Stories of minorities being either killed murdered or injured brutally beaten while under police custody seem to be all too common these days. Most recently is the case of 25 year old Baltimore, Maryland native, Freddie Gray, who was arrested on the morning of April 12th 2015, allegedly for the possession of a switchblade. Freddie’s arrest, and subsequent death while under police custody, was the spark of a peaceful protest organized and carried out nearly two weeks later by residents of Baltimore wanting to bring attention to and action against police brutality. It didn’t take long for this positive event to quickly take a turn south, when a few bad apples decided that this would be a perfect time to destroy their already impoverished city.
Rioting, looting, fighting, random fires and destruction of property are all that seems to be shown by the press. But in the past two days, the images shown in this article have been making the rounds on the Internet; particularly on SOCIAL media… you know, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc., while being largely ignored by the real media… you know, Fox, CNN, MSNBC, etc.
When I first saw the pictures I was angry… maybe even outraged. The sight of minority male civilians serving and protecting the same people who were likely to arrest and/or kill them for no reason other than the color of their skin, did not sit well with me. I thought to myself ‘Why are Blacks so docile?’ ‘Why are Blacks so quick to forgive the wrongs done to them?’ ‘Why are Blacks so quick to extend an olive branch or to reach out a helping hand to those most likely to bite them?’ But then I looked beyond the picture and it hit me. I saw men.
Men acting like men. Men who cared about protecting their community. Men who cared about protecting their families. Men who had invested their whole lives by working hard trying not to live up to the stereotypes that mainstream society had labeled them with. Proud men. Honorable men. They were men who looked and thought, just like me. My anger and outrage was not towards these men of color trying to protect their community, but towards the media for not reporting that this was going on.
A boycott of the media is long overdue in this country. Truth and integrity in journalism has long been replaced by sensationalism and manipulation of the facts. Half truths and lies by way of omission are the norm far more times than not. It’s no wonder racism is still so prevalent in this country. When all you’re exposed to is the worst of a society, you can almost make the excuse that “they” must all be that way. Almost. The media’s blatant disregard for how they portray minorities to the world, at times, seems orchestrated. I’m no conspiracy theorist but could it be they have an agenda?