blitzburghv5
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blitzburghv5, And believe me I'm not trying to bait here or be facetious, is there an organization that does concern itself specifically with black on black crime?
If so, what is that organization? Are you involved with it or is anybody you know involved with it? If not, why not?
Again, I'm not baiting. I understand why a person would be passionate about the idea of "authority models persecuting black people." However, I would also assume those same people would be passionate about internal strife.
For example, as a parent, I am very concerned about outsiders breaking into my home and attacking my family. However if there was an even greater threat that my two daughters may actually hurt one another, I think I would make it a priority to put some safeguards in place to keep them from hurting one another before the external intruders can come in and cause problems.
Bad example, I know but... again I'm ignorant - I'm REALLY not trying to bait here. Honestly.
There are many organizations across the country that hold rallies and vigils that protest crime in the inner city....some of the more recognized ones in the city of Chicago for example is Cease Fire and Safe Passage which has thousands of volunteers. In Detroit theres Occupy the Corner organization.. I have many friends and relatives involved in local mentorships, boys and girls clubs that work with parents, community leaders and city officials to try and establish programs to steer kids away from making bad decisions. Im originally from Tulsa,OK and while it is a smaller city, they have big city problems. Parks, rec centers, afterschool programs and opportunity are keys....Here in my current city of Phoenix I work with and mentor youth. Ive participated in rallies and helped establish youth sports programs.
What ails the inner city is the lack of resources.....mainly jobs. When jobs leave, its puts many in the community at a disadvantage. With lil opportunity for employment, some turn to illegal activity...like selling drugs. Or joining gangs. Those that strive to do the right thing have to make do with what they have at their disposal..many parents work two, three jobs and who is left to look after the youth ?
They systemic element of racism exists and it places burdens on the black community for example. Police will target the poor communities....they are easy prey for the justice system because they don't have much money to fight in court. In white suburbia, there is crime, although slightly different types but it still exists. Domestic violence, assault, theft, burglaries, drugs all are present in white suburbia. My neighbor and a close friend are both cops and they have told me that if they targeted white suburbanites, they would net lots of offenders of drug possession. Whites use drugs about the same rate of blacks yet blacks are 6 times more likely to be stopped and searched and arrested than whites. So when blacks become wrangled in the court system they take plea deals. Often serving jail time and having felonies on their record. When released they cant go back to families because now the gf is needing public housing and under the rules he cant be present. Its harder to find decent employment (those that wanna walk the straight path) and if he wants to participate in the political system and exercise his right to vote, he cant. So hes essentially powerless. Voting is power and with so many black men with felonies on their record they are disenfranchised. So when it comes time for elections we as a people are really nullified by the aforementioned targeting by law enforcement. These aren't excuses, these are facts. Many folks overcome, but too many cant/don't. And blacks are unfairly judged as being lazy and wanting handouts and that's not the case.
Theres a lot we, in the community can do better.
But with the adversarial relationship we have with police things have been tense and this isn't a new phenomenon. Blacks don't trust police. Most of these guys harassing these folks don't live in or near the communities they patrol. They don't understand the culture. A lot of cops have an innate fear of black men and many cops suffer from PTSD from their days in the war. Those two ingredients are disastrous for any citizen but especially a young black male. Police see and treat even young teenage males as menaces. Black teens are often charged and tried as adults for the same crimes white teens commit yet white teens don't receive as harsh sentences and are sent to juvenile centers as opposed to prison.
But in summarizing, racism does exist...systemic racism is a factor. Do blacks often overplay racism ? Certainly, but we are racism-sensitive based on the history of discrimination and dehumanization. But we cant dismiss racism altogether because its embedded into the fabric of this country and it never diminished.