If you've seen the news lately, you have no doubt heard of the case of a little black boy who was gunned down by a "neighborhood watch" leader for no reason at all other than a perception of suspicion. If that weren't enough, the man who gunned down the little boy has not even been arrested. Where's the value in human life? Where's the justice for that little boy and his family? Police are saying that there isn't enough evidence to arrest the man, but after hearing the 911 tapes that have surfaced and the accounts of the witnesses, I have to question that. My heart goes out to the family of Trayvon Martin, who by all accounts was a good kid...and who definitely didn't deserve to die in that manner.
This case has brought to light some of the harsh realities of parenting black boys. Of of my mentors who is an amazing example of a wife and mother penned a post that says it better than I could. Here's an excerpt:
I mean......does anyone care about Trayvon Martin? Or about what it means to any African American parent when horrors such as this one occur????? As I reflect on how many times I have to tell my African American son to take his hoodie off lest someone white "get scared" or "think the wrong thing"???? Tired of this shit! Tired of always having to take the offensive every damn day.......every time there's a burglary or crime in my neighborhood, folks looking at my son and my husband as if they may be the one! This is the problem! And got the same shit in all the gated communities we've lived in too....all over the country! How am I supposed to believe in this society and trust that all is OK when my African American son could be next on the list. This is deep folks. It really is. The mindset out there from the majority of folks is terrifying. I feel like I'm living in the 50's - having to issue warnings to my children every damn day - don't go here, don't wear this, take the hood off.................even though their white counterparts don't have to understand these same codes. They're free to be kids! Had to get on my son for essentially walking through a store with his hands in his pockets. Mind you, he was doing nothing wrong, and he seems to just feel comfortable with hands in pocket......but I am looking at what THEY might think when they see the hands in pockets. A thief? A gun? Every damn day!!!! Just like I must prove that I'm really in Nordstrom to shop and truly purchase something....not lift it!!!!!!!! WTF! It breaks my heart every day when I realize just how it is, and ain't never changed. Black folks, please teach your kids. They need to know how treacherous some of these folks can be! They need to understand what they must face, what they must to do survive, even if it isn't fair. LIke, maybe they can't walk to the convenience store, maybe they can't go out to buy some Skittles and ides tea like Trayvon Martin, not like white kids can !!!!!! Sorry for the rant, but I am really reeling and, I suspect, most of Black America is too....unless we're too caught up in watching stupid ass reality shows or Basketball games to care or even know what time it is!!!!!!!!!
Very harsh reality right now to face as the mommy of two brown boys. In our age where they now see a black president and hopefully understand that they can achieve all of their dreams, I just pray that they grow up with a more tolerant society that believes in them as much as we do...
Lord help us!
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