Lack of support is scary.
I am scared of a lot of things.
Most of these things are irrational. I completely admit it.
Here are some ridiculous items of which I am terrified:
- The dark.
- People standing too close to me.
- Being chased.
- My mom.
- Zombies.
- Pandemics.
- Being deemed crazy.
- Crazy people.
- Drinking sour milk.
- New technology.
- Needles.
- Bloody noses.
- Clowns.
- Nasal spray.
- Those booger-catchers used on babies.
- Safety pins.
- Walking alone at night in a dark forest.
- Walking alone at night on a sidewalk next to scary bushes that could be hiding clowns or Ebola or zombies or needles or my mom.
It only took me like two minutes to come up with that list and I could easily keep going but I think you get what I’m trying to say. Clearly I’m neurotic but don’t you dare say so in my presence.
The scariest thing in the world to me, however, isn’t anything on this list.
It’s being buried in a crowd of ambivalence.
Or, its closely related cousin, ignorance.
Because, YEAH, the only thing worse than not giving two shits about important issues is giving two shits about an issue about which one is misinformed.
I’m having a really hard time with this situation.
I watched the tape in true time with audio from the 911 call that Ronald Ritchie made regarding John Crawford III walking around the Beavercreek Walmart with what appeared to be a gun. And I just assumed that anyone who watched this thing would come to the same cut-and-dried conclusion that I did.
It never occurred to me that someone watching the cold-blooded murder of John Crawford might walk away with an entirely different perspective.
I assumed that anyone supporting the Beavercreek cop’s shooting of an innocent victim with absolutely no warning obviously hadn’t seen the tape.
It never occurred to me that someone could watch the tape, hear the real-time audio, and yet still think that what happened was in any way okay.
Yet, people I know and love HAVE seen the tape, they HAVE heard the audio, and they STILL think it wasn’t murder.
That’s fucking scary to me. That’s horrifying and frightening and I’m not sure how to even process this information.
Because what this tells me is that it’s okay with people for me to call 911 and lie about someone’s activities. And if that’s the case, a lot of assholes on my Black List better be on the lookout, since not only is it okay with people – but according to what happened in the aftermath, it’s also perfectly legal.
- I can call 911 and say about a person I don’t like that they are holding a knife up to a child’s neck, even if all they are really doing is making an old-fashioned PBJ.
- I can call 911 and say about a person I despise that they are smoking crack and forcing it on children.
- I can call 911 and say about a person with a douche-tastic personality that they are right this very minute raping a young girl.
- I can call 911 and lie about what’s happening, and I will suffer no legal repercussions when it is found out later that I wasn’t telling the truth.
Why don’t more of you find this situation seriously fucked up? Why aren’t more of you afraid of what this means? Why aren’t more of you up in arms over this shit?
Your lack of support for nailing Ronald Ritchie to the wall is depressing.
But that only addresses the 911 caller.
What about the crazy cop who ran in and shot someone without even the slightest bit of evaluation? You’re trying to tell me that it’s okay for a cop to just walk up to a suspect and kill them on sight?
Un-fucking-believable.
Our court system is supposed to be built on the premise that we are, each of us, innocent until proven guilty. And yet, this man – who had done nothing wrong, nothing illegal, nothing scary or worrisome in the least – was convicted, tried, and put to death within the space of two seconds not by a jury of his peers, not by a judge, and not by opposing counsel, but by a jerk with a badge.
And that cop lied afterward about how the event went down. He claims he hollered warning twice and that John Crawford not only failed to comply but went so far as to turn toward the copy in a menacing gesture.
That’s not what I heard on the tape. That’s not what I saw. So clearly the cop is lying. And he got away with it. A cop straight up lied about what happened in a shooting and he is getting away with it.
Which means that cops can just walk around shooting whomever they please – particularly People of Color, and very particularly if they are wearing a hoodie. By not raising a ruckus over the shooting and resultant lies, you are essentially saying that this is perfectly acceptable behavior for cops.
Why don’t more of you find this situation seriously fucked up? Why aren’t more of you afraid of what this means? Why aren’t more of you up in arms over this shit?
Your lack of support in requiring Officer Sean Williams to lose his badge is unreal.
Shoot a potential thief?
My hubz works on the bad part of Middletown. If you live around the Dayton area, you know how much of a joke this is, since MIDDLETOWN is the bad part of Middletown. He has made three observations while working there over the last year:
- There are a lot of fucking thieves down that way – which makes sense since those people are poor as fuck. If working in a poor Black area has done anything, it has sharpened his empathy for others who definitely have it worse off than we do. We have legitimate hope that things can get better for us. There is really no hope that their situation will improve over time. And that is heartbreaking.
- There are more White shoplifters than Black. I think this bears repeating: The people my hubz catches stealing shit are more likely to be White than Black. This flies in the face of racial profiling and all expectation of what you might assume about a poor Black area.
- When he calls the cops, nobody comes in with guns blazing. Nor does my hubz shoot shoplifters. And these are people who are actually witnessed committing a fucking crime – unlike John Crawford, who was merely shopping while Black.
I was at the protest. Where were YOU?
All this is why we chose to attend the protest.
At any given time throughout the afternoon there were only about 30-50 people present.
We saw an interesting mix of men and women, White and Black, masked and unveiled.
And there was chanting:
Watch the tape
The tape don’t lie
Two seconds
Two seconds
Without justice there can be no peace
Justice for John Crawford
Two seconds
Two seconds
Ronald Ritchie
You are a liar
Two seconds
Two seconds
Officer Williams
You are a murderer
Two seconds
Two seconds
We started out at the Walmart in Beavercreek where the shooting occurred. While there was some dissent from passersby, there was also a lot of honking in support, thumbs up, waves, and even one lady who stopped traffic so she could get more information about our protest.
We moved on to the Beavercreek Police Department and a nearby intersection. Much less support, and a lot more shouts of dissent.
“Get a life!” – which I found ironic considering our protest was about the loss thereof.
“Don’t you have anything better to do?” – as if driving around going shopping on a Saturday somehow rated as “better” than taking part in a social issue.
“You’re all fucking idiots!” – because whatever we saw on the tape clearly made us lose brain cells.
“Shoot him again!” – causing my hubz to walk over to this assholes car to ask, “Why?” We’re of the opinion that if you’re gonna be racist, the least you can do is grow a pair and own that shit. WHY do you want John Crawford shot again? Because he’s Black? Then just say it: Black people are criminals and deserve to be killed. Isn’t that what you really meant? Spit it out, son. Don’t be shy. You’re entitled to your stupid, ignorant opinion, but be brave enough to state it loud and proud. Unless, of course, you realize how moronic you sound, in which case, YES, continue to hide behind your car window and pretend you aren’t a racist fuck. That’s okay. We know the truth.
Several thumbs down, many middle fingers, lots of ladies screaming vulgarities out their windows – despite the presence of children in our group – and many men who shook their fists and yelled fighting-type words as they drove off.
It was disheartening, quite frankly.
Tomorrow I will get back on my high horse, shout from my soap box, and rally the troops to my cause. I will fight the good fight and just keep swimming. I will smile in the face of stupidity and work to better the world. I will be happy and full of love. I will smile and mean it.
Today I’m depressed.
I’ve been thinking since Saturday about how much I hate what’s happening in our country, and how it’s too hard to be happy in a world set on crowning wrongs as rights.
Your lack of support has left me emotionally drained.
Even so, I still hope the zombies don’t get you and that you stay Ebola free.
