ok

I was in DC this weekend... Didn't hear a word about it.

Well let me say, there seemed to be a lot of cameras there.

Older opinion piece concerning Ferguson...still think it has relevance today IMO.
Kinda long, js....

"" "" The Plight of Black Men
Rest assured, I do believe there are
systemic issues plaguing black men.
These issues are violence, criminality,
and immorality, to name a few. And all
of these issues are rooted in and
connected to the epidemic of
fatherlessness. Any truly gospel-
centered response to the plight of
black men must address these issues
first and foremost. It does no good to
change the way white police officers
respond to black men if we don’t first
address the fact that these men’s
fathers have not responded to them
appropriately.
There is indeed an epidemic of
violence against black men. However,
that violence, more often than not,
occurs at the hands of other black
men. In fact, black men are several
times more likely to be murdered at
the hands of another black man than
they are to be killed by the police. For
instance, in the FBI homicide stats
from 2012 , there were 2,648 blacks
murdered. Of those, 2,412 were
murdered by members of their own
ethnic group. Thus, if I am going to
speak out about anything, it will be
black-on-black crime; not blue-on-
black. I want to apply the gospel and
its implications in a way that
addresses the real issue. If a few black
men being killed by cops requires a
national “dialogue,” what in the world
does the overwhelming number of
black-on-black murders require? If the
police do not see black men through
the proper gospel-centered, image-of-
God lens, what does the black-on-
black murder rate say about the way
we see ourselves?
In addition to violence, black men are
plagued with criminality. Low-income
black communities like Ferguson know
all too well that black criminals
preying on their neighbors makes life
almost unlivable. Growing up in South
Central Los Angeles, I know all too
well what it’s like to have bars on the
windows and doors for fear that thugs
will break in to steal or kill. I
remember being robbed at gunpoint on
my way home from the store one day.
It was one of the most frightening and
disheartening events of my life. The
fear, helplessness, and anger I felt
stayed with me for years. And it
taught me an unfortunate lesson: the
greatest threat to me was other black
men.
The underlying malady that gives rise
to all the rest of these epidemics is
immorality and fatherlessness. We
know that fatherlessness is the number
one indicator of future violence,
dropout rates, out-of-wedlock births,
and future incarceration. And in the
black community, more than 70
percent of all children are born out of
wedlock! Fatherlessness is the bane of
the black community.
Nor is this plague forced on us. It is
as common as morning dew, and as
overlooked as dust under a
refrigerator. Where are the marches
against this travesty? Where are the
protestors who demand better? Where
are the black “leaders” who . . . oh,
that’s right, they have just as many
illegitimate children as anyone else.
Again, it is common knowledge that
this is the most immediate root cause
of the ills plaguing black Americans.
But What About Racism?
I have been pulled over by police for
no apparent reason. In fact, it has
happened on more than one occasion.
I was stopped in Westwood while
walking with a friend of mine who was
a student at UCLA. We found ourselves
lying face down on the sidewalk while
officers questioned us. On another
occasion, I was stopped while with my
uncle. I remember his visceral
response as he looked at me and my
cousin (his son). The look in his eye
was one of humiliation and anger. He
looked at the officer and said, “My
brother and I didn’t fight in Vietnam
so you could treat me like this in front
of my son and my nephew.”
Again, this experience stayed with me
for years. And for many of those years,
I blamed “the system” or “the man.”
However, I have come to realize that it
was no more “the system” when white
cops pulled me over than it was “the
system” when a black thug robbed me
at gunpoint. It was sin! The men who
robbed me were sinners. The cops who
stopped me were sinners. They were
not taking their cues from some script
designed to “keep me down.” They
were simply men who didn’t
understand what it meant to treat
others with the dignity and respect
they deserve as image bearers of God.
It does me absolutely no good to
assume that my mistreatment was
systemic in nature. No more than it is
good for me to assume that what
happened in Ferguson was systemic. I
have a life to live, and I refuse to live
it fighting ghosts. I will not waste my
energy trying to prove the Gramscian,
neo-Marxist concept of “white
privilege” or prejudice in policing
practices.
I don’t care what advantages my white
neighbor may or may not have. If he
does have advantages, God bless him!
I no more fault him than I fault my
own children who have tremendous
advantages due to the fact that they
were raised by two educated, Christian
parents who loved, disciplined, and
taught them. Ironically, when I think
about THAT advantage, I am filled
with joy and gratitude to God for his
faithfulness. People are supposed to
bequeath an advantage to their
children and grandchildren ( Prov.
13:22 ). Why, then, would I be angry
with my white neighbor for any
advantage he is purported to have?
And what good would it do? How does
that advance the gospel? Especially in
light of the fact that growing up with
the gospel is the ultimate privilege/
advantage! It is the advantage that
has granted us all “American
privilege”! Are we guilty for being
citizens of the wealthiest republic in
the history of the world? I think not!
As a father of seven black men, I tell
them to be aware of the fact that there
may be times when they may get a
closer look, an unwelcome stop, or
worse. However, I do not tell them
that this means they need to live with
a chip on their shoulder, or that the
world is out to get them. I certainly
don’t tell them that they need to go
out and riot (especially when that
involves destroying black-owned
businesses). I tell them that there are
people in the world who need to get to
know black people as opposed to just
knowing “about” us. I tell them that
they will do far more good interacting
with those people and shining the
light of Christ than they will carrying
picket signs.
In the end, the best lesson my children
can learn from Ferguson is not that
they need to be on the lookout for
white cops. It is far more important
that I use this teachable moment to
remind them that “God is not mocked,
for whatever one sows, that will he
also reap” ( Gal. 6:7 ). Moments before
his death, Michael Brown had violently
robbed a man in a store. A man doing
the best he could to make a living.
Minutes later, Brown reaped what he
sowed, and was gunned down in the
street. That is the sad truth.""
http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/thoughts-on-ferguson

this is akin to if doctors suddenly stopped giving a damn about black patients and someone said it was really the fault of black people for not keeping themselves healthy

yes, there are many issues that can be addressed, but its logically fallacious to conclude they some how wash each other out,,,,

Whats "logically fallacious" is that a group of people would march and continue to ignore this fact...

"" For
instance, in the FBI homicide stats
from 2012 , there were 2,648 blacks
murdered. Of those, 2,412 were
murdered by members of their own
ethnic group.""

......and its a vastly supported fact.

why is there an assumption that marching on one issue is the same as 'ignoring' another?

If it was 10 or 50 black women in matching T-shirts, that showed up... the media would be there, to push the propaganda/ agenda.

The Million Mom March was originally, TEN years ago. And it was moms matching against CRIMES committed against CHILDREN.

Trying TEN years later trying to TURN it into, black mom's hate cops who ARRESTED their CRIMINAL, ADULT sons.... Didn't work.

I ONLY seen 3 articles, on the march, all of which said "Mom's acrossed the country Marched"

So where are ALL these moms. ? IF mom's ACROSS the country REALLY did UNITE & MARCH on Washington DC.... we would be seeing, WHITE, ASIAN, HISPANIC etc, mom's & grand mom's with baby strollers.... crying as the media hounds them & shoves microphones in their face, asking questions to make them cry.
* Morning talk shows would be eating that up & exploiting it for days*

very


tell me, if I see a woman being beat on this street corner and a dog being kicked on another,,,how many can I attend to at once?

does that mean I 'ignored' the other? is it still possible for me to help both, even though I can only help one at any given moment?


in the same sense,, why assume because you see someone protest police brutality that they dont ALSO volunteer at a shelter or ALSO take part in crime reduction programs?


and if they dont, does that bar them from being able to care about or attend to the issue of police brutality?

should we be required to have no 'black on black 'crime before we speak out about police misconduct? should we have not gender gap before we assist women in other countries who are oppressed?


seriously?

Well, how about they redirect their racist hatred towards white cops to teaching their children right from wrong instead of yelling into a bullhorn. Their children deserve better.

Seriously.

Required? No...but it would go along way towards these moms credibility if they would have a march every time one of their kids was shot by another black kid.....of course, that would be a WHOLE lot of marching.
As it is, they only care about complaining about "the man"....whether he be white or blue.....meanwhile their kids continue killing each other and these same moms b!tch and moan about the police not doing anything. The irony is ridiculous.

the middle on is about to swallow the Mike!
Really absurd,the whole March!
Stop blaming others!
You've failed your Kids,NOT the Police!

again, you underestimate the ability of people to do MANY different things from day to dfay

who did freddie gray kill, or treyvon martin , or any of the other recently shot or killed UNARMED black males?

wow,,,I just dont know what to say if you dont see the difference

black on black crime or as its otherwise known CRIME< doesnt draw marches because the JUSTICE SYSTEM has been set to deliver justice for those crimes

when their is no justice when one group commits crime though, because of their uniform,, and when they are paid and trained to protect,,, it draws attention and marches for changes to make people do their JOBS

again, your fail to see the root cause of their deaths and probably never will. You, like them are blinded by hate. Hate will only bring more hate and nothing will change.

At the end of the day society (all of us) are to blame. We need better education (law, psychology, neuroscience), better health care that's free, better justice and government system, better social security system if not guaranteed minimum income system, some sort of guaranteed housing/food system, public control over government including police, better screening of government employees including police/military/politicians since the current one is very flawed and mandatory drug and psychological testing for everyone. It's not reasonable to expect people to help others when they can't even help themselves. Quite a few common problems are genetic and people don't know how to recognize much less deal with them. People should take responsibility for the society we have created/participate in.

Oh for heavens sake! More excuses... Society is NOT to blame for criminals, bad behavior & little or no parenting, IS.
Life & CHANGE begins at home.
If someone is NOT taught how to conduct themselves in society & contribute to it... that is the parents fault. And if they are an adult... there own responsibility.
EVERYONE is accountable for their actions.

Fixed it for ya.....but you go ahead and have the last word. Im bored of people who refuse to accept responsibility for their actions and shout "racism" when the inevitable consequences of said actions occur.

Travon, wasn't killed by a cop.