. one side is not willing to concede that maybe, just maybe, the community has work to do just like the police do to improve things. so long as the "always a victim" mentality continues, things will never get better.

even when someone does something bad to you, there's almost always something you could've done differently or better. acknowledging that doesn't take away what the other person did, or make it ok.

flat out refusal to take any sort of personal responsibility stalls progress.

The community?
What community is home to all the black Americans in the U.S.?

i said the community because officer-involved shootings is not something that only happens within the Black community. ALL of us have work to do/something we could do to improve relations between the police and the public. that includes all races (and all police).

But - and this makes me very sad - so often african americans want to self segregate. They don't want it to be all "just" americans.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:unfortunately, it seems like this conversation will never get anywhere. one side is not willing to concede that maybe, just maybe, the community has work to do just like the police do to improve things. so long as the "always a victim" mentality continues, things will never get better.

even when someone does something bad to you, there's almost always something you could've done differently or better. acknowledging that doesn't take away what the other person did, or make it ok.

flat out refusal to take any sort of personal responsibility stalls progress.

This.

The other side has conceded and finds it horrifying that there are malicious cops out there.

But in this case? Michael Brown? Dillon Taylor? Etc. Seriously why can't the other side see that those men caused their own deaths.

+1 It seems that if we, "the other side," say that the police need better training AND that black people also need to tske some degree of personal responsibility, all hell reigns down. It seems the only acceptable thing is to say that when there's a police encounter that doesn't end well, it's always the police's fault, 100% of the time! Until black people realize that maybe....just maybe....there are things they could do better, this situation will not improve.

[Anonymous]

From an article in Teen Vogue...

Unless you happen to be a black person in America, this is not happening to you. But it is happening to people like me, to black men just trying to make a living, to black women who just want to be magic, to boys and girls who aren’t even old enough to understand the generations of hatred and injustice that have claimed their lives. And I live in a constant, nagging fear that my name will be next, that nothing but my skin color and its history in America will cost me my life.

After I am killed, I will then be crucified on TV screens and laptops and iPhones all over the world. People on Facebook will presume I must have done something to antagonize the officer, because surely the video that shows me being defenselessly gunned down "isn't the whole story." I will be rendered unable to defend myself as the media will evade the hundreds of Instagram photos and Facebook pictures where I am smiling or happy and find the one where I happen to be grimacing, or look "scary." They will use that photo for wordless proof as to why I should be dead, because this is what people who deserve to die look like.

What you should know is that there are black teenagers growing into black adults all over the country who are seeing themselves slaughtered on live television. They are your friends, your classmates, and your coworkers. They are black boys and black girls who just want to be considered equal, who want to live with the same opportunities and hope for the future that you do. And unless you are black yourself, there is no proper way for you to understand what it is like to see yourself murdered over and over again — at the supermarket, at the park, on your way to see a loved one. And each death delivers a message, an exploding truth: this is how America sees you.

[Anonymous]

Every morning I walk into our closet and see these, my husband's police uniforms. Not many have these hanging next to their jeans and dress shirts. He didn't choose to wear these for the fame and fortune. He drives his old, hail-dented, hubcap-less, duct-taped, Mitsubishi to the police station every day so I can drive "his" newer truck. He hates coffee and writing tickets. He avoids donuts and cussing. There is no typical day at work. His office is his police car, his computer, inside it. Some days he comforts victims of sexual assault or rape. Some days he gets in high-speed chases to catch a guy who shot and killed a 9-month pregnant girl in the stomach. Some days he convinces suicidal persons to keep on living. Some days he enters the stench of trash-filled, bug-infested, drug dealer apartments to see 5 kids under the age of 6 running around. Some days he gets fire ant bites from diving into flash flood waters to save a family of 4 submerged in their vehicle. Some days he jumps fences in foot chases. Some days he responds to domestic disputes never sure if he might meet a gun to his face at the door. And some days he rides his police bike and enjoys the random acts of kindness shone to him and his police friends. He loves the kind words and paid-for lunches by random strangers in restaurants. He always tells me about them. He has a daughter who adores him and 2 sons who are so proud of him. He's called Poppa and Pa Jason by his 2 grandchildren. He loves his giant dog Nala. Sometimes I get mad at his clothes draped over the tub and his tote bag lying on the bathroom floor with his police gun inside. Long ago, when he worked deep nights, I would be awakened to the loud sound of Velcro being detached as he removed his bulletproof vest and I'd be annoyed. Today, I'm praying for those families not much unlike mine who wish they could hear that Velcro sound again."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:unfortunately, it seems like this conversation will never get anywhere. one side is not willing to concede that maybe, just maybe, the community has work to do just like the police do to improve things. so long as the "always a victim" mentality continues, things will never get better.

even when someone does something bad to you, there's almost always something you could've done differently or better. acknowledging that doesn't take away what the other person did, or make it ok.

flat out refusal to take any sort of personal responsibility stalls progress.

Yes this EXACTLY - and I'm not speaking only to the black community. America - as a community - needs to just stop playing the victim card, and start calling out Americans who play victim instead of trying to better themselves.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:From an article in Teen Vogue...

Unless you happen to be a black person in America, this is not happening to you. But it is happening to people like me, to black men just trying to make a living, to black women who just want to be magic, to boys and girls who aren’t even old enough to understand the generations of hatred and injustice that have claimed their lives. And I live in a constant, nagging fear that my name will be next, that nothing but my skin color and its history in America will cost me my life.

After I am killed, I will then be crucified on TV screens and laptops and iPhones all over the world. People on Facebook will presume I must have done something to antagonize the officer, because surely the video that shows me being defenselessly gunned down "isn't the whole story." I will be rendered unable to defend myself as the media will evade the hundreds of Instagram photos and Facebook pictures where I am smiling or happy and find the one where I happen to be grimacing, or look "scary." They will use that photo for wordless proof as to why I should be dead, because this is what people who deserve to die look like.

What you should know is that there are black teenagers growing into black adults all over the country who are seeing themselves slaughtered on live television. They are your friends, your classmates, and your coworkers. They are black boys and black girls who just want to be considered equal, who want to live with the same opportunities and hope for the future that you do. And unless you are black yourself, there is no proper way for you to understand what it is like to see yourself murdered over and over again — at the supermarket, at the park, on your way to see a loved one. And each death delivers a message, an exploding truth: this is how America sees you.

Touching yes but it is part of the media propaganda machine tugging on heart strings to manipulate.

Native Americans are killed at a higher rate than any other racial/ethnic group.
https://mic.com/articles/109894/the-police-are-killing-one-group-at-a-staggering-rate-and-nobody-is-talking-about-it#.d89yKIo96

Where are their riots? Where is the hand wringing for them? Where is the article in teen vogue? The non stop news reports? The forums filled with debate?

Oh thats right, no one needs their vote.

Don't you realize that after this election cycle everybody will just move on to whatever next big "thing" the media machine wants to spoon feed them?

[Anonymous]

Asian Americans like myself find common cause with African Americans who have spoken out again and again over the past few years. Overaggressive policing leads to the death of a Black person every 28 hours. As Asian Americans, we remember the beatings of Kang Wong, Jessica Klyzek, and Sureshbhai Patel, and the shooting deaths of Fong Lee, Cau Bich Tran, Yong Xin Huang, and Michael Cho—all victims of excessive force by police. This must change. I stand shoulder to shoulder with activists advocating for a criminal justice system that prioritizes the lives of victims of color over the law enforcement badges of their killers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Asian Americans like myself find common cause with African Americans who have spoken out again and again over the past few years. Overaggressive policing leads to the death of a Black person every 28 hours. As Asian Americans, we remember the beatings of Kang Wong, Jessica Klyzek, and Sureshbhai Patel, and the shooting deaths of Fong Lee, Cau Bich Tran, Yong Xin Huang, and Michael Cho—all victims of excessive force by police. This must change. I stand shoulder to shoulder with activists advocating for a criminal justice system that prioritizes the lives of victims of color over the law enforcement badges of their killers.

Good for you. I hope your next step is posting the names of all of the Asian American shopkeepers who have been killed over the last couple decades. They deserve justice too.