|
Black Lives Matter – Obviously
September 5th 2020
I can’t believe what I just saw, is this really happening? No way?
Because today on the news… I saw pro-athletes who were actually forming sentences other than, “we played really hard tonight,” and, “I just want to thank my teammates and everyone who supported me,” and not just that… but taking an actual stance on an issue? Black Lives Matter? Who would’ve thought? So to pre-face this article, I’d like to first note… that Lebron James doesn’t owe anybody anything, especially with his humble Akron, Ohio roots... and that for that reason I'd like to first remind everyone just how lucky that we all are that he chose to go out of his way to help his fellow minorities, this year. How lucky we all are… And what a delight it is... to see the scariest looking man in America… coming to the defense of the stereo-typed. But in all seriousness, these athletes are not typically inclined to say anything at all, which in my opinion is half of the problem… and surely, a few of them did risk their jobs in order to bring us this message of social awareness. Nevertheless, is being 6 foot 7 inches tall, really that bad? Which then leads me to also point out that the growing tensions between some of these athletes and owners like Jerry Jones… is becoming more and more palpable from a grass roots perspective. (And why wasn’t Kobe being talked about as a future Lakers’ owner? Salary Kap? And why are 95% of the owners in pro-sports white and 95% of the players black?) Nevertheless, thank you’s aside… the murders of George Floyd, Eric Garner and Breonna Taylor should mark a turning point in our society. Whereby, from a grass roots perspective the credibility of the BLM movement is clear to me, particularly having witnessed the types of people who most often have chosen to become law enforcement officer’s today and having experienced mild racism with those types of people, specifically outside of the presence of minorities. However, with that being said… to put these murders simply into the context of, “white and black,” doesn’t feel entirely fair to me either and this issue in particular, I believe encapsulates the divide between African American and white culture within America today. Furthermore, also emphasizing that point is the, “business of law enforcement,” and the types of people who most often choose a career in that field (*middle class white people). Yet, in either case, I believe that what the American people are witnessing this year… both in the killing of George Floyd, as well as the shooting of Jacob Blake, is a cultural boiling point that unfortunately boiled over between an un-armed civilian and someone wearing a badge. However, to be clear… I believe that these killings have in some ways been instigated and incited by black culture, within America today. Yes, you heard that right, I believe that black culture is partially to blame for these instances of misguided violence and even the LEVEL’s of violence that have led to the unnecessary murder’s of Eric Garner and Breonna Taylor. In fact, especially in the case of Breonna Taylor because in a different era I believe that the police would be unlikely to even raid someone’s house in that fashion, guns a-blazing… were it not for modern day, “hip-hop artists,” like Kendrick Lamar and Meek Mill… going platinum for bragging about selling crack cocaine on the radio. While in the meantime, as the shootings occur… these same, “artists,” have earned a combined 95 million dollars for literally just instigating white people through their music. Or rather, I should say, does race baiting in hip-hop music have a cost? And that answer is yes, it surely does. Whereby, again I’ve lectured Meek himself on Twitter about this very topic, dating back to 2012, right after his boy Lil Snupe died… to which his indirect response was, “white people are always just trying to get me in trouble.” However, while allocating the blame for these murders to specific hip hop artists, artists who continue to profit from perpetuating stereotypes… I’m also not saying that I don’t believe racism ever comes from a genuine place of solely irrational hate or disdain, because sometimes it surely does. Nevertheless, what I am saying is that I believe what we’re all witnessing today is more intelligent than just cave men fighting over the color of their skin… and that what we’re seeing today, is actually the bi-product of selfishness that extends beyond skin color and revolves more around leadership from both white and black, “assimilating cultures.” “I don’t smoke crack mother-f***’er… I sell it.” -Kendrick Lamar, who’s rap career has netted him an approximate total of 75 million dollars… in personal earnings. “I haven’t stopped listening to Kendrick’s new album.” -Lebron James, leader of the BLM movement… https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/lebron-james-kendrick-lamar-damn-album/ “I remember being on the block, selling coc.” -Meek Mill, who’s rap career is almost all that anyone knows about him personally… and who has earned approximately 20 million dollars promoting the sale of crack cocaine in his, “music.” Whereby, I’d like to point out that these 3 quotes in particular… were probably heard by over 100 million people, as they were played for literally months at a time on FM Radio… nationwide. So in that context, in my opinion what your seeing right now with these officers, most of whom are white and most of whom are frustrated with their 60,000$ a year salaries, are people who are lashing out over finances and this constant, “race baiting over money/success,” by minorities on the radio. And to further emphasize that point… let’s examine the finances of an average police officer… with 2 kids and a wife. Police officer’s tend to work long hours and sometimes long weeks and their wives typically need a second automobile… which is nearly 25% of their income. (*Did I mention that I hate the Ford Motor Company as well?) Then police officers typically also want to see their children go further in life than they did, so they’re going to want to save money for their kids to go to college and that’s another 5-10% of their monthly income. Then police typically don’t want to live in a crime riddled neighborhood, like the kind they they patrol everyday… because they spend enough of their time dealing with crime at work, so they need a middle class housing situation and that’s usually another 35% of their income, as well. So now, with all of these factors compounding the stress of policing itself, an already difficult task in America today, I believe that this is leading to these senseless acts of violence, catalyzed by socio-economic frustrations that are built up over years on the job. And now I believe that what we’re all witnessing is a situation where police are working full time, yet in some instances making less money than the drug dealers themselves and the police clearly aren’t happy about it! Furthermore, at the same time these officer’s families are going through long periods of time when their loved one’s are in danger and this puts immeasurable amounts of stress on the families of officers. So, in conclusion, I believe that all of these factors are leading to the murders that we’re witnessing today and that now police… in the blink of an eye, are reacting with intentions beyond just that of enforcing the law. Furthermore, in conclusion I believe that all of these factors… are now leading to the senseless acts of violence… which have become a weekly occurrence in our everyday news cycle. (I.E. Today, this week, last week, every month and seemingly every year.) Yet, do you hear Lebron James saying that? Or do you see Nike pandering to their demographic? Black Lives Matter? That was your big decision guys? How bold of you….. as athletes…. to say so little on behalf of your race. Yet, which athlete is constantly talking about his struggles with poverty as an adolescent? Literally all of them, it feels like…… Which also leads me to my counter point… how many officer’s are senselessly being killed by black men, particularly in urban environments? Or are those statistics racially biased because of decades of, “racism,” and at what point do homicide statistics concerning race… start to matter? Which is to say, do disproportionate killings by black or white Americans signal an issue with race or culture? And if this issue is entirely, “ethnic in nature,” then why aren’t we ever told about those statistics? And is Fox News even allowed to give us those statistics? Or is racism during the early 1900’s, 1950’s and 1960’s just going to forever justify urban crime in this country? Why don’t we ever hear about black men killing cops? And is that reporting considered racist? And should it be? And what if suicide statistics were tied to ethnicity? Would that too be considered racially biased reporting? (By the way; notice how suicide statistics are about even right now amongst; Asians, whites, LGBTQ and African Americans.) But ultimately, what are the solutions and how much does race baiting in arena’s like hip hop, impact the relationships between grass roots civilians and police officers? Because I would say that hip hop music impacts racial tensions quite a bit… and I would further emphasize that not only are minorities basically instigating violence with the police through their, “culture / art,” but they’re continuing to do it in a way which is tasteless and degrading towards police. So much so, in fact, that I believe this selfishness in turn has incited many of these incidents of violence, including the killings of; George Floyd, Eric Garner and Breonna Taylor. So to be clear, in conclusion… I do NOT entirely support the Black Lives Matter movement, nor do I see the same accountability being taken by minorities, particularly in terms of becoming police officers themselves! Furthermore, if more minorities became police officers themselves than I believe that this issue wouldn’t be such a problem…. where like today, in Baltimore, you have a similar racial stand-off over the lack of people in, “the plumbing trade,” in Maryland, leaving leaky gas lines all over the city… as I type this. And would a black cop have shot Jacob Blake? Well it’s hard to say when a majority of jurisdictions have a disproportionate amount of minority officers on the force…. Regardless; I don’t entirely support the Black Lives Matter movement because it once again feels like the same people who are causing these problems are making the excuses. Or rather, that the same people who are highly paid bullies on the radio are the victims on the news. Which is to say, that I think the disproportionate amount of minority police, combined with the selfish tactic of promoting drug use/ drug sales on urban radio, combined with the culture of excessive wealth and bragging about wealth in hip hop, is leading to these killings. And it shouldn’t surprise anyone that these middle class white people are mad, after all that was the intention of those lyrics… right? Because hip hop is for black people right? And specifically what are the intentions of these hip hop artists, if not to enrage a primarily white audience? Which is to say that Drake can claim he’s giving, “his people a role model,” all he wants… but to me it’s lazy art and it has a consequence. So was Kendrick Lamar’s lyric, “I don’t smoke crack, mo****er I sell it,” not meant to anger the police? Or how about when Drake said, “awesome verse Meek,” and approved his crack dealer anthems for the radio? Did you think that the police were just going to call it, “art?” And in this way, I find that these acts of senseless police violence are just as much Kendrick Lamar and Meek Mill's fault, as it is the fault of the police officer's who pulled the trigger themselves? -William Larsen, CiviliansNews.com PS: Sell that Dre... BilliamsWorld.com... but I’m a, “culture vulture,” so you can keep that culture. And again, all you ever did was use Eminem to date white women anyway. So basically what your saying is, “f*** Snoop, f*** Dre and f*** Death Row?” Basically. |