Aibu too not understand the reaction of the Ferguson Michael Brown in the USA

[Natashathemum]

My Dh thinks that it is a disgusting example of racial inequality in America. But i think having read a lot of articles/news that the police officer was only protecting himself. Although it is unfortunate that someone so young died.

However Dh feels strongly it is disgusting racism. He called me blind and crazy (lighthearted). Aibu for thinking this.

But Viva, there are millions of black Americans saying that racism is a key part of this specific case. Are they all wrong? Where do white people get off saying they're all wrong?

So, which specific incidents would you deem it ok for black peoples experiences to take precedence over white peoples philosophical/academic musings then??

Incidents that don't involve the killing of black CHILDREN and unarmed men??? Some make believe incidents that aren't emotive???

How can anyone say if brown was white he wouldn't have been shot? Are you psychic?

mwalinu it will be helpful if you addres your posts to the poster concerned....

Nick, if a white person doesn't know any black people, what knowledge can they really have?

look at statistics

look at the reports of police brutality

look at the differences in sentences given to white and black men

Freudian, what cases are you referring to?

google is your friend

but you must of heard of Rodney King

Sheba how have I danced around anything, no-one has asked me if I'm black or white?

My colour is irrelevant. All I have stated on this thread is I believe racism exists in the America Police and pointed out things Creighton had stated aren't true.

YES it does nicky racism is based on misconceptions/stereotypes/ignorance/fear eg he looked demonic /monstrous/a thug/acting suspicious/bet he didnt look 12

And black people recognise these narratives for what they are becausethey have heard it all a hundred times before, in a hundred situations from a hundred white people

Freudian? You have lost me a bit as you mentioned the comparison of jail sentave between whites and blacks.

Obviously I have heard of Rodney king but didn't teakise that was what was supposed to spring to mind. When I think of him I think of beatings and riots, not any jail sentave in comparison to a white male.

Gah, what is wrong with my iPhone!!

I am a white, American woman from the Deep South who had a relatively privileged upbringing.

Good lord! Even I can see that there is something amiss with all the repeated incidents of unarmed black males being killed by the police. The response is always the same: make excuses and blame the victim. The reasonable response would be deep regret, followed by a good faith effort to understand why these mistakes are occurring all to often and putting into effect the changes needed.

The fact that this just never seems to happen reinforces the impression that black lives don't matter in America. So, OP, I agree with your husband. It is a disgusting example of inequality in America.

"Prison sentences of black men were nearly 20% longer than those of white men for similar crimes in recent years, an analysis by the U.S. Sentencing Commission found."

online.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324432004578304463789858002

Common knowledge for anyone paying attention in the US

Oh I wonder about the UK...

Offenders from ethnic minorities are more likely than their white counterparts to be sentenced to prison for certain categories of crimes, according to an analysis of more than one million court records. The study, carried out by the Guardian, found black offenders were 44% more likely than white offenders to be sentenced to prison for driving offences, 38% more likely to be imprisoned for public disorder or possession of a weapon and 27% more likely for drugs possession. Asian offenders were 41% more likely to be sent to prison for drugs offences than their white counterparts and 19% more likely to go to jail for shoplifting.

www.aclu.org/fair-sentencing-act Don't forget that the same drug, in two different forms, attracts 18:1 in terms of sentencing. Can anyone guess which group is more likely to take which drug?

I'm a feminist. I firmly believe that women's voices need to have the overwhelming weight in discussions about misogyny. When a specific woman gets killed or raped by a specific man, I also believe that women's voices, survivors' voices need to be heard. How is this any different? I believe that the lived experience of black people in America needs to be heard. I also believe that you can't live in this world without receiving a shitload of prejudices.

We have a choice. Challenge our prejudices and face up to our own racism, or shout really loudly about how notallwhitepeople. In which case I'll have to listen to notallmen, which I'm not inclined to.

America is the tv set of the world. What we see happening in the heartland of democracy and free speech is a representation of what is happening all over the world. This is the country who wrote the declaration of independence. Its heart breaking to see racism and cruelty. Hopefully time will change us all

America is the tv set of the world. What we see happening in the heartland of democracy and free speech is a representation of what is happening all over the world. This is the country who wrote the declaration of independence. Its heart breaking to see racism and cruelty. Hopefully time will change us all

I always tend to think that some white people saying they see no evidence of racism is a bit like some men saying they see no evidence of sexual harassment and misogyny. We don't see it because it isn't generally being aimed at us.

It isn't that any of us can know if he would have lived if he were white. It is that the odds are different. Which appears to be happening on such a wide scale that it must be institutional racism/systemic problems, not the individuals. And as for the poor kid playing with a toy gun, the very first thing I thought when the story first broke was "I bet the poor sod's black". Was that racist of me? Or was it a recognition of the consequences of racism that black people face?

Of course, it would help if there weren't so many guns in the US that the default setting appears to be for the police to assume everyone is armed. I'm rather glad I'm lucky enough to live in a country with so much less gun "culture". And as to whether Tamir Rice should have known better... The people that made and sold a toy that looked so much like the real thing were adults, and should have fucking known better. But a 12 year old child? We don't allow 12 year olds to drive, or vote, or buy cigarettes/alcohol, or consent to their own operations (apart from very rare cases), or get tattoos, or presume they can consent to sex. Why not? Because they're still children, and their level of understanding is not yet adult. So he may have known that you're meant to do what the police say, or that he wasn't meant to play in the park with his toy gun. But he probably thought that was to avoid getting in trouble, not to avoid being gunned down by the people who are meant to be there to serve and protect.

I think that if I were the mother of black children, particularly black sons in America, I would end up feeling very very paranoid.

Those poor little boys. My dd is 15, the idea of her getting gunned down, freaks me out. Could she look demonic or scary well maybe. I do think that this case stinks of institutional racism. And that makes me feel sick. These are children dying so all my principles go straight out the window.

I'm simply astonished at the earlier comment asking if people could really believe that an unarmed person would attack an officer, as it's just so unlikely. Do you seriously believe that the Police don't suffer unexpected and, frankly in terms of being unarmed etc, absurd attacks a fair bit?? How do you actually think it is out there? All pleases and thank yous and every single suspect behaving nicely and logically, obeying every command with no aggression whatsoever? It's absolutely possible that something like that would happen to an officer if he got unlucky. Go and do a law enforcement job for a while and then tell us more about your expectations of the general public's behaviour afterwards. I'm sure it will all just be lovely and predictable for you every duty.

What if Michael Brown had managed to wrestle the firearm from the officer? Result? Just another dead cop.
No riot.
30 seconds on the local news.
Not one shit given on this forum.

The ingrained racism on this thread is truly depressing.

It sure is.

If the policeman had been shot the murderer would have then been shot by other officers or would get the death penalty in a court of law. No justice is available to those killed by the police.

I think policemen do get attacked and do have to be careful. I think people who are attack policemen are one of three things:

1. armed themselves
2. on drugs
3. mentally ill

Michael Brown was none of these things. Common sense would tell me that it is highly unlikely he would suddenly decided to take on several armed officers.