The first thing I thought was 'I'm glad there were two black cops involved.'
I knew I shouldn't thought it, and I felt a bit remorseful. The second thought was for Sean Bell, his fiance and the respective families.
The reality is that if three white officers had been acquitted of shooting an unarmed black man 50 times, there very well could have been a riot in New York on Friday. There are enough people in that city (and across the country) remember Los Angeles in the aftermath of the Rodney King verdict in the 1990s, and the anguish they felt as a result.
If you don't know Bell's story, he was gunned down in 2007 as he sat in a car outside a Queens, N.Y., strip club following a bachelor party celebration there with some friends. Police testified that they thought one of the car's occupants had a gun and that Bell and his companions tried to speed away from the scene. A hail of bullets rained down on the vehicle killing Bell and wounding a friend. No gun was recovered. Bell was to have been married the next day. The three officers, two black and one white, were acquitted in the slaying.
I thought, while not yet summer, it's just hot enough for a riot. Think about it. Riots don't happen during the winter. And, people in this country are mad. Although the Bush Administration refuses to admit it, we're in a recession. People are losing their jobs, and their homes, and they are paying $4 for a gallon of gas, or close to it. As I put $50 into my little Volvo the other day (it wasn't full, I just saw the total, got pissed and stopped pumping) I noticed that no one at any of the pumps was happy, and drifted off into a brief assessment of the state of America.
People are mad about jobs and gas and much more. Many minorities, who are the primary residents of the neighborhoods being the most affected by the foreclosure and unemployment crises, are especially affected.
So when I heard about the acquittals in New York, I figure the situation was ripe for the picking. That the downtrodden would seize this verdict as the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Every uprising needs a spark and this verdict seems perfect. Although it hasn't been -- yet.
Enter the Rev. Al Sharpton, who has promised to organize a campaign to shut down the city of New York. The particulars are still to be announced, but now the symbolic gauntlet has been laid down. It comes at a particularly interesting time, given the aforementioned dire economic forces at play and the opportunities waiting to be seized by the civil rights establishment.
Sharpton needs to be more relevant, and considering the lack of a strong black leader like the late Dr. Marin Luther King Jr. who he cited while announcing his intent to incite a major act of civil disobedience.
This could also be an opportunity civil rights groups like the NAACP to reconnect with and mobilize young people. I attended some its convention activities a year ago and marveled at the group's lack of engagement -- rather than outreach -- strategies. There is a major difference. The NAACP would do well to jump on the bandwagon as an ally of Sharpton's National Action Network and use this as an opportunity to get black people ready to do something, anything to engage with the organization.
In an election year when people are looking for change, when we have both a viable black candidate and a viable female candidate, this could be the chance for these challengers to engage younger disenfranchised voters. In other words, the millions of unactivated people in this country who haven’t felt engaged previously. Now, they have reasons to be involved.
Oh yeah, after getting my gas at the suburban Detroit gas station I go to (I know, but I see many of my neighbors there as well. It has the best prices) I stopped at a drug store. When I came out, my car was keyed. I'm not sure if it was because it was a Volvo or because a black man was driving it. But I do know I was mad, and wanted to do something about it.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Saturday, April 5, 2008
What Progress Looks Like
I was listening to some of the coverage recognizing the assassination of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. 40 years ago this week when my son asked me who was speaking. I told him it was Martin Luther King Jr.
"Martin Luther King?" 'Yes,' I said, smiling, marveling at the fact a recently-turned 3-year-old could pronounce his name.
I'm an admitted news junkie, and it is apparently paying dividends. Three weeks ago he began talking about Barack Obama, then it was Kwame Kilpatrick and now, Martin Luther King Jr. Make your own snide remarks about the company included in this group. I'll be busy trying to figure out how to get the kid to understand the context, and the matter of the men, and their relevance, which I'm sure will come in time. I say that because 40 years after his assassination, too many adults have yet to grasp the relevance of King's life or discern the importance of his message.
The night before he died, King talked of going to the mountaintop and seeing the promised land. His macabre premonition of not getting there "with us" gives me a chill every time I hear the speech replayed. He sensed death was imminent, yet showed no desire to become a martyr for the cause. Instead, he was consumed with the work of bringing about human rights for all Americans.
The Struggle Continues
Forty years later we are still struggling for rights in our country. Blacks are twice as likely to live in poverty than whites, earn 60 cents for every dollar whites with the same education and experience are paid, go to prison at a rate nearly 450 percent higher than whites and get murdered at a rate more than 520 percent higher than their white counterparts.
A recent Washington Post column by Shankar Vedantam highlights research by Philip Mazzocco and Mahzarin Banaji, social psychologists, who conducted a study in which they asked white volunteers how much money they though would cover the "costs" of being born black instead of white.
The volunteers guessed that about $5,000 ought to do it. That would make up for any disadvantages associated with being black in American rather than white. The interesting thing, Vendantam points out, is that when those same volunteers were asked how much they wanted to go without television, the volunteers demanded $1 million. I'm not making that up.
However, when those same volunteers learned about the gross disparities mentioned above they immediately started to demand much larger sums of money, Mazzocco and Banaji also found. When they learned that they would likely earn less, suffer more and die sooner, the bill ballooned.
"Many whites assume blacks are making use of old crimes to gain present-day benefits
that are unearned," Mazzocco is quoted by the Post. "Underlying this is a misunderstanding and ignorance about black costs and white privilege."
The research confirms of what most blacks in this country have long known, and that is the fact that blacks and whites have different views of what progress is. Having Barack Obama as a serious candidate in the presidential race looks like progress, but he had to address the disparate viewpoints in a now-famous speech on race just two weeks ago, after his former pastor drew criticism for some divisive comments he had made in the past.
I appreciate Mazzocco and Banaji's work because it provides fuel for dialogue and will hopefully cause more people to consider that what looks like progress to them,may not necessarily be progress. Forty years after King's death, racism and inequality remain among the biggest obstacles African-Americans face.
Tony Miller is the controller at United Way for Southeastern Michigan, where he and I both sit on the diversity and inclusion committee. Miller is skilled at developing inspirational prose and did so in tribute to King last week. I thought it fitting because he talked about King's dream being unfulfilled and the need for all of us to continue fighting for human rights and for justice. The text of the piece can be found below.
I asked Miller what Kings' legacy meant to him.
"The legacy of Dr. King is very important to me. It inspires me to live out the dreams inside of me regardless of the circumstances," Miller said. "If inspired and given a reason to believe, Americans of all backgrounds will stand up, face their fears, put others before themselves, and fight to heal this country’s wounded past. And all of this can be done without violence."
Is he hopeful it will really happen, I wondered, in an age where some people think $5,000 would take care of the healing?
"I am very hopefully people will answer his plea. As a matter of fact I know people will answer his plea because they are already doing so. I just want to inspire people to take greater strides and recruit others to join the struggle. Right now the voices of violence, controversy, easy successes, and despair are lifted up in our society," Miller said.
"The voices of peace, harmony, success through struggle, and hope must be lifted up in our society. So we must reward people for peace more than we punish violence. We must promote harmony more than we try to squelch controversy. We must embrace the struggle instead of taking the easy road. We must stir up hope more than we relish in a person’s despair."
That would produce the kind of progress I want to see.
40 YEARS LATER
Forty years ago today
Someone thought they could kill my dream by killing me
But I Martin Luther King Jr. still live
I live in the hearts of men and women
Who continue the equality fight
I reside in the souls of those whose mission
Is to one day see this country truly unite
My dream lives on through innocent children
Who love all regardless of color, creed, or race
Someone tried to kill the dream
But the work was already done to prepare you for the trials you’d face
By the time the bullet pierced my skin
I had already given every ounce of my love
The dream that bullet was intended to kill
Cannot die because the dream comes from above
What is the point?
What am I trying to say?
Do not wait any longer
Take action today
Because I spoke the dream
And I took action my dream is still alive
Through every form of hatred, prejudice, and discrimination
My dream will survive
You too have the same power to change your community
You too have the same power to bring about unity
Speak your dreams to those around you
One step and one day at a time
Take actions to make it come true
Someone tried to kill the dream in Memphis, Tennessee
But now the dream is much greater
My question and plea to you is too carry on the dream
40 Years Later
Tony L. Miller
a.k.a. Faith Walker
"Martin Luther King?" 'Yes,' I said, smiling, marveling at the fact a recently-turned 3-year-old could pronounce his name.
I'm an admitted news junkie, and it is apparently paying dividends. Three weeks ago he began talking about Barack Obama, then it was Kwame Kilpatrick and now, Martin Luther King Jr. Make your own snide remarks about the company included in this group. I'll be busy trying to figure out how to get the kid to understand the context, and the matter of the men, and their relevance, which I'm sure will come in time. I say that because 40 years after his assassination, too many adults have yet to grasp the relevance of King's life or discern the importance of his message.
The night before he died, King talked of going to the mountaintop and seeing the promised land. His macabre premonition of not getting there "with us" gives me a chill every time I hear the speech replayed. He sensed death was imminent, yet showed no desire to become a martyr for the cause. Instead, he was consumed with the work of bringing about human rights for all Americans.
The Struggle Continues
Forty years later we are still struggling for rights in our country. Blacks are twice as likely to live in poverty than whites, earn 60 cents for every dollar whites with the same education and experience are paid, go to prison at a rate nearly 450 percent higher than whites and get murdered at a rate more than 520 percent higher than their white counterparts.
A recent Washington Post column by Shankar Vedantam highlights research by Philip Mazzocco and Mahzarin Banaji, social psychologists, who conducted a study in which they asked white volunteers how much money they though would cover the "costs" of being born black instead of white.
The volunteers guessed that about $5,000 ought to do it. That would make up for any disadvantages associated with being black in American rather than white. The interesting thing, Vendantam points out, is that when those same volunteers were asked how much they wanted to go without television, the volunteers demanded $1 million. I'm not making that up.
However, when those same volunteers learned about the gross disparities mentioned above they immediately started to demand much larger sums of money, Mazzocco and Banaji also found. When they learned that they would likely earn less, suffer more and die sooner, the bill ballooned.
"Many whites assume blacks are making use of old crimes to gain present-day benefits
that are unearned," Mazzocco is quoted by the Post. "Underlying this is a misunderstanding and ignorance about black costs and white privilege."
The research confirms of what most blacks in this country have long known, and that is the fact that blacks and whites have different views of what progress is. Having Barack Obama as a serious candidate in the presidential race looks like progress, but he had to address the disparate viewpoints in a now-famous speech on race just two weeks ago, after his former pastor drew criticism for some divisive comments he had made in the past.
I appreciate Mazzocco and Banaji's work because it provides fuel for dialogue and will hopefully cause more people to consider that what looks like progress to them,may not necessarily be progress. Forty years after King's death, racism and inequality remain among the biggest obstacles African-Americans face.
Tony Miller is the controller at United Way for Southeastern Michigan, where he and I both sit on the diversity and inclusion committee. Miller is skilled at developing inspirational prose and did so in tribute to King last week. I thought it fitting because he talked about King's dream being unfulfilled and the need for all of us to continue fighting for human rights and for justice. The text of the piece can be found below.
I asked Miller what Kings' legacy meant to him.
"The legacy of Dr. King is very important to me. It inspires me to live out the dreams inside of me regardless of the circumstances," Miller said. "If inspired and given a reason to believe, Americans of all backgrounds will stand up, face their fears, put others before themselves, and fight to heal this country’s wounded past. And all of this can be done without violence."
Is he hopeful it will really happen, I wondered, in an age where some people think $5,000 would take care of the healing?
"I am very hopefully people will answer his plea. As a matter of fact I know people will answer his plea because they are already doing so. I just want to inspire people to take greater strides and recruit others to join the struggle. Right now the voices of violence, controversy, easy successes, and despair are lifted up in our society," Miller said.
"The voices of peace, harmony, success through struggle, and hope must be lifted up in our society. So we must reward people for peace more than we punish violence. We must promote harmony more than we try to squelch controversy. We must embrace the struggle instead of taking the easy road. We must stir up hope more than we relish in a person’s despair."
That would produce the kind of progress I want to see.
40 YEARS LATER
Forty years ago today
Someone thought they could kill my dream by killing me
But I Martin Luther King Jr. still live
I live in the hearts of men and women
Who continue the equality fight
I reside in the souls of those whose mission
Is to one day see this country truly unite
My dream lives on through innocent children
Who love all regardless of color, creed, or race
Someone tried to kill the dream
But the work was already done to prepare you for the trials you’d face
By the time the bullet pierced my skin
I had already given every ounce of my love
The dream that bullet was intended to kill
Cannot die because the dream comes from above
What is the point?
What am I trying to say?
Do not wait any longer
Take action today
Because I spoke the dream
And I took action my dream is still alive
Through every form of hatred, prejudice, and discrimination
My dream will survive
You too have the same power to change your community
You too have the same power to bring about unity
Speak your dreams to those around you
One step and one day at a time
Take actions to make it come true
Someone tried to kill the dream in Memphis, Tennessee
But now the dream is much greater
My question and plea to you is too carry on the dream
40 Years Later
Tony L. Miller
a.k.a. Faith Walker
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