I am writing this letter because I feel it is necessary, for both clarity and understanding. I feel your tension and some intimidation, both expressed and unexpressed, when I use my page to articulate my feelings about what is going on in America right now, specifically, the Ferguson situation, the killing of Eric Garner, and the killing of 12 year-old Tamir Rice. I want you to understand why these issues are so important to me, and why I believe they ought to be important to you also. Simultaneously, I wish to spark open and intelligent dialogue with you about how, together, we can make a difference in this racially charged society in which we currently live. For some reason, some of you seem to feel that if I am pro-black, that is, I celebrate the accomplishments and heritage of my people,and I empathize and vocalize my discontent with our present treatment, I must, automatically and antithetically, be also anti-white. Nothing could be further from the truth, and honestly, I think you really should know better. Some of you know me personally, from as far back as middle school. Many of you have been my Facebook friends for 5 years+, and you have witnessed my fairness and equity in all matters, my ability to respectfully share my thoughts and opinions, (many of which you have shared and embraced), my generally cool-headed demeanor, even on highly charged topics, my God-fearing and biblically-based points of view, and yet, when I begin to mention the inequity and inequality that Blacks too often experience, you want to question my integrity and/or motives. Shame on you! Why, when it comes to this topic, am I considered off base? The truth is this: You have no idea what it is like to be Black in America. You have no idea how it feels to be pulled over by police, followed around stores, denied basic rights and freedoms, have racial epithets yelled at you from car windows, to be fearful in the presence of cops, simply because of the color of your skin. I know of some of your love for me. I feel the same way about you. But it doesn’t change the fact that there are others of you, more than you may know or be willing to admit, which have deep-seated hatred and ill will towards people of color. If you don’t think this is true, just go to the Internet, look at any of the discussions about Ferguson, etc and you will see such disgustingly racially charged comments that it should make you wince. When some of you try to make this about black-on-black crime, deflecting from the issue at hand, it is really disturbing. It sends a message to us that you are seeking to justify the egregious actions of those who are shooting us down. When you don’t think a thing is wrong with killing an unarmed 18 year-old and dub him a “thug” because he stole some cigarillos from a store, it astounds my mind. But when your teens shoplift, do drugs, and otherwise break the law, they’re just confused or going through a phase. Some of you, just like me, as teens shoplifted and did drugs too. Were you a thug? I’m not saying that Mike Brown acted appropriately in this whole situation, I am saying, he didn’t have to die. We are examples that the die is not cast on who or what you will become when you are only 18, that is, IF YOU GET TO LIVE. According to statistics, black on black crime is just slightly higher than white on white crime. Additionally, the piece you are overlooking is, that when blacks commit these crimes against their own or whites, they will be charged and prosecuted, often to the FULLEST EXTENT of the law. This, unfortunately, again and again, is not the case when a white person commits a crime against a black person, and even less likely if it is a white cop killing or brutalizing someone who is black. Additionally, statistics show that blacks will do more time for the same crime as their white counterparts. How is this fair? At your leisure, peruse some of these statistics: Black on Black Crime Facts • Black-on-Black homicides have decreased by 67% in 20 years, a sharper rate of decrease than white on white homicide. • According to FBI statistics 7361 Blacks were killed by fellow African-Americans in 1991. In 2011, it dropped dramatically to 2447 African-Americans. • Among Black youth, rates of robbery and serious property offenses are the lowest in more than 40 years. Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System Facts • African Americans were two times as likely to be arrested and almost four times as likely to experience the use of force during encounters with the police. • In the federal system Black offenders receive sentences that are 10% longer than white offenders for the same crime. • Five times as many Whites are using drugs as African Americans, yet African Americans are sent to prison for drug offenses at 10 times the rate of Whites. • African Americans are incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of Whites. • African American juvenile youth are about 16% of the youth population, 37% of their cases are moved to criminal court & 58% of convicted African American youth are sent to adult prisons. • Controlling for other factors, including severity of the offense and prior criminal history, white men aged 18-29 were 38% less likely to be sentenced to prison than their Black male peers. • African American women are three times more likely than white women to be incarcerated. • African American defendants are 21% more likely to receive mandatory-minimum sentences than Whites and are 20% more like to be sentenced to prison. Some of you are just as vocal a person as I am about topics in which you are passionate. Your silence on this issue, gives me pause. You are right, in a sense, when you say this shouldn’t be about “black or white.” I agree, and for me, it really isn’t. It’s about RIGHT AND WRONG, and what is being done to many blacks, at this point in history, is just plain wrong. I need you to acknowledge what is wrong, and then be a part of the solution. The Civil Rights Movement of the 60s was fought by blacks and whites, brave whites, who refused to sit back and watch other humans be hosed with water, spit on, shot at, bombed and subjected to other horrific acts. These were whites that stood against many in their own communities, experiencing ridicule and exile, to do what in their hearts they knew to be, THE RIGHT THING. I know some of you think that I am somehow, that “different” black person, not like the “others.” What I need you to understand is, I am not the minority among blacks, I am the majority. Most of the black people I know are exactly like me, decent, hard working, and family oriented. Many of them are also God-fearing, saved, spirit-filled and living lives that try to bring God glory. Some of you need to realize that your perspective of “most blacks” has been skewed by the media’s portrayal of us, and the ignorant stereotypes that have been perpetuated for decades. But the truth is, the majority of us are not hardened criminals or thugs. We are regular people who just want to be treated fairly and justly. Yes, the black community has its issues that must be addressed and corrected. But right now, at this moment, we are dealing with the issue of injustice and inequality. Let us stick to the issue at hand. Just because you go to a Breast Cancer Walk, doesn’t mean you don’t care about Aids or other diseases. It just means, for that particular moment, you’re trying to find a cure for cancer. No one stands up at a Breast Cancer fundraiser, screaming, but what are you doing about Alzheimers? One thing at a time, my friends. Those of you who recognize the truth in what I am saying, you are being called upon now, in this critical moment in time, to be willing to admit and acknowledge infractions and injustices and then TAKE ACTION: Let your voice be heard among your friends; join in protests and petitions; stand with me, stand with us, against what is WRONG, and DO WHAT IS RIGHT. With Love, Respect and Hope, Diana Branch (first published 12/2014)
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