Fear Of The Black (Male) Planet

"I know something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms. Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway" -- Charles Ramsey

Now, to many, this quote was pretty funny.  It was the words of a hood black man, speaking from the heart, about a situation in which he found himself in the middle.  I hadn't even thought of the quote until I saw a Facebook post from a friend of mine.

"I know something was wrong when a little pretty white girl ran into a black man's arms." Something is wrong here. Dead giveaway." Quote from Charles Ramsey regarding his discovery/saving of three Cleveland women. We may have come a long way in the last 50-100 years, but it's obvious we still have a long way to go.

Now, she is white and I think she, like many other young, established whites, recognize that in the terms of race relations, the nation has not just a long way to go, but we have miles and miles and MILES to go.  But what I don't think they understand is they, as well as other races, are taught to fear the black man every day.

"But Kitti! No one is at my job or at my home telling me to be scared of black men! No one is telling me that black men are evil! And even if they did, I wouldn't stand for it!"

Uh. huh.

Let me ask you this:: when it's a group of you and your friends out and you see a group of young black men walking toward you, what's the first thing you do? Hug your purse a bit tighter, perhaps? Lock your cars doors AGAIN although you know you just locked them five minutes before? Immediately pull out your cell phone "just in case something happens". If you are walking, you probably cross the street if the black men look particularly.....thuggish.  How many jokes have you giggled to that ended with a punchline of "and the black man (insert something dumb or criminalized here)"?
See, white people (and many blacks too) don't want to admit that we have been taught to fear the black man.  In the 1920s, Cocaine was made illegal by preying on the fears of white males; they were told that if black men working in the shipyards kept taking cocaine (that was given to them by their bosses, by the way), they would break free and rape all the white women.  Same thing for Marijuiana.  The black man was once again blamed, put on trial, and judged, all based on irrational fears.  In the 1960s, the fear of the black man having guns was why then governor Ronald Reagan signed gun control into effect (the Black Panthers had promised to protect their neighbors from white cops by using any firearm they had).  In the 90s, the fear of the black man was amplified; The Central Park 5, for example. For young black males accused of raping a white woman? In Central Park? Oh yea. Black men all over the COUNTRY were put in the crosshairs.  The media, prosecutor, and police all played a role in solidifying a mentality that many whites still carry around to this day: The black man is dangerous.

So, am I shocked that this unlikely hero said what he said? Nope.  Because behind the teeth and the Sho' Nuff hairstyle, he knows the truth: If a pretty white lady is scared and threatened by the President, he knows they are scared of him, too.

Oh, and before I bounce.....Gina DeJesus and Michele Knight. They are the two other women in that house with Amanda Berry, but as we all know, the media doesn't care about missing minority women...but that's another blog for another day.

Lauryn & Lindsay

Can we address the legal system in America, please?


Justice may be blind, but the bitch sure is partial.

So, Lindsay Lohan, actress and currently the reigning Queen of Disaster, recently revealed in an interview that rehab was pointless, among other things she should have STFU about.  But this article really isn't about her lackluster attempt at sobriety and relevance.  It's more about how she has been handled by the court system, as compared to musical superstar Lauryn Hill.  L-Boogie's recent problems with the IRS has been no big secret, and just yesterday, after paying almost 1 million of the 1.8 owed, MLH was sentenced to 3 months in federal prison, fines of over $300K, PLUS house arrest when she is released.

Wait.

Now, Lindsay Lohan has been to rehab SIX TIMES. All six court ordered. All six stemming from broken probation and parole hearings. Do you know what happens if you break probation and break bail? You get arrested (I learned that from Dog The Bounty Hunter) Besides, I thought California had a "3 Strikes Law". You know...that whole if you get caught doing the same thing three times you go to prison for life thing?  And ok...so they don't have a 3 strikes law.  In every other court system in America, REPEAT OFFENDERS ARE PLACED IN PRISON AFTER SO LONG.

So.....what's going on here?

Lohan gets to break laws, lie about cocaine possession, steal, and all the court system keeps doing is giving her a slap on the wrist. A "don't do that anymore, little girl" is said to her in court as she cries and ACTS her way into another chance.  She never takes her rehabilitation serious.  She never takes court serious.  She does bullshit, placates the audience by saying "The judge saved my life", but then goes on TV and says "Oh, I don't have a problem. I just do this because I can. I can do whatever I want." The justice system shows me everyday that if you are a somewhat pretty white woman, you can do anything and get a light sentence, including sleep with your 14 year old student.

Meanwhile, black women like Lauryn Hill and young black girls like Kiera Wilmot are arrested and hauled off, given harsher punishments, and their explanations of why they do what they did is written off as crazy or misguided.

"Oh, Kitti, you always make things a race issue!"

It's hard not to make it about race when it's there in your face.