06-03-2020, 08:26 AMjRuutu Wrote:

06-03-2020, 08:09 AMBaelor Swift Wrote: Again, it is to be heard because peaceful protests ultimately never did anything at all. Yet even peaceful protests were demonized.

I´m listening, don´t agree with it. Those funds that go to rebuilding could have been used to something else. If people took interest in politics and local politics, maybe they could feel there is a different way to make a difference than riots.

You bring up yet another really tragic aspect. People have tried. And the government has deliberately attempted to silence the votes of marginalized people. Some things that have been done include gerrymandering, which is when local political districts are deliberately changed to silence certain views and artificially inflate others - this may be a difficult concept to understand at first but here is a link, a refusal to declare voting days national holidays, which disproportionately impact poor people who have to work multiple jobs with ridiculous hours to provide for their families, sometimes even making voting become a choice of whether or not to be able to afford rent and food or to vote, and purging of voter rolls. However, there is a lot that people do try to do on a local level, which is actually one of the major points of these protests - to hold local police forces accountable when they are not currently doing so. However, addressing some state-level or national laws is something that also needs to be done which needs cooperation beyond the reach of local politics.

06-03-2020, 08:26 AMjRuutu Wrote:

06-03-2020, 08:09 AMBaelor Swift Wrote: Actually, many community members are voluntarily cleaning up the morning after riots and protests all over the country. So that is a start.

And we will see what happens. I don't think most people want to destroy things for nothing. I would imagine that people will rebuild their communities, especially if actual changes are made to address an inherently racist system.

That is nice, I saw some pictures. Did not see that many African-Americans in those pictures, but then again did not spend too much time looking. I hope those who could leave are still going to stay and rebuild.

Hopefully.

06-03-2020, 08:26 AMjRuutu Wrote:

06-03-2020, 08:09 AMBaelor Swift Wrote: Not all police officers are white and, while I know it may be unpopular, I very much do believe black people can and do act in a prejudiced and even racist manner towards black people and hold racist beliefs against black people/people of color. When we live in a world where people of color have had to play by different rules for centuries, people begin to internalize these rules as the norm and begin viewing the world as if everyone has been on a level playing field. As a result, they believe that certain people are inferior because they do not achieve at the same level as others, without acknowledging/realizing/accepting that the deck is still so stacked against people of color in today's world. And this mentality is something everyone can believe and even act on, regardless of race. Mental slavery is real and yet another damaging effect of institutional racism.

That is what I would like to hear more, now I at least get the feeling that this is mostly about white police officers when in reality black and other officers do just as horrible things.

It's true and also plenty of white people are also victimized by police brutality. However, let me share this with you to explain a bit more about why the attention is so heavily placed on black victims right now.

06-03-2020, 08:26 AMjRuutu Wrote:

06-03-2020, 08:09 AMBaelor Swift Wrote: Obviously so. People have been protesting these issues for decades. Finally, white people and people in power have no choice to remain wilfully ignorant and pretend that people of color are not systematically discriminated against. And this inability to ignore this issue or act like it doesn't exist is a daily reality for people of color.

And this type of scenario it would do a lot of good to hear about the community also fighting to eliminate black on black crimes, and hear about black police officers for example. When that side is ignored or seen important, it is easy to look the other way when white police officers are put on blast when talking about police brutality and racism.

The issue is, these black on black crimes have a lot to do with institutional racism and are inherently driven by it.

06-03-2020, 08:26 AMjRuutu Wrote:

06-03-2020, 08:09 AMBaelor Swift Wrote: Gang violence (which I assume is what you are alluding to when discussing black on black crime) is a real issue. However, much of it is a result of an environment created by a system that victimises black people constantly, a system that makes it extremely hard to escape where you come from. If you didn't know, zip code of birth (essentially the town/area of a city where you were born) is one of the best predictors of one's future education level and wealth. And it is because of a system that makes it so extremely difficult to escape poverty, leaving generations upon generations stuck in a cycle of poverty that many families have literally never escaped since their ancestors were stolen from Africa because they've never had a fair chance. It's an extremely complex issue we're talking about when it comes to gang violence that is 100% perpetuated by systemic racism.

I understand that there is no easy solutions, glorifying criminal lifestyle is where a lot of people go wrong. Many could have the potential to escape, but they get sucked into that lifestyle. In my opinion it´s not just on the system, but also on the people who live in those neighborhoods, there is not enough positive role models.

The problem is the system is not affording people the same opportunity to succeed and become role models. And you're right - there is so much wasted potential and right now, what is needed is that marginalized communities are afforded more support and attention to address some of the contributing factors to all these unnecessary deaths and wasted potential - the legal system disproportionately arresting, charging, sentencing, killing black people compared to white people, the exploitation of poor people by not enforcing a living wage as a minimum wage, the fact that health care is not considered a right in the United States, a $23 BILLION funding gap between white and nonwhite school districts despite serving about the same number of students, grossly overpriced university education, etc. All these things disproportionately hurt poor people and you know who are disproportionately poor in the United States? People of color.