Which Issue(s) Do You Struggle Most With?

[AerchAngel]

Well, I hope you sued.

I would have. Hence why they did not even attempt to put cuffs on me. Drawing guns and going through their stupid sobriety tests when I was designated driver was absurd. But of course I did Sandra Bland them afterwards, only difference they killed her and let me go and I was WAY worse with them. I called them all kind of names, Keystone Cops was one of them. Only the black cop came to me and told me to shut up, I made my case, but he understood how pissed I was.

Yeah, I could have complained to the media, but Obama wasn't in charge then so it would amount to nothing, today, I probably won a few million for DWB under false pretenses making me go through that bullsiht and drawing a weapon on me.

[The Chosen One]

Well, I hope you sued.

I plan on running for Mayor in 20 years. Don't want a lawsuit with the cops to be in the archives.

[njc108]

Well, I hope you sued.

What happens if you are a low income black person who does not have the time nor money to sue? At the end of the day lawyers want $$$$. Situations like that happen all the time unfortunately many minorities let it go because of those reasons and many more. Being treated like that is a normal part of life for some of us Americans.

[Hawk]

What happens if you are a low income black person who does not have the time nor money to sue? At the end of the day lawyers want $$$$. Situations like that happen all the time unfortunately many minorities let it go because of those reasons and many more. Being treated like that is a normal part of life for some of us Americans.

Mandatory Pro Bono service / ACLU / contact local politician.

I think most people have time to write a letter. Don't you?

[57Brave]

Draw a picture.

18 year old black man walks into a court room with long hair and a Pro Bono lawyer and pleads to a judge that a white officer used undue force or spoke to him in the words of Woody Guthrie "a manner rather rude...".

Or even better, said young black man writes a letter.
Suppose, Trayvon Martin wrote a letter to the police saying a security guard was creeping him out ...

Some things in life never change -- generation to generation,


Of course there is a racial disconnect but please don't overlook the economic disconnect

[njc108]

Mandatory Pro Bono service / ACLU / contact local politician.

I think most people have time to write a letter. Don't you?

Some of you guys are living in a nice safe world. But the reality for many of us minorities is vastly different. *Shrugs* that's white privilege for ya. People may have time to write a letter but where will that letter end up? More than likely in the trash can or under a stack that is already piled high.

Why should a person contact the media, lawyers, or local politicians. The police department should investigate and take the proper action. But because of the tight association that the brothers in blue have nothing gets done. I am not here to attack the cops. I am an officers daughter. But these bad cops need to be dealt with. Not put on desk duty, fired and then hired in another area.

Trust me if Black folks and other minorities go around suing for all the racist situations they encounter on a daily basis than no town, city, or state would have any money. A lot of us just do not want to deal with any backlash from suing. Winning a case will not stop more and more bad cops from being racist jackasses.

[Julio3000]

Mandatory Pro Bono service / ACLU / contact local politician.

I think most people have time to write a letter. Don't you?

Mandatory Pro Bono service / ACLU / contact local politician.

I think most people have time to write a letter. Don't you?

You do make it sound pretty simple. Ever worked in or experienced that system from either side? It's not as if there is a queue of high-end lawyers from tony firms outside the jailhouse waiting to do pro-bono work. You may hit the lottery with that letter to a politician. Good luck.

I think that njc108 has a valid point. Unless there are obvious dollar signs oozing out of your case, legal help is harder to come by than you portray it.

[Hawk]

You do make it sound pretty simple. Ever worked in or experienced that system from either side? It's not as if there is a queue of high-end lawyers from tony firms outside the jailhouse waiting to do pro-bono work. You may hit the lottery with that letter to a politician. Good luck.

I think that njc108 has a valid point. Unless there are obvious dollar signs oozing out of your case, legal help is harder to come by than you portray it.

I have a legal background. I've worked in the system. So, yeah, I do believe it's that simple. But my 'experience' -- just like my personal racial 'experience' -- is irrelevant.

This notion that you need premium representation is wrong-headed. In fact, if your case is egregious then the bigwigs will be lining up.

The idea that you need money to receive a strong defense just isn't true. You are vastly discounting the legal tools readily available to the under-privileged. But society can't force anybody to take advantage of these type of programs if they don't want to (and that's clearly the greater issue here).

[Hawk]

Some of you guys are living in a nice safe world. But the reality for many of us minorities is vastly different. *Shrugs* that's white privilege for ya. People may have time to write a letter but where will that letter end up? More than likely in the trash can or under a stack that is already piled high.

Why should a person contact the media, lawyers, or local politicians. The police department should investigate and take the proper action. But because of the tight association that the brothers in blue have nothing gets done. I am not here to attack the cops. I am an officers daughter. But these bad cops need to be dealt with. Not put on desk duty, fired and then hired in another area.

Trust me if Black folks and other minorities go around suing for all the racist situations they encounter on a daily basis than no town, city, or state would have any money. A lot of us just do not want to deal with any backlash from suing. Winning a case will not stop more and more bad cops from being racist jackasses.

I'm sorry that you have such a cynical view of your government, your police, and your fellow citizens.

[thethe]

I'm sorry that you have such a cynical view of your government, your police, and your fellow citizens.

Its easier to have that view than to see if its as bad as everyone says it is.

[AerchAngel]

I'm sorry that you have such a cynical view of your government, your police, and your fellow citizens.

Point is, she is telling the truth.

But I will take a line from her, it's a black thing and you wouldn't understand unless you magically transform yourself.

We live under a different world than you. I live in a different world from her, but my roots is intertwine with hers, so I know exactly what she is saying and my parents continue to remind me today even at my advance age.

I think the gist of this is that when you live as a black man/woman you are scrutinize by the white race and in some cases your own (aka Uncle Tom) and at times it is uncomfortable. Is some of it our own doing, of course, but we would like your kind to be more understanding and not automatically put a label on us. The old whites are really bad at that as I see it up here. Hell in church I can feel many eyes on me, my wife and my kids and the feeling, how can she marry my kind and have kids mentality.

It is what it is and I have to live in this world. I do no scrutinize your kind as I am indifferent knowing you all are not the same. But I can't say the same for whites when looking at blacks.

[AerchAngel]

Oh I tried to sue based on harassment and racial profiling.

No luck on lawyers in that regards. They want fees up front and not guaranteeing me an outcome. Basically lawyers are scammers to.

Maybe because I live in the North.

[Hawk]

Oh I tried to sue based on harassment and racial profiling.

No luck on lawyers in that regards. They want fees up front and not guaranteeing me an outcome. Basically lawyers are scammers to.

Maybe because I live in the North.

You never asked me for help.

[The Chosen One]

You never asked me for help.

You're a Republican. The only thing AA hates more than them are Democrats.

[AerchAngel]

You're a Republican. The only thing AA hates more than them are Democrats.

Yep, you can put it on the board, YES!!!

[Julio3000]

I have a legal background. I've worked in the system. So, yeah, I do believe it's that simple. But my 'experience' -- just like my personal racial 'experience' -- is irrelevant.

This notion that you need premium representation is wrong-headed. In fact, if your case is egregious then the bigwigs will be lining up.

The idea that you need money to receive a strong defense just isn't true. You are vastly discounting the legal tools readily available to the under-privileged. But society can't force anybody to take advantage of these type of programs if they don't want to (and that's clearly the greater issue here).

I'm curious to know what experience of yours has formed this opinion?

[Runnin]

Anyway can we talk about BLACK WOMEN!!!! This is an issue I struggle with daily. Most people in the world ignore, deny, disrespect and abandon us. From slavery times we were treated like dirt (Can't say dogs because white people treat their pets like kings/queens). We were raped and broken as individuals. In the 20th Century we were told that our bodies, hair, and skin tone was ugly. That true beauty was to look as close as possible to European women. In the entertainment industry we can't have locks or our natural hair because its considered "dirty". Big butts/lips are nasty but beautiful on white women. If you stand up for yourself than you are just a typical black woman with an attitude. Besides Black Women in America do not matter since we are all supposedly stupid and on welfare.

I can't deny any of that because it's not my experience, but I do know that the entertainment industry knows nothing about real beauty or real worth. The beauty it cares about is superficial and changes with the weather. Your self-worth is NOT your perceived worth in the marketplace. It's also very easy to project your fears and insecurities onto strangers. Be careful about assuming you know what huge swathes of people think about you. It's in our nature to always assume the worst. This is why it's so important to fill a kid's mind with confidence and a belief in herself before she has to face the cold world.

I don't pretend to know what it's like to be a Black woman in America, but as an aging White guy in a very racist and vain Asian country, I do know something about image and prejudice. You fight the battle one face at a time, one pair of eyes at a time, one heart at a time. My theory is if you can diffuse one person's prejudice, the ripple effect will be huge.

Society is afraid of feminine sexuality and power, and especially Black women who are perceived to possess more of it. (Don't know if that's true or not but it sounds right.) The entertainment industry has always put feminine beauty in an easily controlled box. It started with White women and when Black women came along they were force-fitted into the White woman's beauty mold. Seems to me that old paradigm is changing fast.

Please be careful if you ever have to deal with the police. That's not the time to unleash your attitude and demand respect, even if you are totally innocent, hell, especially if you are innocent. Use quiet grace and don't do anything to push them over the edge. They're supposed to be in control and protect you as much as they protect themselves, but they are stressed out and snap easily.

[Runnin]

I have a legal background. I've worked in the system. So, yeah, I do believe it's that simple. But my 'experience' -- just like my personal racial 'experience' -- is irrelevant.

This notion that you need premium representation is wrong-headed. In fact, if your case is egregious then the bigwigs will be lining up.

The idea that you need money to receive a strong defense just isn't true. You are vastly discounting the legal tools readily available to the under-privileged. But society can't force anybody to take advantage of these type of programs if they don't want to (and that's clearly the greater issue here).

And my computer keyboard and mouse is "readily available" to my 2 year old nephew but he can't read yet. Please explain how an under-privileged person in the system is supposed to know what tools they have and how to best use them without a well-paid expert.

[Hawk]

And my computer keyboard and mouse is "readily available" to my 2 year old nephew but he can't read yet. Please explain how an under-privileged person in the system is supposed to know what tools they have and how to best use them without a well-paid expert.

I think equating the under-privileged and the uneducated is the completely wrong mindset to take here.

I'm not sure where exactly the burden rests to 'show people how to use [the tools available]' beyond preexisting structures. Visit your local courthouse and speak to a clerk (who will likely refer you to a free legal clinic or provide you a list of attorneys that take pro-bono work). People mocked my suggestion of contacting a politician, but it's really not a ridiculous avenue. Reach out to a watchdog group. These people are going to guide you in the right direction and work toward getting you the assistance you need (if you require it at all).

What else do you expect?

BTW, you really don't need to know how to read in order to use a computer. I'd suggest letting your nephew loose ... you might be surprised what kind of ingenuity you are suffocating.