Well tonight I can so identify with that scenario.

Yesterday a man named James Holmes opened fire in a theater killing and injuring many people. The news has heavy coverage of this story so I wont go into too much of the stories details. I just find it amazing how the media, with no evidence only speculation, has already painted this guy to be a brilliant man who either suffers from mental illness or had a hard time finding work. The media continues to glorify this man  despite the fact that he has murdered so many people.

This man is a terrorist. Nothing more or less.The media is not calling him that though.

I have a few beefs with this whole story.

The first beef is the obvious. This man has created a horrible tragedy on American soil. Many people there that weren’t physically injured, will suffer mental anguish for years to come. Lives have been lost, all of them young..and families are broken at the hands of this loon.

My second beef is the fact that the media is running with so much speculation. Why you may wonder? Because this guy looks like your neighbor. Someone you wouldn’t mind seeing your daughter go out on a date with. He didn’t grow up in a bad neighborhood, wasn’t poor. He completed his B.S. and was working on his PhD in Behavioral Science (imagine that).  The average white American, especially those in the media that have these kinds of degrees and similar images, can relate to him. He could be them! So for this reason he is being given so many passes. I’ve heard some call him brilliant. And maybe he is. Fuck that though, who calls someone that just opened fire in a theater, brilliant. I don’t care if he is Albert Einsteins great nephew. You do not give out compliments to terrorists when lives have been lost. It all falls under the different stereo types that plague this damn country. Had this man been different then your average American (Black, Muslim, undocumented, etc)…the story would ring such a different tune. Matter of fact, there was no chances for mental illness when our Muslim American soldier opened fire in Ft. Hood. Just like when officers that shoot unarmed black men while being cuffed, get acquitted. This is the playing field we have to deal with. No where near level.

My third beef is the fact that in the beginning of this month in NYC, 77 people were shot in a one week time period. One of those shot was a 3 year old child. Did this horrific crime wave get any media attention? Hell no it didn’t. Why not you ask? Well maybe you can tell me. The only thing different that most of the victims were minorities. NYC aint the only place. Chicago has had an ongoing violent streak that mostly gets attention if your actually living in Chicago. Makes mt think that if your victim is black, the life is not that important then those that are being killed while being white. Did these killers get a psych eval? Probably not. They probably just got thrown in jail because minority criminals aren’t glorified. Stereotypes are here, they are powerful and they are out in full force.

So yea. I am a bit overwhelmed with my own emotions. I feel like that superhero in that moment when she has lost her power and she needs to go to her cave, lay in a capsule and take the time to restore her powers.  In the meantime people, step outside of your boxes and look around at this country and how big these problems are that we are faced with.

Okay I am going to get a little personal with you. Something you will rarely see me do. I am a black woman. I have been involved with the same guy for quite some time. Neither of us have money, nor have we ever had a lot of money. We both have goals that we are working toward. I use proper English when I speak and I know the time and place for any situation. The people I associate with are similar to me in these respects. The women, men, and the women or men they are involved with.

The reason I am sharing this information with you is because I am seeing an online epidemic that needs to be cured. Not just for the sake of getting along, but for our own mental health as individuals and as a people. By now, we are all fully aware of racism. We are familiar with the stereotypes that have been used against us. If not by our own experiences, at least by those that grace the pages of our newspapers everyday in regards to America’s first Black President and his family. We see non blacks refer to blacks as thugs, goons, crack addicts, criminals, defensive, angry, un-wed parents, and the list goes on. Since we got here, no matter what we do, we are not “the norm.” We are not “American” enough. Some states are even trying to keep us in our place by creating laws to criminalize our cultural differences (sagging pants, stop & frisk, SB 1070, etc).

Don’t you think we get enough hate without the hate I am seeing between black men and women. I see gender based stereotypes and complaints from black men and women, more than I see hate from other races toward blacks. I’ve seen black men speak of how black women only want money or have attitudes. I see black women speaking about how black men all cheat or chose their women based on certain physical appearances. It’s almost like we are taking lessons by those that hate us, on how to hate ourselves.

I don’t know about you but I am tired of the double down of stereotypes from those that hate me for my skin color, as well as those that hate me for their skin color. Fellas. ladies, if you don’t like the company you keep then re-create your scenery. If you see someone lumping you into a group of people based on your gender or race, prove them wrong with how you act. We need to start healing as a people so that we can rightfully expect our due respect from others. As long as your speaking badly about your brothers and sisters, you can expect the same by those that are looking for a reason to do the same.

Sean Bell 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sean_Bell

The Sean Bell shooting incident took place in the New York City borough of Queens, New York, United States on November 25, 2006, when three men were shot at a total of fifty times by a team of both plainclothes and undercover NYPD officers, killing one of the men, Sean Bell, on the morning before his wedding, and severely wounding two of his friends, Trent Benefield and Joseph Guzman.^[1] The incident sparked fierce criticism of the police from some members of the public and drew comparisons to the 1999 killing ofAmadou Diallo.^[2] Three of the five detectives involved in the shooting went to trial^[3] on charges ranging from manslaughter to reckless endangerment, and were found not guilty

Oscar Grant

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo0d6Q4RVno

Mehserle shot Grant in the back while Grant lay face down on a train platform. He and his friends had been pulled off the BART train for allegedly starting a fight, and several were in the process of being handcuffed when Mehserle pulled his pistol out of its holster and shot Grant.

Jordan Miles

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/24/jordan-miles-teen-violini_n_434772.html

“Where’s the money?” one shouted, according to Miles. “Where’s the gun? Where’s the drugs?” the other two said. “It was intimidating; I thought I was going to be robbed,” Miles said.

That’s when he says he took off back to his mother’s house but slipped on the icy sidewalk. Before he could pull himself up, Miles said, the men were at his back.

“That’s when they started beating me, punching, kicking me, choking me,” he said.
Not until 15 minutes later, when uniformed officers drove up in a van and Miles overheard their conversation, did he realize he had been arrested, he said. Initially, when the handcuffs were clamped around his wrists, he thought he was being abducted, he said.
The police believed Miles, who appeared to have something heavy in his pocket, was carrying a gun, according to the affidavit. The police say they used a stun gun on the teenager.
According to the affidavit, the object in Miles’ pocket turned out to be a bottle of Mountain Dew. But Miles says he didn’t have anything in his pocket and rarely drinks Mountain Dew.

Kendrec McDade

19-year-old Kendrec McDade (pictured above), who was unarmed when he was shot 7 times by police officers at point blank range, then handcuffed.

In data researched and compiled by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, Black Left Unity Network, and U.S. Human Rights Network, the picture of how often — and fatally — Black people are victimized by police in this country becomes startling clear. Below are the details of the Black men and women who have been murdered at the hands of police so far this year:

Pattern of Murders By the Numbers Since January 1, 2012

Thirty cases of state sanctioned or justified murder of Black people in the first 3 months of 2012 alone have been found (due to under reporting and discriminatory methods of documentation, it is likely that there are more that our research has yet to uncover)

Of the 30 killed people, 20 were definitely unarmed. 2 probably had firearms, 8 were alleged to have non-lethal weapons.

Of the 30 killed people:

12 were innocent of any illegal behavior or behavior that involved a threat to anyone (although the killers claimed they looked “suspicious”);

8 were emotionally disturbed and/or displaying strange behavior.

The remaining 10 were either engaged in illegal or potentially illegal activity, or there was too little info to determine circumstances of their killing.

It appears that in all but two of these cases, illegal and/or harmful behavior could have been stopped without the use of lethal force.

In most cases, where planned, investigations of the deaths have not been completed.

Note: Only seven of the 30 killed people were over 30 years old and two of the six were 31 years old. Two were women.

It also includes the tragic case of 19-year-old Ramarley Graham (pictured above) who was profiled, chased to his grandmother’s house by the NYPD, and then murdered in the bathroom.

Source: NewsOne

School has been whoopin my arse with two papers a week. For that reason I have been kinda laggin in the blog department, but here I am.

So a month ago yesterday, a movement started. It began with people in New York marching against many many things, but the united message was to get corruption and greed out of our government. The movement started off as being called Occupy Wall Street. Now it is referred to as just Occupy. There is no leader and there is no representative. This movement is by definition, by the people and for the people.

Last night a video reached the internets with a man who had no problem voicing his concerns to the police for the things they were doing. If you watch anything, this would be it. His name is Sgt Shamar Thomas.  His whole family has served this country and this priceless video brought up some serious concerns. Unlike the beginning of these protests, this mans video got great media attention. I will leave you with this video. Please do share with your friends.

Please read on…

When this movement began the news was on hush! No media coverage what so ever. I find it amazing that those media chumps can hop on a plane and risk their life in a violent protest in Iran or Egypt, but can’t hop in their car to drive to a peaceful protest right outside their windows. It wasn’t until cities all over the country started protesting in solidarity, that the media decided to pay a little attention. Even then, the media emphasized how the protesters “had no message” or “no goal,” implying that the cause was pointless and radical. It’s funny how the media couldn’t sway the public’s mind on how this protest was representing itself. The movement went from New York to Seattle, Austin, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Chicago, Portland, Tuscon, Boston, and every single other city. Within days unions organized and became a strong force of this movement. Neatly dressed in their uniforms, 700 Pilots, from a variety of airlines, even decided to join in to protest their concerns.

Times Square

Pilots

New York

Boston

Times Square

Los Angeles

                                                                                                                                                   Los Angeles

Oakland

On Saturday October 15th, the movement took a whole notha turn. I kept hearing people like Van Jones and Al Sharpton warn that this movement was just getting started and to expect to see big changes on October 15th.  So Saturday came and Sharpton led his rally for jobs alongside the gathering for the MLK jr memorial. New York split up their protests with thousands of people in various places and they all met up at 5pm in Times Square.  Not only did the numbers increase by the thousands in New York, they also increased by the thousands in cities all over the country. That’s not it though. The movement became global and hundreds of thousands of people congregated world-wide to protest the corruption and greed from corporation involvement with government.

Seeing people all over the world have the same concerns of those in our country, shows me how deeply intertwined corporate corruption is.

Gothenburg Sweden

Madrid Spain

Warsaw

Philipines

Brussells

Frankfurt

Hong Kong

Tokyo

Tel Aviv

Not to change the subject, but another issue that was taking place during the protests was mucho police brutality. The month  started off with a Lt Bologna, randomly macing folks that were not doing anything wrong. I guess he’s supposed to be under some kind of internal affairs investigation because he was caught on tape. Although I haven’t heard a damn thing about it since it happened.  There are many photos of folks being pinned down by cops with a knee to the neck. There are people being dragged. in Boston the other night, Veterans for Peace got bum rushed and arrested just for holding up their flags. O.o The police throwing around elderly men got caught on video as well.  Simultaneously police raided Seattle, Atlanta and Boston in the middle of the night when they thought the media wouldn’t be paying any attention.  Almost as if this was an organized effort to stop people from exercising their right to peaceful protests. There is one person whose ankle was run over by a police bike. There are photos to support this.

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Slavery is one many things that affect all Americans. There are so many people who don’t understand the huge impression that slavery has on our country physically and psychologically. Many people tend to think that since slavery is over, it should no longer concern us. This way of thinking is extremely untrue and dangerous. Slavery has everything to do with anything that pertains to, or that evolve around, race. From neighborhoods and cities with high black populations to states with almost no black population, slavery is the root of how we have evolved demographically. Not to mention stereotypes, blatant and subtle racism, education, voting, perceptions of affirmative action for minorities vs. our country’s history of affirmative action for those of European descent. Also, a term that many people hear and refuse to learn about, white privilege. The history of the 3/5ths rule and how it tends to affect how our media portrays black Americans during election time.

Over the next few weeks I will be writing a series of blogs to discuss how slavery affects us all today. I am extremely excited about getting this information out to the masses. So please read and share so that we can live in a more educated society. The only way to improve the powers that be, is to acknowledge our flaws and then discuss them.

I am usually pretty optimistic, inspired by thoughts, and excited by ideas when it comes to working toward change. I have this need in me to change the world. I see whats wrong, think of ways to fix it and then set my mind to accomplish those goals. My bubble was burst tonight. Every element of this Troy Davis case was comparable to someone (me)  getting their asses beat. I don’t mean a high school brawl but a real beat down. One of those beat downs when there is 4 people on one, and one person kicks you in your ribs while you’re trying to get up. You fall and start to get up again and someone else comes in with another kick to your ribs. One of those kinds of beat downs where you’re down and you can’t get back up. You just lay there and take it. It hurts like hell but you’re so badly beaten that you can’t even raise your finger. You can’t block your self. You can’t cry out. All you can do is lay there and take it. Tonight, the problems that have been brought to the surface are so huge, there is no bright idea or group effort to organize to make this right.  America, the people, are down for the count.

Since there is so much to touch, I will go in order of the events that brought Troy Davis to his soon to be death. So let’s start with the police. Our country has a system that gives certain rights to states to govern. The states make the laws pertaining to these issues, and carry them out. Federal government is banned from intervening in any of these issues. Some examples of those laws are gun rights, capital punishment, programs for the poor, etc. The issue I am deeply unhappy with tonight is crooked ass cops. The problem with police brutality and corruption are much larger than we would like to think. While many cases go unreported, you can do a YouTube search and spend the whole day watching videos of police beating women, children, elderly, etc..

So the entire reason that Troy Davis is dying tonight begins with “police coercion and intimidation.” Police coerced and intimidated people so that Davis would be punished for their friend’s death. How do we fix this?  How do we fix a problem that exists in every state? A problem that has left many dead with no justice for their death. A problem that has caused many to actually lose trust in the very people who are hired to protect and serve us? A problem that has created such a fear in the black and Latin community, depending on the state you go to.  The only way to fix this problem is to make it a federal entity. Create federal laws with federal repercussions. Not only for the wrong doers but those that cover up any wrong doing. Create regulations that have to be upheld, and a place for any American to report any wrong doing with the guarantee that the he/she will be taken seriously. Police incomes are paid by tax payers. They are supposed to be working for us. We need a police reform.

Lastly, our government consists of elected and appointed officials. The supreme court members are chosen by the President in office at the time of the appointment. Supreme court justices are in their position until they resign. It is a life long position. Over the past couple years we have seen that no matter how large the conflict of interest, no matter how biased their stance, no matter how many illegal sexual relationships they have; a supreme court justice aint goin no where.  Congress, on the other hand, is elected. These congress men and women are elected by their districts constituents to represent the people. During the last couple years we have seen that some of these congress men and women only represent the corporations that donate large to their campaign. We have seen that no matter how many constituent letters, phone calls, emails, and visits they get; they will never stand up in defense of the people.  What can we do to change this?

In regards to the Supreme Court we need an amendment to the constitution that provides a path for the people to impeach these appointed officials.  I admit, a good Supreme Court justice is one I would love to keep forever. For that reason I don’t mind a lifetime appointment, but we definitely need to be heard when we are unhappy with what they do once appointed. We pay the salaries of our Supreme Court judges. They work for us so we should be able to fire them.

In regards to congress, since these employees are elected by the people who pay their salaries, we need to reform how they carry out their job in representing the people. There needs to be a ban on corporate contributions and corporate lobbying. Corporations are NOT people my friend and our government needs to reflect this as such.

I am tired of having my ass handed to me by those that we’ve hired to represent us. They are holding our head under water and waiting for us to stop breathing. We need to get up and remind them we put them there and we can take them out. We have a long way to go before these changes ever take place so we should start fighting for this as soon as possible.

Courtesy of The New Republic

So when do we start this riot? We are definitely unheard right now. The republican party is trying to reform our entire country. From social security, to unemployment, to Medicare and Medicaid. Right now, we have republican nominees debating who is going to do the best job at turning this country into a corporation and take away everything that is related to government. All while they enjoy their large tax-payer financed salaries and good ole tax payer financed government health care.

The other day I read an article that Jeb Bush is leading a FOR-PROFIT national disaster response company. All while many on the right are saying we need to get rid of FEMA. So let me get this right, a tornado plows through my house and I can get the help I need, by lacing Jeb Bush’s wallet with money that I don’t have, in a time where everything I do have is gone. Is this the American way?

Oh and let’s not forget the last republican debate, when Ron Paul was asked about health care. The GOP-Tea drinking crowd  cheered at the notion of letting someone die because he was faced with lethal health dilemmas and no health care. Some of the members of my Liberal and Proud page tried to defend Paul by saying “wull he wasn’t the one who cheered,” but he also didn’t say anything what so ever when his crowd of voters did cheer. Paul wasn’t alone though. Not one of those candidates stood up for life, while they claim they are pro-life candidates. So is a life only important when it’s pre-birth? Or is the GOP really just contradicting themselves like they tend to do quite often. Less government intrusion unless it has to do with your sexual preference, your womb, your right to get service in any public establishment, your right to vote, your right to health, or your right to life.

Sometimes I think republicans want to lose this election. The largest bloc of voters is the elderly. Yes, the elderly, meaning those that rely on social security and health care that is provided to them through the government. Republicans get on that stage and compete over who can shun these “entitlement” programs the best. Yet they don’t seem to take it to seriously when they have the elderly showing up to their events heckling them over social security. You also have cookoo’s like Michelle Bachman saying they think it would be a good idea if the United States got rid of the minimum wage and brought wages down to match the cost of labor overseas. Imagine that. With gas prices and grocery prices soaring, getting paid 3.25 an hour (at the most) and working full-time. You would be bringing home a little bit over 500.00 a month. That wouldn’t even cover my rent let alone a car note, gas bill, electric bill, phone bill, etc.

All of this is an example of politicians trying to make it so the government controls the people. Making it so we the people have fewer options, less rights as Americans and as humans, less safety nets with our income, and less safety nets against corporate America’s greed over the American people. Our government was created to work so that the people controlled the government. With all that being said, it is time to riot. The people’s passion for politics and the well-being of our society, has increased since the 2008 elections. It is time for us to start using that passion to riot by running for office, voting, and protesting in every way we can to make sure we are no longer unheard. It is time to show up to our representatives offices and express what we the people want from our government. Sure, emailing and phone calls are great, but interns respond to emails and voice mails get deleted. We need for our employees (elected officials) to remember our faces and have something on paper to remind them of our demands. We have been underestimating the power of the tea party since they came into existence, and since then they have begun to control those in office with their extreme antics. Because of this, so many of our rights have been threatened, so it is time for us to yell louder than our opposition. We need to take our country back.

Corporations are people my friend. – Mit Romney (pfft)

You won’t see many posts by me that don’t include some sort of factual evidence or statistic. After watching this video I couldn’t refrain from voicing my opinion about this dweeb.

Before I go on, please watch the video:

Okay so this young man said many things that should offend anyone with some sense. The worst part of it is the number of stereotypes one man can dish in a three-minute video. Let’s start with the main topic. The reasoning this man gives for not dating white women that even consider dating black men, is because they are used up, disrespected, have had trains ran on them, will most likely get aids, are trash and he doesn’t want them any way. These statements aren’t only offensive to white women that date black men but calling them all too weak and passive to have demands and self-respect; but it is also offensive to black men by stereotyping black men into one clump of a category that black men have diseases, beat women, rape women, etc.

Now let’s be real. Yes there is a black man in this world that has used a white women, beaten a white women, and raped a white women; but if you have ever left your front porch then you know that white men also rape white women, beat white women, and have sexually transmitted diseases.

Good people and bad people come in all shapes, sizes, and colors.  Aww what the hell how about some actual statistics…

From the late 1500’s through to 1865 when slavery was abolished, African women were held against their will and raped. Many of them baring the children of their slave owners. A slave woman named Harriet Jacobs was one of the first slave women to write about herself and others experiences with rape.

“My master was, to my knowledge, the father of 11 slaves. But did the mothers dare to tell who was the father of their children? Did the other slaves dare to allude to it, except in whispers among themselves? No, indeed! They knew too well the terrible consequences.”

In 2009, the United States Dept of Justice put out a report showing that black women are raped more than any other race of women. According to the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network, 52% of rapists are white. While 17% of the victims are white, 18% of the victims are black and 24% of the victims are mixed race women.

So people, before you make a youtube video lumping people of one race into horrific categories, please do your homework. Ignorance is not always bliss. Especially when discussing race.