Frequently Asked Questions and Ridicule Protesters Have Received(Regarding the George Zimmermann vs The State of Florida case)

Q: Why is this case getting so much attention?

A: Because one; the news media loves sensationalism. You may be tired of hearing about the case but there are more people that are interested about the case than you may immediately know. The articles regarding this case are apparently getting many views and since news stations are actually businesses that need money to stay afloat they post articles that generate money.

Secondly; many people feel like there is some flaws with the justice system and believe that justice was not served. We believe that Trayvon Martin was racially profiled and if George Zimmerman did not follow him he would be here today. Therefore, Zimmerman should be held accountable for Trayvon’s death.

Q: Why is this case getting so much attention in comparison to another case that I deem as being more important? (And usually they will bring up a different case where there was a black person that killed a white person or some other race, like the unfortunate killing of Antonio West, a 13 month old child, in Georgia.)

A: The difference with those cases and this case is that the murderers were caught immediately and will be prosecuted. The young boys who killed Antonio West were arrested that very day and not one person has come to their defense or believes that they have been wrongful accused outside of their family. It was a unified consensus that what they did was terribly wrong. In the case of Antonio West, we believe that justice will be served. Just because the murders were black does not mean BLACK PEOPLE will automatically would defend them. Wrong is wrong.

Q: Why didn’t you all protest this other case? (And usually they will bring up a different case where there was a black person that killed a white person or some other race, like the unfortunate killing of Antonio West, a 13 month old child, in Georgia.)

A: We cannot protest ever crime. That's unrealistic. So many people are protesting because they could have been Trayvon Martin. They feel empathetic to him and his family. My cousin and brother and nephew could have been Trayvon. And because blacks have such a negative stereotype within the media, it was easy to paint him (or any black man) as a criminal, even if they are not. That is why when George Zimmerman told the police in Sanford that it was self-defense, they automatically believed him without conducting an investigation.

If you feel that other crimes should have received more attention, then you should write to CNN, MSNBC and FOX. You should start a petition on change.org. You should organize a protest in your community, the same way we did for Trayvon. No one is stopping you from being proactive. Spread the word about the injustices involving any case. If you feel like another case deserves as much attention, exercise your right and do something about it. But why get mad at us for feeling strongly about this case and taking action? Why the negative responses? The truth of the matter is that you don’t really care about those other cases. You are just using them as pawns to prove a point. I had a Facebook friend post a story about Antonio West and she asked why no one was talking about that case. Well, Antonio was murdered in March. And when I scrolled down her timeline she has never posted anything thing about that child and his unfortunate murder (although she had 5 months to do so). And in that case, the murderers did not walk away free. It is sad that he died at such a young age. He was only 13 months old; an innocent child. It made me sick to my stomach. Black people can empathize with all races, not just our own. And I am happy the killers are behind bars, where they belong, no matter their race.

But if you really cared about those other cases you would be doing the same thing we are doing. So complaining about us is counterproductive, in my opinion. If you really care about those other cases, take action. No one is stopping you. Hell, we may even join you.

Q: Why do blacks always support other blacks no matter what?

A: Because we are a mindless pea brain race that can’t logically think and comprehensively process situations and we are genetically inclined to support one another no matter what. No… that was me being facetious. Actually, we can. And we don’t take up for every single black. Just like we all didn’t vote for Obama because he was black. Hard to believe… I know. (SN: I believe blacks have more of a loyalty to the Democratic Party than they do with black candidates, when dealing with politics. Meaning, they would vote democratic before they would vote for a black person running for office. Obama just happens to be the best of both worlds.) If someone does something wrong, most of the time we can accept it. We don’t protest in the streets for the black murderers but the murdered. Think of all the protest in history that moved a good portion of the black population. Most, if not all those protest where meaningful and helped the advancement of minorities in America. Education. The right to vote. 

And in this case, there were some protest with more white protesters (and other ethnicities) than blacks. Awkward! Right? (That’s me being facetious again.)

Q: Why do black people always cry out racism? Why do blacks practice reverse racism?

A: In my opinion, the term, ‘reverse racism’ is belittling. Racism is racism. No matter whom it comes from. Yes, blacks can be racist too. 

There may be some blacks that call foul unnecessarily. But this has nothing to do with the redundancies of racism in this nation or the lack-thereof. But in this case, we believe that racial profiling is why Trayvon is no longer with us. This case is bigger than Trayvon. This case is about saving our black men from people who only view them as criminals. This is about reminding them that they are loved. This is about saving them from themselves. This is showing them that if we believe you did nothing wrong; we will not let someone gun you down on the street and walk away with just a bloody nose and a scratch on his head.

Yes, blacks kill blacks every day. And those blacks are arrested. Again, this is about justice. It’s not about protecting black people if they did something wrong.

My question for the people who are so angry about our movement:

What I don't understand is why so many people want to degrade and belittle our hurt and anger. That's what is so scary about this. You may not agree with the protest and that's okay. This is not everyone's fight. But to belittle it shows the hate in your own heart. This is my fight, so if you are not with us, sit down. But you can’t escape this because the revolution is being televised.

If you really feel like other cases are not getting the attention they deserve then do something about it. Remember it is not white vs black. It's what we deem as right vs wrong. No one is stopping you from protesting against other cases that you may deem as unfair. Go for it. Hey, we may even join you.

 But don't pull cases out your ass and say 'hey, why is no one talking about his child who died?' When you know good and well you aren't talking about that child either and you are only using that case as a pawn to make a point. Now if you were fighting tooth and nail for a case to get media attention then you can use the case and ask those types of questions. But if not, I need you to step aside and watch us exercise our right to PROTEST.

We Have to Do Better

We Have to Do Better

 After living in black communities and attending a HBCU, I have come to realize that the black community is very hard on themselves. We have the propensity to come down hard and strong on one another. We often see how the media illustrates us and how we are perceived by other races, but we fail to realize that there is more to us then our color. Yes, the media is cogent, leading us to believe the copious negative stereotypes of blacks. But who should know about Black People better than Black People?

If you ask me, one of the biggest problems within the black community is that we are always talking about the biggest problems within the black community. It is okay to discuss problems… how else will we ever come up with a resolution? However, these discussions are not being had with the intent to resolve but to criticize. I have never heard any other group of people treat their own kind so poorly. Black on black crime isn’t only happening in the streets with guns and violence, but it also comes from our own mouths. Have you ever heard the saying ‘If you want to hide something from a black person, put it in a book’? I have. And I have only heard it from other Blacks. Why would we say or repeat something like this? I am black, and I read books. I have friends that read, and they too are black. I am sure the entire White population doesn’t read on a daily basis, nor does any other entire population. So why do we feel the need to criticize each other? Shouldn’t this be labeled a crime? As a young child, being aware of the racial differences, hearing ‘If you want to hide something from a black person, put it in a book’ was an injustice. I was molded into thinking black people are less intelligent; black people were inadequate compared to other races. And it came from BLACK people.

As cliché as this may sound, we are more than our skin color. We have rich blacks, we have poor blacks, we have educated blacks and we have uneducated blacks. So should we expect the poor blacks to carry themselves as the rich black people would? And vice versa? Should we expect the educated blacks to carry themselves the way uneducated blacks would? And vice versa? The point I am trying to make is that we are all different. Yes we have our percentage of criminals, but we also have our percentage of doctors and lawyers too. If we have a greater percentage of blacks in poorer communities, then it’s a domino effect in the sense of ‘being a product of your environment’. This, is not based off of race but more so due to ones surroundings, which include economic status and education background. The poorer the community, the more crime you can expect. But why do we only focus on skin color and blame this as the cause?

You are a product of your environment. You become who you are depending on your genetics and upbringing (nature and nurture). With the race factor being put aside, consider the upbringing of a child raised in a poor community in America. How would he talk? How would he dress? Does he know what resources are other there to benefit him? Does he value education? Does the people around him value education? It's all about the environment. You can't expect someone from the hood to carry themselves the way someone from Beverly Hills would. And you most definitely can not blame it on ones race.

I say all of that, to say this: we are black, but we are more than just that. The stereotypes will never cease to exist. That is not under our control. But to spread these stereotypes and to believe them is an injustice. And to be completely politically incorrect, I believe we should look at the real issue which is education. When you are in a poor community, the more the likely-hood that you will be less educated. By being less educated has it's side effects which includes proverty and crime. Yes, rich folks can be criminals too, but their crimes are different from the crimes that occur in the hood. In poor communities Lil Ray Ray is getting shot because he wanted to be a dope boy.

Race doesn't have anything to do with the way people act. Ecucation, environment and economic status determines that. 

(Disclaimer: I am not saying that only poor people commit crimes.)