Dear White People

http://www.mic.com/articles/163096/texas-mom-reports-to-police-that-a-white-man-allegedly-choked-her-son-they-arrest-her#.GsNnYzX9M

Imagine calling for help for your 7-year-old son and ending up in the back of a squad car. That’s what happened to a Fort Worth, Texas, mom when she called the police to seek justice for her son, who had allegedly been choked by an older white man after he littered, The Root reported…

This video is shocking. As a white person, I can’t imagine being treated like this by the police. As the mother of a white son, I can’t imagine a neighbor or stranger trying to choke my son because he littered. I think white people have a lot to learn about how people of color are treated in our society.

19 thoughts on “Dear White People”

    • Call the incoming President? You’re kidding, right? Maybe if we ALL called – so that no other calls could get past the switchboard, the man might be might be willing to act – IF and only if it affected him personally – but probably not even slightly concerned at the level of empathy Leopards don’t change their spots just because they get elected to public office.

      This needs to be a grassroots effort – everyone-speaks-up-EVERY-time kind of initiative, and TO the organization that is the source of the problem, all the way to the top. It’s not that “white people have a lot to learn about how people of color are treated in our society” – it’s that we ALL need to step up and sing out, en masse.

      comment background: the mentally ill son of a [white] friend of mine was murdered by the police (at point-blank range in the back, while restrained faced down and tazed) When his mother arrived she was locked in the back of a HOT police car with no ventilation until the ambulance left the scene – NO information provided even to whether he was alive or dead.

      We can no longer trust our police force to behave in a human fashion. [see “My 2016 Birthday Prayer” for the story]

      I know it happens more often if you are not white, but it is a global problem that needs to STOP – no matter how or to whom it happens. And, no matter the color of our skin, we need to stand together to protect ALL of society – while we still can. Otherwise, who will step up to protect US?
      xx,
      mgh
      (Madelyn Griffith-Haynie – ADDandSoMuchMore dot com)
      – ADD Coach Training Field founder; ADD Coaching co-founder –
      “It takes a village to transform a world!”

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Pingback: Dear White People – Belle Papillon 24/7

  5. I’ve been treated worse than that, for the “crime” of asking a cop for help because I had just escaped from having been abducted and raped. I told the cop that and he thought it was a good idea….

    not only people of color, but the young, the vulnerable, the disenfranchised for any reason, are low-hanging fruit for these professional sadists.

    Bearing that in mind, I hope the mother remembers that it’s not a good idea to scream at a police officer even if he isn’t doing the right thing. It just provides him with an excuse to do worse, as we see.

    A better tactic is to thank the officer, ask for his name and badge number, and put that in your file of police not to be trusted should you run into him again.

    No, it’s not the way it should be. It’s the way it IS and we haven’t been able to fix it despite decades of trying. The moral of this: protect yourself, and if you try to be a martyr, don’t be surprised if you end up one.

    Liked by 2 people

    • I don’t want anyone to think that I haven’t been disrespected by the police just because I’m white. But even within that disrespect, they still treated me like a human being, not an animal. Allegedly, this officer is now on paid leave while they investigate.

      This is but one example of what goes on everyday between police and the public. And they wonder why they’re unpopular? Police officers believe that they’re better than the public they serve. It’s obvious. They think we’re scum and they’re the good guys. I can’t see that kind of us-vs-them attitude ever changing.

      Liked by 3 people

  6. I am a white man, but my husband is black. When we drive we both worry when we see a police car pulling in behind. I worry because I may get a ticket because I may have done something wrong. He worries whether he’ll still be alive if he gets pulled over, despite having the utmost respect for the law. It hurts me that I will never fully understand how he feels.

    Liked by 3 people

  7. I do agree with you. Can I comment anyway? =)
    I am white also but believe racism is rampant in this country and not just for African Americans.
    I met you at Donna’s blog party. Maybe you can check out my blog if you need a blogging tip or two. That’s what I write about. For example, I wrote 79 free tips to bring you blog traffic http://www.mostlyblogging.com/79-most-effective-ways-free-blog-traffic/
    I also have blog parties like Donna.
    Janice

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Think you know my views on this particular kettle of fish …
    I think the difference, as Bradley so discerningly pointed out … being black or of colour brings a completely different set of ‘rules for engagement’ with it. Harassment is one thing, death another.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Pingback: Ever been punched by a police officer? – All Things Chronic

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