It has been a while since I have written in this blog, life sometimes gets in the way. During my absence from writing in this blog, the racial situation in the U.S. has not gotten better, it has gotten worse. My heart, my spirit, is heavy with sadness and worry.
Every day, every day, I awake to news stories of black people being executed by the police. It seems that nearly every week or so, there is a news story of yet another police officer being cleared of any wrongdoing in the execution of a person of color. I use the words execute and execution because the word killing seems too soft, too gentle for what is occurring. It almost seems as if there is a war on people of color in this country. There is this phantom of the scary, big black (insert any race/ethnicity other than white here) man. Shoot first, and then prepare answers for the forthcoming outcry.
A few years ago, I first heard the phrase that our race is seen as a weapon. I had to think about that for a while before I understood fully what the writer of the phrase meant. Most states have laws that allow a private citizen, or police officer, to defend themselves if they feel their life is in danger, ESPECIALLY IF THE SUSPECTED CRIMINAL is armed, armed being the key word here. A fleeing person of color is often deemed armed, the arm being the color of their skin.
I have come to know too many names of young black men whose names I should have never known: Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray, Antwon Rose and most recently, Ahmaud Arbery. This is just the short list. There are so many more and my black mother's heart weeps.
My heart, my spirit was particularly hurt by the murder of Antwon Rose. Strangely, his murder closely paralleled the murder of Louis Hardy in Pittsburgh in 1965 by a white police officer, down to the acquittal of the murdering police officer. It was why I was not surprised by the acquittal of the police officer who murdered Antwon Rose in 2018. In 1965, Louis Hardy was watching some men (including his brother, Richard) shoot craps (an illegal activity) in the East Liberty section of Pittsburgh. The cops arrived and everyone fled, including Louis (called Mickey by his friends). Louis was shot in his back as he fled. Initially, the police officer, Robert MacBeth, claimed he fired two warning shots into the air but that he was running across 'rocky ground" and tripped and his aim was off and that is how Louis Hardy was killed. It was an accident. The officer was not initially charged. Following a public outcry, the officer was charged with murder and then manslaughter. Nearly six months later, Officer MacBeth was acquitted. Officer MacBeth lived to nearly 60 years old. Louis "Mickey" Hardy was 25 years old when he was murdered.
And now, we have the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a young, unarmed, black man who was simply jogging, by two white men (a father and son) in Georgia. Initially, the two were not charged. Of course not, the father is a close friend of the Georgia governor (and a former police officer). Again, following a public outcry the two men were charged. Ahmaud was murdered in February. His killers were not arrested and charged until May 7th, again following a public outcry.
I want justice for Ahmaud but I fear that is not to be; there are too many cases of justice denied.
People of color cannot disarm themselves when their arm is the color of their skin.
Blessings,
T
