In order for the expression, "Black Lives Matter" to have any meaning, there must be an assertion, somewhere or somehow, that Black lives don't matter. How would a Black person come to believe that?
Imagine the pointless death of a white 17-year-old blonde, beautiful cheerleader, killed by a hit&run driver while jogging in a park.
Contrariwise, imagine a 17-year-old Black HS dropout, killed by gunfire during a midnight turf battle in the 'hood.
It is likely that the local constabulary would go to great measures to find the hit&run driver who killed the Babe, apprehend him and bring him to justice. The whole episode, from the initial car-human collision to the sentencing of the perp would be played out on the front pages of the local birdcage liner. A human tragedy of the highest order, and the taking of a life that matters.
As for the unfortunate gang-banger, the cops would ask a few bystanders if they had seen anything, get the predictable negative responses, fill out the obligatory paperwork, and forget about it. The newspaper would have a two or three line entry in the crime roundup, possibly have a quote from the deceased's Aunt, saying that, "Lamont had just found Jesus," and the Thing - as far as the public is concerned - would be at an end.
Because, you see, Black lives don't matter much.
But is this "fair"? I submit that it is.
The vast majority of Black deaths that hit the news(papers) are just the sort of thing mentioned above. Almost invariably, the victim was either a chronic Problem Child, or at the very least, up to no good at the time of his death. So there is no sympathy from the public, and the Media have no real interest.
In almost all of the most celebrated cases of Black deaths in recent years, one or both of these factors plays a part. The Black guy was either a chronic f*ck-up or was up to no good at the time of his demise. St. George Floyd was high on illegal substances, passing counterfeit cash, and had a criminal record, let's say a quarter-mile long. Did he deserve to die for those things (maybe he wasn't even aware that the bills were counterfeit)? No, of course not. Was the cop criminally out-of-line? Certainly. But his death was no tragedy to anyone outside his immediate circle of friends and family. Did his life matter? Not really.
I submit that when a Black victim is in fact innocent and blameless, when it appears that he is an upright person contributing or likely to contribute in the future to society, his death gets just as much attention as a similarly situated white person. Those lives do matter, for sure. But not ALL Black lives, and not ALL other lives are tragedies, worthy of public attention or mourning outside their immediate circle.
Hence we constantly hear about the carnage in Chicago, Baltimore, and other notorious urban venues. Seriously, who cares? Nobody, Black or white. If it did matter to Black people as much as they wail that "Black Lives Matter," the Black community would be doing something about it - self-policing, if you will. But that ain't happening. Obviously.
Some lives matter and some lives don't. And that's the fact.
Imagine the pointless death of a white 17-year-old blonde, beautiful cheerleader, killed by a hit&run driver while jogging in a park.
Contrariwise, imagine a 17-year-old Black HS dropout, killed by gunfire during a midnight turf battle in the 'hood.
It is likely that the local constabulary would go to great measures to find the hit&run driver who killed the Babe, apprehend him and bring him to justice. The whole episode, from the initial car-human collision to the sentencing of the perp would be played out on the front pages of the local birdcage liner. A human tragedy of the highest order, and the taking of a life that matters.
As for the unfortunate gang-banger, the cops would ask a few bystanders if they had seen anything, get the predictable negative responses, fill out the obligatory paperwork, and forget about it. The newspaper would have a two or three line entry in the crime roundup, possibly have a quote from the deceased's Aunt, saying that, "Lamont had just found Jesus," and the Thing - as far as the public is concerned - would be at an end.
Because, you see, Black lives don't matter much.
But is this "fair"? I submit that it is.
The vast majority of Black deaths that hit the news(papers) are just the sort of thing mentioned above. Almost invariably, the victim was either a chronic Problem Child, or at the very least, up to no good at the time of his death. So there is no sympathy from the public, and the Media have no real interest.
In almost all of the most celebrated cases of Black deaths in recent years, one or both of these factors plays a part. The Black guy was either a chronic f*ck-up or was up to no good at the time of his demise. St. George Floyd was high on illegal substances, passing counterfeit cash, and had a criminal record, let's say a quarter-mile long. Did he deserve to die for those things (maybe he wasn't even aware that the bills were counterfeit)? No, of course not. Was the cop criminally out-of-line? Certainly. But his death was no tragedy to anyone outside his immediate circle of friends and family. Did his life matter? Not really.
I submit that when a Black victim is in fact innocent and blameless, when it appears that he is an upright person contributing or likely to contribute in the future to society, his death gets just as much attention as a similarly situated white person. Those lives do matter, for sure. But not ALL Black lives, and not ALL other lives are tragedies, worthy of public attention or mourning outside their immediate circle.
Hence we constantly hear about the carnage in Chicago, Baltimore, and other notorious urban venues. Seriously, who cares? Nobody, Black or white. If it did matter to Black people as much as they wail that "Black Lives Matter," the Black community would be doing something about it - self-policing, if you will. But that ain't happening. Obviously.
Some lives matter and some lives don't. And that's the fact.
