So a man died in police custody in Baltimore. This man was part of a community that has been systematically oppressed by many of the 'powers that be' in the nation of America for a very long time.
I have seen that 6 officers were charged in this man's death, and I hear the cries of victory over police brutality from people everywhere, particularly my peers who picture themselves as outlaws.
For people who identify as outlaws (or at least hold solidarity with those who are against the system), there is little reason to feel concern for the officers involved. The attitude seems to be that their families and lives are immediately forfeit by joining the police force.
It reminds me of discussions about prime minister Stephen Harper, or Israel; while they may be (amongst many other things) anti-sharia law (which I certainly am) and pro-democracy, the negative things that happen are always used to discredit them. Whether or not Israel or stephen Harper do anything good in this world is certainly debatable, but in my community (immediate and extended) it's a faux pas to say anything good about either.
To shit-talk those in power will always be socially acceptable. It's the privilege of the wealthy consumer. To get involved in politics, to work towards making a difference, or to help educate and understand the issues that take over the news requires patience, and will always come with a great deal of frustration. Why? Maybe because most folks don't want to learn.
They don't want to understand.
They want to blame.
That way they/we don't have to make any changes in our own lives/habits/attitudes. We can simply point to the people in power and say "that's the bad guy! It's all their fault!"
It reminds me of a speech by Al Pacino in Scarface...
I mean, why bother to understand the issues, when I can't even afford to keep up my addiction? It's such bullshit!
Right?
I find the same method in play when people discuss religion. There are many religions, with many different aspects that propel people to varying degrees of saintliness and wickedness. However, when it's used by the common individual it's most often only brought up when someone has done something awful and used their religious community to hide behind it.
For example: A christian has denied service to a homosexual. What a great rallying cry to start discriminating against those who discriminate! (never mind the principle of the right to refuse service, or the fact that discrimination is an important part of life - such as discriminating between what you give your time to, or who you keep close, or where you buy your groceries from).
But you don't really hear people talk about how every hospital you may come across is named after a saint because healing the sick is a deeply rooted religious act.
You rarely hear the differences in religious views of women's rights, which vary greatly!
The history of the emancipation of women in religion is very interesting. No one seems to want to talk about it... I suspect its probably because you'll find that the religion in power is the one that propelled women forward the most (also a big part of the reason why the west has become so powerful - the importance of the family unit and the empowerment of women gave us a vested interest in the future of our children - both boys and girls - and the world we would leave them). And if it turns out that that's true... what else might be true?
It might turn out that our actions have real consequences in this world...
And that would mean that what we do affects more than just ourselves!
Like flushing your antibiotics down the toilet.... Or smoking cigarettes in the car with children.
(yeah sure, now we know those are bad.. but what else are we doing to ourselves that's destructive that we have no idea about?)
The frustrations always show up when you try to take another perspective on any issue. You may start to find that your view of the world is somewhat narrow. Even if you're telling the truth, and are very much in the right - it doesn't necessarily mean that the person who has an opposing argument is wrong. Even though they may have a totally different truth to tell, their perspective is still valid. How they came to their conclusions still must be addressed.
So,
this is not to say that the cops who killed Freddie Gray are innocent.
This is to say please cool your blood lust. You know better than that.
People do all sorts of bad things, but getting revenge becomes it's own destructive affliction. It perpetuates the problem and stands in the way of healing.
You can pretend all you want that smashing the system is a reality. When you actually TRY to make a difference, you will realize that getting inside of the system and changing it from within is the way that you're actually going to effect positive change.
Please look inside your heart and check that it's not full of hatred for your brother.
It's very easy to be vengeful, spiteful, and self-righteous. Just because everybody hates cops, doesn't mean we don't need them. I don't know about you, but I like not having to defend myself against every biker and gangster in town.
Maybe I'm just weak...
Or it's possible that all cops are bad, actions don't have real consequences, and democracy is shit.
It's either that, or things aren't as simple as you'd like to think.
I have seen that 6 officers were charged in this man's death, and I hear the cries of victory over police brutality from people everywhere, particularly my peers who picture themselves as outlaws.
For people who identify as outlaws (or at least hold solidarity with those who are against the system), there is little reason to feel concern for the officers involved. The attitude seems to be that their families and lives are immediately forfeit by joining the police force.
It reminds me of discussions about prime minister Stephen Harper, or Israel; while they may be (amongst many other things) anti-sharia law (which I certainly am) and pro-democracy, the negative things that happen are always used to discredit them. Whether or not Israel or stephen Harper do anything good in this world is certainly debatable, but in my community (immediate and extended) it's a faux pas to say anything good about either.
To shit-talk those in power will always be socially acceptable. It's the privilege of the wealthy consumer. To get involved in politics, to work towards making a difference, or to help educate and understand the issues that take over the news requires patience, and will always come with a great deal of frustration. Why? Maybe because most folks don't want to learn.
They don't want to understand.
They want to blame.
That way they/we don't have to make any changes in our own lives/habits/attitudes. We can simply point to the people in power and say "that's the bad guy! It's all their fault!"
It reminds me of a speech by Al Pacino in Scarface...
I mean, why bother to understand the issues, when I can't even afford to keep up my addiction? It's such bullshit!
Right?
I find the same method in play when people discuss religion. There are many religions, with many different aspects that propel people to varying degrees of saintliness and wickedness. However, when it's used by the common individual it's most often only brought up when someone has done something awful and used their religious community to hide behind it.
For example: A christian has denied service to a homosexual. What a great rallying cry to start discriminating against those who discriminate! (never mind the principle of the right to refuse service, or the fact that discrimination is an important part of life - such as discriminating between what you give your time to, or who you keep close, or where you buy your groceries from).
But you don't really hear people talk about how every hospital you may come across is named after a saint because healing the sick is a deeply rooted religious act.
You rarely hear the differences in religious views of women's rights, which vary greatly!
The history of the emancipation of women in religion is very interesting. No one seems to want to talk about it... I suspect its probably because you'll find that the religion in power is the one that propelled women forward the most (also a big part of the reason why the west has become so powerful - the importance of the family unit and the empowerment of women gave us a vested interest in the future of our children - both boys and girls - and the world we would leave them). And if it turns out that that's true... what else might be true?
It might turn out that our actions have real consequences in this world...
And that would mean that what we do affects more than just ourselves!
Like flushing your antibiotics down the toilet.... Or smoking cigarettes in the car with children.
(yeah sure, now we know those are bad.. but what else are we doing to ourselves that's destructive that we have no idea about?)
The frustrations always show up when you try to take another perspective on any issue. You may start to find that your view of the world is somewhat narrow. Even if you're telling the truth, and are very much in the right - it doesn't necessarily mean that the person who has an opposing argument is wrong. Even though they may have a totally different truth to tell, their perspective is still valid. How they came to their conclusions still must be addressed.
So,
this is not to say that the cops who killed Freddie Gray are innocent.
This is to say please cool your blood lust. You know better than that.
People do all sorts of bad things, but getting revenge becomes it's own destructive affliction. It perpetuates the problem and stands in the way of healing.
You can pretend all you want that smashing the system is a reality. When you actually TRY to make a difference, you will realize that getting inside of the system and changing it from within is the way that you're actually going to effect positive change.
Please look inside your heart and check that it's not full of hatred for your brother.
It's very easy to be vengeful, spiteful, and self-righteous. Just because everybody hates cops, doesn't mean we don't need them. I don't know about you, but I like not having to defend myself against every biker and gangster in town.
Maybe I'm just weak...
Or it's possible that all cops are bad, actions don't have real consequences, and democracy is shit.
It's either that, or things aren't as simple as you'd like to think.
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