Racism in America - How should we address it?

[otseng]

George Floyd’s Murder Shows Once More That We Cannot Wait For White America to End Racism

George Floyd was murdered, and it was captured on camera. Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin had his knee pinned against Floyd’s neck for close to eight minutes. We heard a haunting repetition of the words “I can’t breathe.” Floyd cried out for his deceased mother and called out for his children as he desperately clung to life. Chauvin sat there, smug, hand in his pocket, with little regard for the man dying underneath the pressure of his knee. All of this over someone allegedly trying to use a counterfeit twenty-dollar bill at a local deli.

For debate:
- How should we address the racism in America?

[otseng]

I had posted a video by Erika Shields. She just resigned as Atlanta Chief of Police under pressure when an unarmed black man was shot and killed by APD.

A veteran of the Atlanta police department, Erika Shields was former Mayor Kasim Reed’s choice to take over as chief in December 2016. She became the second woman to serve as the city’s top cop after the retirement of her predecessor, George Turner.

But on Saturday, Shields offered to resign her role as chief hours after one of her officers shot and killed a man, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced at a news conference.

https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/bre ... IJiW38SSN/

A 27-year-old man was shot and killed by Atlanta police Friday evening during a struggle in a Wendy’s drive-thru line that was captured on cellphone video, the GBI said.

Officers were called to the restaurant after receiving a complaint about a man asleep in his vehicle, which forced other customers to go around his car to get their food at the window. The man, Atlanta resident Rayshard Brooks, was given a field sobriety test, which he reportedly failed, according to the GBI.

https://www.ajc.com/news/crime--law/man ... gIc2Q7ZkJ/

This has been trending on Twitter with:
https://twitter.com/search?q=%23AtlantaShooting

[AgnosticBoy]

I had posted a video by Erika Shields. She just resigned as Atlanta Chief of Police under pressure when an unarmed black man was shot and killed by APD.

Correction. The suspect was armed and deployed his weapon. He was also violent since he had resisted arrest and assaulted one or two police officers.

I don't believe either of the two cops were "racist", but rather the problem may be the tendency of cops to resort to lethal force without first trying non-lethal measures, like deescalation, etc. I don't believe we can create a one-size fits all approach because some scenarios may involve the officers having to use lethal force without delay. An encounter with someone involves lot of uncertainties and with your life on the line, it's hard to worry about nonlethal options.

[otseng]

Correction. The suspect was armed and deployed his weapon. He was also violent since he had resisted arrest and assaulted one or two police officers.

He was unarmed prior to the police arriving. He only armed himself when he grabbed the officer's gun.

Anyways, the situation was not a clean cut situation and I would not say any particular party was more innocent or more guilty. And I personally don't believe the homicide was motivated by racial prejudice. In the video, everything seemed to be fine, even polite, until Brooks was about to be handcuffed, then the skirmish started. I guess at that time, he decided he didn't want to be arrested and thought it'd be better to try to escape. Then he grabbed the officer's taser, ran away, and then attempted to stun the officer as he was chasing him. I think that was the fatal mistake. If you try to harm an officer, even non-lethally, what does one expect in the heat of the moment? Should the officers realize there's no way Brooks could've killed them and not shoot him? Perhaps.

[Zzyzx]

Christians are my brothers and sisters. As I said, if you are not Christian, you are not by brother.

Is that another form of bigotry? (defined as: intolerance toward those who hold different opinions from oneself)

[Tcg]

I think that was the fatal mistake. If you try to harm an officer, even non-lethally, what does one expect in the heat of the moment? Should the officers realize there's no way Brooks could've killed them and not shoot him? Perhaps.

This is a complex case, but there is law that applies:

• Georgia Code Title 16. Crimes and Offenses § 16-3-21
  
  a) A person is justified in threatening or using force against another when and to the extent that he or she reasonably believes that such threat or force is necessary to defend himself or herself or a third person against such other's imminent use of unlawful force; however, except as provided in Code Section 16-3-23 , a person is justified in using force which is intended or likely to cause death or great bodily harm only if he or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.
  
  https://codes.findlaw.com/ga/title-16-c ... -3-21.html

The key phrase here is, "...to prevent death or great bodily injury to himself or herself or a third person..."

This applies to this case in two areas. First is the fact that Brooks was armed only with the stolen taser. While it is rare, tasers can in some situation cause death.

The second and more important issue to consider is that Brooks fired the taser at officer Rolfe, but missed him. It is after that failed attempt that Rolfe shot and killed Brooks. If my understanding is accurate, tasers are single shot weapons meaning that after firing they must be reloaded before firing again. This involves repacking the wires and loading a new canister. When Brooks was shot and killed he was essentially unarmed. He clearly wasn't attempting to cause "death or great bodily injury."

I'm not suggesting Rolfe was motivated by racism, but he clearly violated Georgia law.


Tcg

[Quantrill]

Is that another form of bigotry? (defined as: intolerance toward those who hold different opinions from oneself)

It is the truth. You can call it bigotry if you want...matters not to me. You can call it racist, biased, prejudiced,...matters not to me. It is the truth.

My only brothers and sisters are Christians...those born of God.

Quantrill

[Zzyzx]

Christians are my brothers and sisters. As I said, if you are not Christian, you are not by brother.

Is that another form of bigotry? (defined as: intolerance toward those who hold different opinions from oneself)

It is the truth. You can call it bigotry if you want...matters not to me. You can call it racist, biased, prejudiced,...matters not to me. It is the truth.

I just asked the question. Readers will decide for themselves whether statements like that constitute bigotry -- and whether they cast favorably (or unfavorably) upon your brand of Christianity.

Thank you for helping bring the matter to the attention of readers.

My only brothers and sisters are Christians...

Does that include all denominations of Christian -- or just select ones?

those born of God.

It seems as though all humans are born of women (with some initial assistance from men) -- no 'gods' seem to be involved or required in the process.

[koko]

Lost in the discussion over the Atlanta murder of yet another black man by police in the continued and unending holocaust they are creating is the fact that had the man been white, the cops would have told him to go home and sleep it off. For far too long cops have engaged in what is called selective enforcement of the law and this is yet another example of that injustice.

How to address this endless problem of racism? Simple, just obey the Bible's commandment to treat everyone equally. It's time for everyone to obey that mandate. Then we will have a much better society.

[AgnosticBoy]

had the man been white, the cops would have told him to go home and sleep it off.

Can you back up your statement? Are there any credible stats? Are there any stats that look at each individual officer, given the fact that individual factors (the cops race, political ideology, etc.) can play a role? I'd like to know how many Black cops use lethal force and for what reasons compared to White cops.

For all I know, lethal force against minorities may be comparable in number to the lethal force used against White Americans. The only difference then may be the media coverage, and we know the media coverage focuses on the former cases and are quick to bring up racism.

*I accept that there is racism, ranging from major expressions (hate and harm to someone b/c of race) to minor expressions (like not wanting to rent to someone because of race alone), but what I'm questioning is if this is not being overblown by the media and others who want use the race card as a political weapon.

[Tcg]

...what I'm questioning is if this is not being overblown by the media and others who want use the race card as a political weapon.

Here's another chance for you to present evidence. You know, actual facts that support your opinion. Absent that, you might as well start a blog where no one will question your opinion. This, however, is a debate site where claims are expected to be supported with evidence.


Tcg