The System is Broken

Michael Brown was laid to rest about two days ago. I do not watch the news but I hear it on the radio. I have not heard a peep about anything negative going on since his funeral. So now is a perfect time to bring up something that irritated me and made this little piece of literature come to life.

Do you believe that no one cares about this subject or any other incident where a young black kid is killed by the cops?

A friend of mine posted a video of the actor Jesse Williams speaking about the Ferguson incident. In the video, he stated that white kids steal just like black kids and society needs to stop pretending that the subject of cops killing black kids is not an issue.

A friend of my friend posted that it was Michael's fault because people said he charged the officer and he was a thief. So in short, he deserved what he got. I responded in my colorful way and someone responded to my response. Her response went a little something like this, "Communities need to take care of themselves. They need to change their circumstances. It is not the governments job to fix communities. People need to stop pretending that people are saints and the police suck. Though no one wants to say it out loud………No one cares about a black kid getting killed by a cop. It's not our problem."

This created a very heated debate for a morning as you can imagine. It was very enlightening for me and it gave me an opportunity to stir the pot. I love making people think. Here is my thought on the entire situation. First and foremost, I believe the problem we have in America is the attitude of, "It's not my problem. I don't care." Any injustice that happens in the world is every one's problem. The human race, the one and only race in my opinion, needs to take care of each other. Americans have gotten to be more and more self absorbed, entitled, selfish, judgmental and  non-empathic. A person that cannot put themselves in someone Else's shoes is dead inside.

Right and Wrong

Where should we point the blame for this child being shot, killed and left in the street to die for thirty minutes like an animal? Michael Brown and the cop that killed him. Let's break out with some honesty and reality for a minute. Michael made the stupid choice, like most kids, to steal. Even the most well raised child could make this childish bad choice. Had Michael not thought it was a great idea to steal cigars, I would not be sitting here writing this post. However, regardless of Michael's bad choice, it was not the good safe choice to shoot this child six times and leave him for dead over stolen cigars. I do believe that the killing of a suspect is supposed to happen only when you are being threatened with a weapon. Did Michael try to put the cops eyes out with a cigar? I know your next response is that witnesses said he charged the officer. OK! Let's say that he did. Wouldn't one shot in the leg suffice? Did he need to be shot six times? Of course not. He also should not have been left in the street to bleed to death for thirty minutes before someone decided to help him. So I believe we can lay blame at the feet of the officer for this one. It is his duty to preserve life and to use good judgement with out prejudice or malice. He used none of that. They both are to blame but the officer is the adult and authority in this situation, so he holds more blame. I always laugh at adults that look at me and blame a kid for doing what kids do, when it is their job to teach them otherwise. 

When my daughter was seven, her second grade teacher blamed her for repeatedly not getting her homework turned in. My question to her was, "Who's the adult? Is it not your job to teach the seven year old how important it is to turn in her homework?" I received no response from that question. We now home school. There were a lot of questions like that in a year's time. I am much more interested in my child being guided and taught proper behavior, rather than expecting her to learn it through osmosis. 

Do Cops Really Profile and Discriminate? Is it Possible?

Here is my two cents. Yes, yes, yes! Police officers, much like priest, I am Catholic by the way, are human just like you and me. They are all capable of lying, cheating and stealing. They are not special because they hold a big title. Look at the priest scandals. No laymen saw that coming and I can tell you from research, this has been going on since the 1800s. It is time for society to stop living in a rose garden thinking that the beautiful flowers do not have thorns. Roses are my favorite flower. They hurt like hell when they prick you.

I am half Native American and half Mexican. People assume I'm black in most communities. Latin communities think I'm Cuban or Puerto Rican. When I was in high school, a guy friend (black) of mine and his girlfriend (white/Mexican) and I (mixed), were trying to get home after dropping off a friend. We were driving through Compton, CA at about 10:30pm looking for the freeway. We missed the off ramp and made a legal, safe u turn on a completely empty main street. As we made our turn, a police car drove by in the opposite direction. They saw our lonely car on the road, made a u turn and came after us. They flashed their lights and pulled us over. We were confused. We didn't do anything wrong. We were driving the speed limit and everything. We pulled into a parking lot and sat quietly. The officers parked their car with the lights aimed at our car. They approached with guns drawn and bright flash lights in our eyes. We were told to get out of the car, and before we knew it, my guy friend was laying on the ground with his hands behind his head and a gun pointed at him. I'm sure some of you are thinking, "He must have said or done something that caused this to happen." I am here to tell you that he did nothing. He said nothing. None of us said a word. We were far to scared to say a peep. I stood there in quiet shock holding a stuffed animal I was holding in the car before the incident occurred. One of the officers looked at me and said, "I bet you get whatever you want. I bet you are spoiled." His tone was nasty and accusatory. I didn't appreciate it. My teenage mouth took over and told him the truth, "I have to work for whatever I get. No one gives me anything." He antagonized me a bit more but I kept my cool. I was mad that he picked on me but I was scared more. Then they let us go. 

These things happen to young innocent people all the time. We were three kids from a performing arts school. We were not gang bangers or thugs. We didn't even dress like them. My guy friend was in his traditional Polo shirt and slacks. That was his style. We were dancers not criminals. As long as society keeps its head in the sand on this subject it will persist. It will get worse and it will begin to happen to your kids. Beverly Hills is not immune to crime.

Though I understand that people have to take responsibility for themselves and their lives, I do not maintain the opinion that communities need to fix themselves. I believe that it needs to be a group effort between communities and the government. The government is just as culpable as the community is. The government has to fix the system that was meant to assist people. The system is broken. The system tears people down and puts them in a state of hopelessness. Without the proper mindset, even the strongest of people would give up and give in if knocked down enough. Take welfare for example, the way you qualify is one set way. You have to fit in this one tiny box in order to get a small amount of assistance. If you do not fit in this box, you receive nothing. Prime example, many have lost their jobs in this economy. Many have had a hard time finding work. If a person found a way to make $500 a month until they find a better job, the welfare office will send  them away and tell them they make to much money. In California, the average one bedroom apartment cost $850 a month in rent. How can $500 a month possibly be to much money for say a family of three, or a single parent with one child to support? This is the norm. Everyone has a story and every situation is different. Not every one seeking help from the government is a loser who is out to mooch off the system. Some people genuinely just need help to get back on their feet. They will never get there or will take longer with the system the way it is. 

The portion of the community that is not nearly as determined as others will not move forward to success because they do not know how. Our educational system does not teach how to invest or handle money so we have a vast group of citizens destined to fail because they do not know their options. They haven't heard of the possibilities.You cannot consider something an option if you have never heard of it. These citizens have no idea that they should save 10% of their income every month and should only let their rent be a small portion of their income. You can not expect these people to fix their communities on their own without assistance. The government needs to take responsibility for their part of the problem. They need to fix the system to help everyone do better. The more you know the more possibility of change. 

What is your opinion? Are cops perfect saints that we should praise and allow to do whatever they want? Should poor communities be left to fend for themselves alone? Does society really not care about black children getting profiled and killed by cops? Is there a need for change or is status quo just fine? What are your thoughts?