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Sharita johnson Professor Thomasine Hill ENG 254: Sur African/American Lit II April 16, 2015 The Killing of Unarmed Black Men in the United States The claim that police shootings of unarmed black men are just “a series of isolated incidents” have become the most laughable, disgraceful, intolerable, unacceptable, and seedy way to excuse race issues. It is more than just police brutality taking place, far more. All of these police officers who are committing these crimes against blacks are white. These white police officers are receiving positive reinforcement (i.e. no consequences) for killing unarmed black people in America. The genocide against Black people must stop. If we (blacks) continue to simply accept the court of law’s obvious lack of concern of the brutal injustices of the killing of unarmed black men and don’t speak up when we see racism at work, the power of whites, nothing is ever going to change. What is going on in our country today? Why can’t the courts and justice system acknowledge what the issue is and punish the police officers? In my opinion, it stems from the system of white supremacy. White supremacy is a historically based, institutionally perpetuated system of exploitation and oppression of continents, nations, and peoples of color by white peoples and nations of the European continent, for the purpose of maintaining and defending a system of wealth, power, and privilege[ CITATION Eli15 \l 1033 ]. It is the belief that white people are superior
to those of all other races, especially the black race, and should therefore dominate society. The United States was founded on this ideology. Europeans (whites) appointed themselves “superior” to blacks and Indians from the beginning of our nation; suppressing us to achieve wealth and prestige. We were no more than animals to them. The belief that whites are superior to other races and therefore should dominate society is as old as America and as American as apple pie. The United States is the first nation in the world to be born racist. It is an idea that has caused much pain and suffering in the world, is a relic of “white culture,” but still plays a role in American society. White supremacy led the way to black codes; Jim Crow laws, the Ku Klux Klan’s emergence, and any drastic measures incommodious towards blacks to remain in power. White authority did what they wanted period, well into the 20th century. Now in the 21st century, it appears that nothing has really changed. White supremacy is not only built into the social structure of America, it is also deeply embedded in American culture. In my view, the problem existing today for the total disregard of killings of unarmed black people is White supremacy. White supremacy explains how a grown man can shoot an unarmed black teenager (Treyvon Martin) and successfully claim self-defense. White supremacy explains the acquittal of the white police officers in the cases of Eric Gardner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, and the list goes on[ CITATION Juz14 \l 1033 ]. Using Hurricane Katrina as an example, the Bush administration’s response, or lack thereof, to Hurricane Katrina was probably not motivated by a desire to see impoverished Blacks destroyed, but it didn’t really care enough to save them from ruin either[ CITATION Ant13 \l 1033 ]. And when it comes to the killings of unarmed black men the system of white supremacy protects white
He would be criticized and making any significant decisions would be difficult for him to achieve in government—which is predominantly white. President Obama has learned how to be calm in the face of this crisis. Yes, it may appear to the public, especially blacks that at the beginning of these brutal injustices Obama seemed to have been unconcerned and way too low-key. But as crisis after crisis grows, so has Obama remarks in speeches. If people attentively listen, they would be able to discern his stance on what is taking place—racial inequality. For example, President Obama spoke at a White House press conference after the riots in Baltimore on April 28, 2015. He stated, “We have seen too many instances of what “appears” to be police officers interacting with individuals, primarily African-American, often poor, in ways that raise troubling questions. It comes up; it seems like, once a week now. It’s not new, but there’s new awareness as a result of cameras and social media”[ CITATION Ass15 \l 1033 ]. He is making it publicly known that he can see what’s happening and that the judicial system, which is predominantly white, is guilty of dishonest practices in their justice for blacks. According to Devin Dwyer, Digital Correspondent, White House, President Obama told BET in an interview, "If you look at after what happened with Michael Brown, if you looked at what happened after Trayvon, if you looked at the decision after Eric Garner, I'm being pretty explicit about my concern, and being pretty explicit about the fact that this is a systemic problem, that black folks and Latinos and others are not just making this up, I describe it in very personal terms"[ CITATION Dwy14 \l 1033 ]. President Obama agrees that the crisis lies with racial injustice. He is being intelligently selective with his choice of words. His hands are tied, just like ours. It is sad that in this day and time that we, blacks, “still have to bite our tongues.”
The ideology of white supremacy and racism all in all, is the fact that it is still a social reality rooted in the basic structure of American society. Also, it is deeply embedded in American culture. Many day-to-day instances of white supremacy are so commonplace they go practically unnoticed by most people. Clearly, it has been too many instances of killings of unarmed black men and women without justice being served. That time has come for blacks, as a whole, to start asking questions such as, how do we get some power? What kind of power do we need to solve our problems? Our answer to our dilemma (crisis) lies in Black unity. It has come time for a call for unity. Black unity is our power. Together we stand or divided we fall. Works Cited
