Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
Where to start with actor Jesse Williams’ widely praised rant on police brutality and white racism delivered at this year’s Black Entertainment Television awards show?
To his enthusiastic audience, Williams reeled off lie after lie, all in the name of black “resistance” over the “oppressor” — meaning anyone he believes benefits from “this invention called whiteness.” Time magazine called his discourse “powerful.”
Where are fact-checkers when the fact-devoid desperately need fact-checking? After all, Williams practically begged to be fact-checked when he said, “What we’ve been doing is looking at the data and we know that police somehow manage to de-escalate, disarm and not kill white people every day.”
The “police … manage to … not kill white people every day”?
Let’s start with 2014, the last year for which there are official records. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the police killed 261 whites and 131 blacks. The CDC also found that from 1999 to 2013, the police killed almost twice the number of whites compared to blacks, 3,160 and 1,724, respectively.
Activists promptly note that whites account for nearly 65 percent of the population and that, therefore, one would expect whites to comprise most of those killed by cops. And we are told that blacks, while 13 percent of the population, represent a much greater percentage of those killed by cops. Institutional, systemic, structural racism!
Here’s what those promoting the “police disproportionately kill black people” narrative consistently omit. Whites, despite being almost 65 percent of the population, disproportionately commit less of the nation’s violent crime — 10 percent. Blacks, at 13 percent of the population, disproportionately commit more violent crime. As to murders, black commit nearly half. Yet whites are 50 percent of cop killings.
Criminology professor Peter Moskos looked at the numbers of those killed by officers from May 2013 to April 2015 and found that 49 percent were white, while 30 percent were black. “Adjusted for the homicide rate,” says Moskos, “whites are 1.7 times more likely than blacks to die at the hands of police.” So if anything, whites have more to complain about than Mr. Williams.
What about traffic stops and race? Surely cops racially profile blacks, wrongly and disproportionately stopping them? Not according to the National Institute of Justice, the research arm of the Department of Justice. In its 2013 report, “Race, Trust and Police Legitimacy,” the NIJ found that 75 percent of blacks admitted that they were stopped for “legitimate reasons.” And it turns out blacks disproportionately commit traffic offenses, whether speeding, driving without a license, driving with expired tags, driving without the seat belt on or without a car seat for a baby, and so on. Numerical disparities, said the NIJ, result from “differences in offending” in addition to “differences in exposure to the police” and “differences in driving patterns.”
What about 2015, a year in which Black Lives Matter protested a number of high-profile police/black suspect encounters? According to The Washington Post, the police killed 965 people. But the Post found that “white police officers killing unarmed black men represent less than 4 percent of fatal police shootings.” Remember, a black man, extremely popular among blacks, has been president for over seven years. He has nominated, and Congress has approved, back-to-back attorneys general. Nothing stops the Department of Justice from filing civil rights charges against the officers for “murder.” But the DOJ has not done so.
Williams attacked whites for engaging in what has become known as “cultural appropriation,” although he did not use that term. He said: “This invention called whiteness uses and abuses us, burying black people out of sight and out of mind while extracting our culture, our dollars, our entertainment like oil — black gold, ghettoizing and demeaning our creations then stealing them, gentrifying our genius and then trying us on like costumes before discarding our bodies like rinds of strange fruit. The thing is though … the thing is that just because we’re magic doesn’t mean we’re not real.”
That’s a mouthful, especially when the primary buyers of rap music, a black-dominated genre, mostly are white consumers. Snoop Dogg, Ice-T, Run-D.M.C. and Jay Z got rich while happily being culturally appropriated by white kids living in the suburbs.
It’s also interesting to note that Williams is a product of a white mother and black father, both of whom were in the audience. So his mom is an “invention,” while his dad is “magic.” Must make for interesting conversation in the Williams’ home at dinnertime. And a rich, half-white actor delivered an attack on whites on a cable channel owned by a corporation whose primarily shareholders are a family headed by a patriarch named Sumner Redstone, a Jew.
Only in America.
COPYRIGHT 2016 LAURENCE A. ELDER
DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS.COM
Larry Elder is a best-selling author and radio talk-show host. To find out more about Larry Elder, or become an “Elderado,” visit www.LarryElder.com. Follow Larry on Twitter @larryelder.
The views expressed in opinion articles are solely those of the author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Black Community News.
His public comments caused the deaths of those white police officers. He should be held accountable and recognized as a radical racist. His same words were echoed by obama shortly after the two shooting which in turn ‘gave permission’ for crazy-haters to go out and mass murder.
You’re taking it too far to say that this actor who gave a speech at an award’s show and the president are responsible for the violence that occurred in the last few days.
If you have the need to blame someone, you’re no better than they are.
Well said, Sir!!!
The people ruining black lives and black culture, etc, are blacks themselves, Not all of them, in fact probably a very small percentage, but they are ones who get in the news–and when something is reported in the news, the reporters make it sound like whatever the situation is, is wide spread. Now we have some blacks–most are probably already the punks and thugs, who, because of the words and actions of the likes of obama and holder and jackson and sharpton, think that the world is now THEIRS, and they can do what they want and should NOT be apprehended, let alone charged and convicted of whatever they choose to do. The media do not report the black politicians and actors and every day people who have taken the thugs to task on their actions. Because, of course, they are now traitors to all blacks, although I am betting the majority of the black population would agree with them….@ least the ones who are able to read and comprehend.
Why was there a need for a Black Lives Matter Movement? Those of us who are past 60 years of age, are highly aware of Police brutality and disrespect towards Blacks that is well over a half of a century old. It is nothing new. This does not justify the murder of innocent police officers but people have very little understanding of the history of violence in America and the impact it has had on American society and it’s subcultures dating back to the early part of the 20th century. Very few have an understanding of overt, covert, internalized, or systemic racism this we are left to repeatedly fight age old battles. We are like the children in the Wilderness; an eleven day journey took forty years because of disobedience, not wanting to listen.
why my God can’t everyone get along. For those of the blacks who stated about slavery and them, they need to do their history research. Blacks had white slavery #1, #2 there still is slaves owned by the blacks, #3 these fools that state this were not even a slave, so PLEASE stop race baiting and playing that card. We all need to heal now. It is no different for the holocaust, it was not all jews so folks need not claim they were a part of it, you are not old enough to claim that and it was other religions and nationalities that were included in it as well. If you keep making statements like this we will never move on. And as far as Jesse Williams in Greys anatomy he is 1/2 white also, has he forgotten his roots altogether
Me. Maureen, I understand what you are trying to say but your understandung of American slavery, is not historicall correct. People always saying Blacks should get over slavery. What they lack understanding in is that 100 years after slavery, Blacks were still fighting against Jim Crowism, lynchings, domestic terrorism from White mobs that destroyed prosperous Negro communities, killing hundreds of their citizens, lynching of hundred of innocent people etc. Why is that no one seems to get upset when the News he rememberances of the Holocaust?
America must remember President Barack Hussein Obama was raised by pink citizens, who are calling themselves white!! There are no white people!!? So, if a group can’t accept their skin color; they will hate based on color!!?????????????
What I find in this research is that America is alright with public servants with badges and guns; murdering American Citizens, of every hue, without due process of law!!???? As if criminal. behavior by public servants is part of their job description!! WTW? So, now public servants are in charge of who lives; when it comes to not following directives; obeying and respecting them like they are God!! For America to be alright with public servants/ criminals with badges to murder American Citizens is a sin before God!! Please know this……the ISIS mindset is alive hiding in the criminal justice system; based on behavior alone; working as police, prosecutors and judges!!
America must remember President Barack Hussein Obama was raised by pink citizens, who are calling themselves white!! There are no white people!!? So, if a group can’t accept their skin color; they will hate based on color!!?????????????
What I find in this research is that America is alright with public servants with badges and guns; murdering American Citizens, of every hue, without due process of law!!???? As if criminal. behavior by public servants is part of their job description!! WTW? So, now public servants are in charge of who lives; when it comes to not following directives; obeying and respecting them like they are God!! For America to be alright with public servants/ criminals with badges to murder American Citizens is a sin before God!! Please know this……the ISIS mindset is alive hiding in the criminal justice system; based on behavior alone; working as police, prosecutors and judges!! Please don’t blame Mr. Jesse Williams for the blow-back caused by criminals with badges, who are working in law enforcement!!
Another great commentary Larry – love ya!