Armed, actve shooter taken alive in the immediate aftermath of a mass shooting

So, tell me again why a naked, unarmed black man was sufficiently threatening that police needed to shoot him dead in the street?

Wypipo Poll

There is still a lot of discussion back and forth about the term "Wypipo." I have my own opinion about how the views break down between the two sides and along and within racial lines- but it's largely anecdotal and I'd like to get a chance better sense of where people are on this.

This thread is not an invitation to fight about this - there are plenty of other threads where that's taking place, so please don't launch into any arguments here. I'm just trying to "read the room," so I'd appreciate it if you would just answer the poll without a lot of unnecessary commentary.

Thanks.

Lecia Michelle: "If you want to call me divisive because I talk about race, I'm here for all of it."

Dear White People: If you see something, say something

There has been some discussion ‘round these parts about whether white people who witness racist behavior should get involved or just let the person or persons targeted “handle it themselves.”

While I always took it as a given that any woke white person seeing such a thing should, unquestionably, say something and not just leave it to minorities to fend for ourselves, apparently, there are some white folk stuck on the idea that if we’re doing a “good job” defending ourselves and/or calling out the racist aggressor, they need not say or do anything but watch - and, likely afterward tell their friends about it and, of course, bemoan how awful it was to see, no doubt feeling very good about their outrage.

Wrong.

In fact, that attitude is the very epitome of white privilege at its worst, which allows you to be a bystander, sending silent thoughts and prayers while we fend off your white breathren who, no doubt, take great comfort in your silence and assume, not unreasonably, that it means you agree with them or, at the very least, don’t object strongly enough to their words and behavior to say anything.

So, let me lay it out for you.

I cannot count how many times I have been in these situations - if you are black in America, they happen all the time. This is an exhausting, frustrating everyday reality for us. Not only do we have to deal with the attack, we then have to make all manner of split-second and diamondcut precise calculations that would challenge the Hidden Figures.

Is this racism or is this guy just a jerk to everyone? Do I respond or let it go? If I let it go, am I condoning his behavior? If I don’t try to put him in check, am I leaving him free to do this to someone else who may not be able to protect themselves? And if I DO challenge him, is he dangerous? Could I get hurt? Is there anyone here who will take my side and back me up or am I on my own? And what will everyone here think of me? Will I look crazy or unhinged? Will it affect me or my reputation or job or future in some way? Is it worth it?

And all of this takes place in a fraction of a second while our hearts are pounding, stomachs churning and blood rushing in our ears. And when we DO say something, it’s all we can do to stay calm, continue breathing, keep our voices from shaking too much, and not yell like a crazy person.

Let me tell you - you don’t really know the meaning of “lonely” until you feel what it’s like to have to do all of this ALL BY YOURSELF while your fellow human beings stand around looking at you as if none of this has anything to do with them.

So, given all we have to deal with when confronted with this, is it really too much to ask that you stop sipping your latte long enough to support us with a word or a gesture? It’s not enough that, afterward, you pat us on the back and say, “Wow. That was awful. But YOU were GREAT!” or tell your friends about how awesome we were long after the fact. We need your audible, visible support RIGHT THERE, IN THAT MOMENT.

If you’re truly an ally, that means doing more than standing around watching us fight the battle. SAY SOMETHING! And, even if you don’t want to say anything, step up and DO SOMETHING, even if it’s just standing next to us on our side facing down the ugly.

When you see a white person display bigotry or hatred, don’t just stand there. SAY something. Even if you think the POC has it under control, don’t just stand there, SAY something. Of COURSE we have it under control. We’ve been dealing with this crap all of our lives. We almost always figure out how to handle it and then take care of our business and we manage to do it while having to assess in real time, on the fly, in public, in the middle of the situation exactly what to do and how to do it and then actually pull it off - like Rogers dancing as well as Astaire, but backwards and in high heels - while y’all stand there staring at us and supposedly send good thoughts our way that, for all we know, could just as easily be good thoughts you’re sending to our attacker since we can’t tell if YOU DON’T SAY ANYTHING!

Now, let’s be clear. By “say something,” I don’t mean jumping all up in it like you’re our Great White Hope. And I certainly don’t mean you should put yourself in harm’s way or turn this into a fight about you. But a word, a gesture - sometimes just physically stepping up and standing next to us can make a huge difference.

Because here’s the deal: we don’t need your help. But we do need your support. And we need your support then and there in that moment in time and it needs to be heard and seen, not just by us, but everyone there.

There’s a reason hardly anyone remembers the ballplayers who sat in the dugout and stood around the field being impressed by how much dignity Jackie Robinson showed when he withstood the racist taunts from the crowds, but there IS a statue of Pee Wee Reese standing with his arm around his friend.

Be Pee Wee Reese.

Thank you in advance.

Sincerely,

Effie Black

Add "Being Naked While Black" to the list: "Being Naked Doesn't Remove the Threat"

Trump collecting the Nobel Peace Prize

Was the term "oligarchy" a common term in our political discourse prior to 2016?

If not, how and why did it become so ubiquitous?

Fun Fact:

I wish the crack epidemic had received the same attention, concern, and empathy as the opioid crisis

and not been treated as a moral problem that needed to be criminalized.

If so, we might not even have an opioid problem today, since we would have put into place mindsets. processes, and infrastructures to address this kind of drug problem.

Dear Police Officers of America:

Be this guy.

https://twitter.com/cnn/status/995529382092517377

Thank you in advance.

Sincerely,
Effie Black