Wednesday, June 10, 2020

I mean... where's the lie?

I mean... where's the lie?

BLACK LIVES MATTER.

Posted by Melissa Taylor Thomason, copied because I don't want it to disappear.

The reason many young, Southern, white, “allies” like me embrace the “Black Lives Matter” movement is ...

Because we grew up around the “All Lives Matter” crowd that went to church on Sunday and then used the N- word every time a Black person made them mad for the rest of the week. 

Because we got taught “red or yellow, black or white, they are precious in his sight” as kids and then, as teenagers, got told that if we started relationships with black people we’d be called an “N- lover,” disowned or worse. 

Because we were taught about the horrors of slavery, and then we were taught that the Confederate flag should be “respected.” 

Because we grew up hearing white people around us say “I love everybody” and then heard them whisper about not moving into one neighborhood or another because Black people lived there. 

Because we grew up being shown and taught all about a white Jesus and learned later that He looked nothing like us. 

Because at school, we were taught that MLK Jr was a hero and then we saw how angry “Martin Luther King Jr Day” made you. 

Because we heard the “Black jokes” that some of you told and thought the laughter or silence others responded with didn’t line up with the “holy boldness” we’d been taught. 

Because what you taught us black people were or believed or how “they” acted was NOTHING like the reality we found when we got close to them and listened. 

We embrace #BLM because we grew up hearing the words of the “silent majority” spoken aloud, and we knew that what they were saying about HUMAN BEINGS was wrong.

Many of us embrace “Black Lives Matter,” because we embrace all movements that steer us closer to racial equality and because when you showed us who you were, we believed you. 

#BlackLivesStillMatter #AlliesUnite

********

Edit added on 6/11/20:

Let’s clear up some common misconceptions in these comments, as there are lots of them, and I’m down for taking the time to do it if it will help paint a clearer picture: 

1. My parents were INCREDIBLE, but they couldn’t walk around with their hands covering my ears all the time. 😂 I was SMART, and I loved God with everything in me. It didn’t take very long for me to figure out that many of the grown-ups in my extended world were NOT okay with Black people except from a distance. My parents weren’t those people though. Black kids spent the night with me, and one of my friends, who was black, lived with us for a while when I was a young adult. They loved him just like one of their own kids. I thank God for the parents He gave me DAILY. 👍🏻

2. This isn’t just stuff that happened “in the past.” Many of the things I listed are what I heard and saw as a child and teenager in a rural Southern town AND then again heard and saw in the lives of young people I worked with as an adult and in the lives of fellow adults. If these were super rare or isolated events in my world, I wouldn’t have listed them. 👍🏻

3. Yes, I’m sure that racism probably occurs in a variety of regions in this country, but I’ve never lived for an extended period of time anywhere but in the South. So I can’t tell you about anywhere else. You’re welcome to tell ME about it though. 👍🏻

4. Of course, “not all Southerners are racists!” 🤦🏼‍♀️ That was kind of my point. 😂 I am such a strong advocate for black lives, BECAUSE I am a Southerner. I’ve seen racism. I know it’s history in the South. I KNOW it’s not dead, and I absolutely REFUSE to sit silently by and let it breathe and grow without taking action. And I am not alone! There are tons of “Melissas” all over the South right now! (Some of them have shared this post! 😉 )👍🏻

5. I am both well-adjusted and HAPPY. 🥰 I do not support black lives because of “white guilt” or “white angst.” I support black lives because of LOVE!!! I value black lives. I value black children. I value black PEOPLE, and I love them because why wouldn’t I? God made us all in His image, not just us pale folks! 😉 And although I understand that “I didn’t own slaves” and that “it’s not my personal fault that people experience racism in this country,” I do think it is my personal RESPONSIBILITY, as a Christian and a mother, to do what I can to help fix my own house (aka: country)  when it’s broken!!! 

Hugs to every person who can hear this post with their hearts and not their agendas!!!

Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Yesterday I waffled between enraged and exhausted.

Yesterday I waffled between enraged and exhausted.  My rage was probably showing a bit, but I have no regrets.  We should be angry, but also proud.  We're getting things done.

Today, I am itchy.  I put a 5-years-expired prescription psoriasis cream on a big patch of skin that was bothering me.  Now I feel like I have a chemical burn.  I guess that's what I get for trying my best, being a student, and not being magically wealthy enough to afford health insurance.  I sure do miss the days when Obama was in charge and valued my life regardless of my financial standing.

Make no mistake:  Once I graduate I won't be in this situation again, but many people aren't so fortunate.  And since I'm a caring person that breaks my heart.  I will always vote for someone who cares about the well-being of the people of this country.  The quality of our lives is what matters before anything else, FULL STOP.

Black Lives Matter and have a good day!  ❤

Yesterday I waffled between enraged and exhausted.

Yesterday I waffled between enraged and exhausted.  My rage was probably showing a bit, but I have no regrets.  We should be angry, but also proud.  We're getting things done.

Today, I am itchy.  I put a 5-years-expired prescription psoriasis cream on a big patch of skin that was bothering me.  Now I feel like I have a chemical burn.  I guess that's what I get for trying my best, being a student, and not being magically wealthy enough to afford health insurance.  I sure do miss the days when Obama was in charge and valued my life regardless of my financial standing.

Make no mistake:  Once I graduate I won't be in this situation again, but many people aren't so fortunate.  And since I'm a caring person that breaks my heart.  I will always vote for someone who cares about the well-being of the people of this country.  The quality of our lives is what matters before anything else, FULL STOP.

Black Lives Matter and have a good day!  ❤

Monday, June 8, 2020

He's honestly the most vile and disgusting thing I've ever seen.

He's honestly the most vile and disgusting thing I've ever seen.  Disagree?  Die mad.  Feel like standing up for your orange toddler?  Might as well unfriend me.  I don't have a single fuck left to give anymore.
I miss Obama.  I never felt more secure in this country than when he was in charge.

Shared from Tracy Wade Suhan

THIS WAS ON A FRIEND’S PAGE: An anguished question from a Trump supporter: ‘Why do liberals think Trump supporters are stupid?’
 
THE SERIOUS ANSWER: Here’s what the majority of anti-Trump voters honestly feel about Trump supporters en masse:
 
That when you saw a man who had owned a fraudulent University, intent on scamming poor people, you thought "Fine."
(https://www.usatoday.com/.../trump-university.../502387002/)

That when you saw a man who had made it his business practice to stiff his creditors, you said, "Okay." (https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-hotel-paid-millions-in-fines-for-unpaid-work)

That when you heard him proudly brag about his own history of sexual abuse, you said, "No problem." (https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/list-trumps-accusers-allegations-sexual-misconduct/story?id=51956410&)

That when he made up stories about seeing Muslim-Americans in the thousands cheering the destruction of the World Trade Center, you said, "Not an issue." (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2015/11/22/donald-trumps-outrageous-claim-that-thousands-of-new-jersey-muslims-celebrated-the-911-attacks/)

That when you saw him brag that he could shoot a man on Fifth Avenue and you wouldn't care, you exclaimed, "He sure knows me."
(https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/10/23/president-donald-trump-could-shoot-someone-without-prosecution/4073405002/?)

That when you heard him relating a story of an elderly guest of his country club, an 80-year old man, who fell off a stage and hit his head, to Trump replied: “‘Oh my God, that’s disgusting,’ and I turned away. I couldn’t—you know, he was right in front of me, and I turned away. I didn’t want to touch him. He was bleeding all over the place. And I felt terrible, because it was a beautiful white marble floor, and now it had changed color. Became very red.” You said, "That's cool!" (https://www.gq.com/story/donald-trump-howard-stern-story)

That when you saw him mock the disabled, you thought it was the funniest thing you ever saw. (https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/donald-trump-criticized-after-he-appears-mock-reporter-serge-kovaleski-n470016?)

That when you heard him brag that he doesn't read books, you said, "Well, who has time?" (https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/01/americas-first-post-text-president/549794/?)

That when the Central Park Five were compensated as innocent men convicted of a crime they didn't commit, and he angrily said that they should still be in prison, you said, "That makes sense." (https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/06/19/what-trump-has-said-central-park-five/1501321001/?)

That when you heard him tell his supporters to beat up protesters and that he would hire attorneys, you thought, "Yes!"
(https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-trump-campaign-protests-20160313-story.html)

That when you heard him tell one rally to confiscate a man's coat before throwing him out into the freezing cold, you said, "What a great guy!"
(https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/donald-trump-orders-protester-s-coat-is-confiscated-and-he-is-sent-into-the-cold-a6802756.html)

That you have watched the parade of neo-Nazis and white supremacists with whom he curries favor, while refusing to condemn outright Nazis, and you have said, "Thumbs up!" (https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/08/why-cant-trump-just-condemn-nazis/567320/?)

That you hear him unable to talk to foreign dignitaries without insulting their countries and demanding that they praise his electoral win, you said, "That's the way I want my President to be." (https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-insult-foreign-countries-leaders_n_59dd2769e4b0b26332e76d57)

That you have watched him remove expertise from all layers of government in favor of people who make money off of eliminating protections in the industries they're supposed to be regulating and you have said, "What a genius!"
(https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/12/29/138-trump-policy-changes-2017-000603/)

That you have heard him continue to profit from his businesses, in part by leveraging his position as President, to the point of overcharging the Secret Service for space in the properties he owns, and you have said, "That's smart!"
(https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2018-03-05/how-is-donald-trump-profiting-from-the-presidency-let-us-count-the-ways?)

That you have heard him say that it was difficult to help Puerto Rico because it was in the middle of water and you have said, "That makes sense."
(https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/politics/wp/2017/09/26/the-very-big-ocean-between-here-and-puerto-rico-is-not-a-perfect-excuse-for-a-lack-of-aid/)

That you have seen him start fights with every country from Canada to New Zealand while praising Russia and quote, "falling in love" with the dictator of North Korea, and you have said, "That's statesmanship!"
(https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/02/politics/donald-trump-dictators-kim-jong-un-vladimir-putin/index.html?)

That Trump separated children from their families and put them in cages, managed to lose track of 1500 kids, has opened a tent city incarceration camp in the desert in Texas - he explains that they’re just “animals” - and you say, “Well, OK then.”
(https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/more-5-400-children-split-border-according-new-count-n1071791?)

That you have witnessed all the thousand and one other manifestations of corruption and low moral character and outright animalistic rudeness and contempt for you, the working American voter, and you still show up grinning and wearing your MAGA hats and threatening to beat up anybody who says otherwise.
(https://www.americanprogress.org/article/confronting-cost-trumps-corruption-american-families/)

What you don't get, Trump supporters, is that our succumbing to frustration and shaking our heads, thinking of you as stupid, may very well be wrong and unhelpful, but it's also...hear me...charitable.
Because if you're NOT stupid, we must turn to other explanations, and most of them are less flattering.

- Adam-Troy Castro

Take a minute and learn something.

Take a minute and learn something.
Shared from Megan Fletcher

Statistical response to the “black on black crime” deflection:


Written description:
(Thanks Valerie Stewart for writing this out!)

Multiple tweet thread from michaelharriot @michaelharriot
Condensed into one post

I had a professor who always talked about "the necessity of existence." Basically, some things should be created just so that thing will exist in the world. So here's a thread the RT anytime some1 responds to @BlackLivesMatter [three fists with different skin tones] with "but black on black crime" like this yahoo.

It is important to know that these people are deflecting by bringing up other shit. But instead of getting into opinions and feelings, let's just look at data and facts. Now , the first racist fact these people will say is: "13% of the people (Blacks) commit 50% of the murders"

But how can a fact be racist?
Well, I am part of that 13%.
I haven't' murdered anyone.
So let's look at the FBI data. But before we do, understand these stats are for ARRESTS. Some of these crimes were committed by the same person. Some of these people were proven innocent.

But I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt. I'll concede that every crime on the FBI data report was committed by a different black person. Here is the latest FBI data. Black people did commit 53% (5,025) of the 9,466 murders (Not me though, I swear) ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u...[link cut off]

Image:
Screencap of data from FBI listing the type of offence on the left and broken down by race across the top. Long description at bottom of text thread.

There are 47 million black people in the US. 
So, even if a different black person committed every murder, it means 99,989497% of black people DIDN'T commit a murder that year.
That also means 99.994923% of white people didn't commit a murder.
Image: Black Population in US breakdown
- 47,841,851 or 14.6%: Black Only and in combination with another race
- 43,804,319 or 13.4%:Black Only
- 44,085,665 or 13.5%: 'Black Only' and 'in combination (non-Hispanic)
- 40,902,226 or 12.5%: Black Only (non-Hispanic)

So its not 13 percent committing half the murders. .010% of black people are murderers and .005 percent of white people. Which means, if I'd have to meet 10,000 people before I met a black killer. So, Karen, I would DEFINITELY talk to black murderers if I knew one. 
AND...

If you add up all the crime, it means 94.6% of black people don't commit ANY crime in a given year and 95.8% of white people don't get arrested. So why are black people considered to be criminals?
Because you’re racist, Karen.

Also, sociologists know that crime is an economic phenomenon. Poor people commit more crime (It's a little more complicated because it correlates more to inequality) BUT...
Being that white wealth is 10x black wealth, it makes sense that black commit more crime, right?
Nope.

Image:
- Poor Hispanics 25.3 per 1,000) had lower rates of violence compared to poor whites (46.4 per 1,000) and poor blacks (43.3 per 1,000).
- Poor persons living in urban areas (43.9 per 1,000) had violent victimization rates similar to poor persons living in rural areas (38.8 per 1,000).
- Poor urban blacks (51.3 per 1,000) had rates of violence similar to poor urban whites (56.4 per 1,000).
- Violence against persons in poor (51%) and low-income (50%) households was more likely to be reported to police than violence against persons in mid- (43%) and high- income (45%) households.

That's according to the Bureau of Justice statistics, not me. So why do black people kill more black people than whites kill whites?
Well, actually, they don't.
The Black on Black crime rate is 63%
The white on white crime rate is 56%
Image screencap of a table describing Percent of violent victimizations, by race/Hispanic origin of victim and offender, 2012-2015. Left side indicates Race/Hispanic origin of victim and top lists race/Hispanic origin of offender with many symbols alongside the numbers and a key for those symbols below. I am not able to accurately differentiate the symbols with the resolution and thus do not feel comfortable trying to transcribe.

So, why don't we ever talk about white on white crime?
Now truthfully, it's because we live in a country where whiteness is the default. Black people are considered "black people" while white people are just considered "people"
But again, let's stick to facts and data.

Back to the FBI arrests.
The Black on Black murder rate is 89%
The white on white murder rate is 81%.
So, Karen, how often do you discuss white on white murders?

Now the next part is a little easier to explain:
When they wonder why we don't address black on black crime in our communities, there's a great explanation (Remember we're sticking to facts):
Because white people don't know shit.
Seriously, that's an actual fact.

MOST white people don't live around black people, so they'd have no fucking clue WHAT black people talk about in black communities.
According to the US Partnership on Mobility and Poverty, whites live in neighborhoods that are 75% white and 8% black, so how would they know?

Image:
Screencap of the top of an article entitled Racial Residential Segregation and Neighborhood Disparities by authors Solomon Greene, Margery Austin Turner, and Ruth Gourevitch from August 2017 - text: Where people live matters for their long-term social and economic success. White the "How Neighborhoods Affect the Social and Economic Mobility of their Residents" memo outlined the detrimental effects of living in concentrated poverty, this memo focuses on the racial component of residential segregation -- primarily drawing on the data on black-white segregation. A typical white person lives in a neighborhood that is 75 percent white and 8 percent African American, while a typical African American person lives in a neighborhood that is only 35 percent white and 45 percent African American (Logan and Stults 2011). What's more, we continue to see people of color overrepresented in high-poverty census tracts. In the United States, a low-income African American person is more than three times more likely to live in a neighborhood with a poverty rate of 40 percent or more than a white person is, and a low-income Latino person is more than twice as likely to live in such a neighborhood (Jargowsky 2015). These statistics show that racial residential segregation and racialized concentrated poverty persist today.

Now the next part is trickier to do on Twitter. Whenever I explain this part to white people, I ask everyone in a room to raise their hands if they spend an hour doing on-religious community services this month.  2 hrs? 3 hrs? Hands start to drop.
Usually only black hands are left.

It turns out, I could have just used this peer-reviewed study that shows: "Specifically African American individuals show the highest rates of participation, followed by White persons, Individuals of other ethnicity, and Hispanic American Individuals."

Image:
Table 4. Community Participation rates (Percentages) by Gender and Ethnicity
African American: Males 51.2, Females 53.8 Combined genders 52.9
Hispanic American: M 28.6, F 34.4, C 31.3
White: M 38.4, F 43.8, C 41.3
Other Ethnicity: M 34.1, F 35.5, C 34.3
Combined Ethnicities: M 38.2, F 44.0, C 40.0
Well, who gives more money to charity? (We know whites have more disposable income, so let's base it on percentage)
There's a study for that, too!

Image:
Charitable Giving as a Share of Median Family Wealth, 2010-16, Bar graph for Black, White, Hispanic, and Other with 3 bars each for 2010, 2013, and 2016
Black: 6%, 11%, 8%
White: 2%, 2%, 2%
Hispanic: 5%, 7%, 5%
Other: 4%  5%, 4%
Source: Calculations from Survey of Consumer Finances. Percentages are rounded to the nearest whole number.

Why do I bring this up?
Well, this is the part you do at home. And this part may be trickier now that COVID canceled everything. I once used Eventbrite for this part, but Facebook Events is way easier.
Go to FB and look up "stop the violence" events going on in your city...

Now look up "Black Lives Matter" protests. 
I BET there were more stop the violence rallies.
It is a verifiable fact that black people work harder to stop violence in their communities than they EVER blame police violence. They commit more money and time to the issue.

What does this have to do with anything?
Well, anyone who actually went to a black church, barbershop, cookout, grandmother's house, strip club or anywhere that black people exist, would know that black people talk about this issue INCESSANTLY.

There are black fraternities, sororities, church groups, mentoring organizations, fish fries, summer camps, after-school programs, community centers, athletic teams, science clubs, music groups and a whole motherfucking rap song dedicated to stopping violence in black communities.

There's a good reason white people don't know this:
BECAUSE WE AREN'T TALKING TO YOU!!!
Why the fuck would any black person talk to a white person about black on black crime?

Finally ,there's the biggest question of all:
If the black on black crime rate is damn near the same rate as white on white crime; if black people work HARDER and spend more money on it; if the insignificant differences in interracial crime can be explained by poverty...

Then why does this Vacation-Bible-School-sandwich of a myth persist?
I could tell you that people use it to deflect from the real problem of white supremacy. I could tell you that some people are idiots. I could even explain that "wypipo gon' wypipo" but we're sticking to facts.

See, it is a FACT that the people who are least affected by white supremacy and racism are the most likely to deny its existence.
It is a FACT that white people are the only demographic in America that thinks there is LESS discrimination that there is.

Image description:
Graph titled Nonwhites are more likely to say discrimination is overlooked: % saying, when it comes to racial discrimination, the bigger problem for the country is...
Yellow - People seeing racial discrimination where it really does NOT exist
Green - People NOT seeing racial discrimination where it really DOES exist
Each group has as horizontal bar with left in yellow and right in green with percentages listed
All adults: 42 Y, G 57 White: 52 Y, G 48 
Black: 14 Y, G 84 
Hispanic: 30 Y, G 67 
Asian *: 28 Y, G 72
picture does not show what * indicates

It is a FACT that whites [don’t] really believe or don't care how police treat black people.
Image description: Graph titled Blacks are about half as likely as whites to have a positive view of police treatment of racial and ethnic groups or officers' use of force: % saying the police in their community do an excellent or good job when it comes to...
Green color denotes Whites, Yellow color denotes Blacks
Protecting people from crime: G 78, Y 48
Using the right amount of force for each situation: G 75, Y 33
Treating racial and ethnic groups equally: G 75, Y 35
Holding officers accountable when misconduct occurs: G 70, Y 31
Note: Whites and blacks include only on-Hispanics.
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted Aug. 16-Sept.12, 2016.
"The Racial Confidence Gap in Police Performance"Pew Research Center

So, knowing that the whole "Black on Black crime" thing is not rooted in truth or evidence, why would anyone bring up a doctrine based on a provably false assumption?
Well, there is no logical explanation for this besides ignorance, a belief in the inherent superiority or:

Image description:
screencap of dictionary definition for racism
racism noun
Phonetic pronunciation Definition of racism
1: a belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race
2 a : a doctrine or political program based on the assumption of racism and designed to execute its principles
b: a political or social system founded on racism
3: racial prejudice or discrimination

Screencap of profile information for michaelharriot @michaelharriot 
Profile pic is of a Black man, bald, with short goatee faced slightly to the left, he is wearing a black hoodie with "BlackAF" in all caps and black in bold lettering.
Background pic is a 3 panel combined picture of a Black man lying on his back on the ground holding up a large sign that states "I am a man" in all caps.

Sr. Writer at TheRoot.com, board-certified Wypipologist, master race-baiter. His pen is mightier than your sword. Last real Negus alive
Location: The Southside of Wakanda
Link: kinja.com/michaelharriot
Calendar: Joined December 2009
75 Following
262K Followers

Long description of first chart:
Type of offense charged on left: Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, Rape^3, and Robbery all broken down by total arrests by Race: Total, White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and total percents listed on right
Total arrests by race listing down column:
Total of all racial groups: 8,162,849
Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter: 9,468
Rape ^3: 18,063
Robbery: 73,764

White total: 5,626,140
Murder and nonnegligent manslaughter: 4,188
Rape^3: 12,187
Robbery: 32,128

Black or African American total: 2,221,697
Murder and nonnegligent homicide:5,025
Rape^3: 5,182
Robbery: 40,024

American Indian or Alaska Native total: 196,908
Murder and nonnegligent homicide: 108
Rape^3: 322Robbery: 679 

Asian total: 97,049
Murder and nonnegligent homicide: 127
Rape^3: 307
Robbery: 664

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander total: 21,055
Murder and nonnegligent homicide: 20
Rape^3: 65
Robbery: 269

Broken down by percent listing down column
Total: 100
Murder and nonnegligent homicide: 100
Rape^3: 100
Robbery: 100

White total: 68.9
Murder and nonnegligent homicide:  44.2
Rape^3: 67.5
Robbery: 43.6

Black or African American total: 27.2
Murder and nonnegligent homicide: 53.1
Rape^3: 28.7
Robbery: 54.3

Friday, June 5, 2020

All of these. Every bit of this.

All of these. Every bit of this.

Also, see my previous post. I'm serious that you're dumped if "black lives matter" is not something you can say and mean. You might still be on my friends list because I don't have the energy to comb through every profile to see what's being said, but no one gets my love, friendship, time, attention, or gifts anymore without me knowing where they stand. Period.

I feel this deep in my bones:

All mothers were summoned when George Floyd called out for his momma.

That being said:  I might be scarce on social media for a few days. I am emotionally tapped out and need to do some self care. I am not ok.