Kendrec McDade, Amadou Diallo, Tamir Rice
As long as the law allows white men to act on their imagination of a black threat of violence, justice will remain a rare, elusive occurrence in America. It cannot and should not be enough for police or citizens to simply believe, based not on facts, but the possibilities of their own imagination, that they may be in grave danger at the hands of black boys and men who actually posed no threat to them whatsoever.
The threat must be verifiably real, true, actual, factual, or it is, no matter how police unions or the members of the press who do their bidding want to spin it, unjust, through and through, to threaten, assault, or murder based on the disproven reality that a threat could've existed because your imagination said so.
The reality is that Kendrec McDade, a completely unarmed and innocent all-state athlete posed absolutely no threat to the police or anyone else the day Pasadena, CA police shot him over and over again after imagining that they both saw and heard Kendrec shoot at them. They only found a cell phone. The white imagination of a black threat was enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
The reality is that Amadou Diallo, a completely unarmed, hardworking man on his way home from work, posed absolutely no threat to the police who shot at him 41 times on the doorstep of his own home. They only found a wallet. The white imagination of a black threat was enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
The reality is that Tamir Rice, a sweet 12-year-old boy playing in his neighborhood park, posed absolutely no threat to the police who shot him in less than two seconds of seeing him. Not only was Tamir not armed with a real gun, even the toy pistol he had wasn't loaded and he never ever pointed it at police or brandished it as they have repeatedly said. If playing with a toy gun is enough to warrant death by police, then they should be banned. The white imagination of a black threat was enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
The reality is that John Crawford, a gentle young father of two young babies posed absolutely no threat to the police or anyone around him the day police shot and killed him within mere seconds of showing themselves. John only possessed a toy gun that was on the shelf of the Walmart and was literally talking on the phone when he was shot at close range. The white imagination of a black threat was enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
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The reality is that Ramarley Graham, a beloved Bronx teenager, was completely unarmed when police chased him into his own home and brutally shot and killed him in front of his family because they believed he had a gun on him. Ramarley posed no physical threat to the police whatsoever. The white imagination of a black threat was enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
The reality is that Trayvon Martin, a completely unarmed teenager was talking on the phone with a friend, walking home in the rain with some candy and a drink to snack on while watching the NBA All-Star game weekend festivities when George Zimmerman believed him to be a threat. Calling 911 and ignoring their request for him to remain in his car, Zimmerman literally began running and weaving through the apartments chasing Trayvon—all because he imagined him to be a threat. The white imagination of a black threat was enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
Akai Gurley, a completely unarmed man walking through the hallways and stairwells of his own apartment building with his girlfriend, posed no threat to anyone. He wasn't a suspect in a crime, but because officers imagined a threat existed there, they were walking through the stairwell with guns drawn and fingers on their triggers—which is against NYPD policy. When Akai stepped into the stairwell, he was shot and killed, and then completely ignored by officers who began to cover their own asses immediately. If you've ever pulled the trigger of a gun, it requires force. While some charges are pending, it appears that the white imagination of a black threat may again be enough in our justice system.
This is not OK.
The reality is that this list could go on and on and on.
The even harsher reality is that new names will continue to be added to it, daily, because the laws in our nation give both police and citizens far too much power to imagine the threat of violence even when it does not truly exist.
Kendrec McDade, Amadou Diallo, Tamir Rice, Ramarley Graham, Trayvon Martin, and Akai Gurley were all unarmed young men who should all still be alive today. That they aren't and that new names will continue to be added to this list is an American crisis and it's not one that will be solved by better dads or afterschool programs. This is a legal problem and failure of our justice system.