We have got to keep this conversation going

[loyalsister]

Those of us who are white can understand that there are people have to teach children that the world is afraid of them. But what it feels like to actually try to come up with the words is impossible for me to comprehend.

The security camera video which was released by the police tapped into stereotypes and fears. The message: He was guilty of a crime. Neither robbery nor shoplifting are punishable by the death penalty, but shooting this unarmed man was justified because of what we saw. We don't have all the facts, but it's okay to assume because of his skin color and stereotypes instantly cultivated by the media.

Then, Peter Kinder (Lt. Governor of Mo') tells the press, "Anglo - American" justice is the appropriate response to the anger inspired by that fact.

What parents have to teach youth of color has got to be extremely painful. They have to consider what Anglo-American justice might mean when you don't fit that description. They have to remember incarceration rates and shooting incidents when they tell their children the facts of life: "people are afraid of you because of how you look and be vary careful when you reach for your wallet to tell them more about who you are. EVEN when talking to the police. EVEN if you didn't do anything wrong."

How can a parent find non-threatening words for that, and what can they say when the kid asks "why"?

My feeling is that every time a person is reminded of it rage is a natural response.

[upaloopa]

1. The actions of the police are supported and

expected by the white community there who have a learned set of beliefs that are not based in reality.
That is the first thing I think kids need to know. It is important to understand the mechanics involved. It is important that kids understand that it isn't their fault or something they did and that they are not bad. They are not the cause of the police actions. The fix is not that they have to change but white society needs to change.
I heard one night on MSNBC a White woman reporter telling us what the White community was saying about the Black community and it was all racist bull shit.
I think both communities need to learn truths about each other and learn to respect each other and the cop's actions need to be stopped and no longer supported.

[loyalsister]

2. "The fix is not that they have to change but white society needs to change"

I can relate to that. Disability is not the problem. It's the lack of accommodations that create the barriers. Respecting differences in experiences and how people are treated is up to white people.

Knowing the truth about what people of color have to live with because of culturally embedded fear and widespread disregard for their lives. I guess caring about how that might feel is a start. The next step is for white people to teach and talk about it. And, to have zero tolerance for even the most subtle racism we come across in conversations with friends and family.

[upaloopa]

3. Yes and I wish it would start soon.

I learned a lot about life in Furgason that I didn't know and it is sad that it had to take Michael Brown's murder for me to learn.

[loyalsister]

4. Same here

And I live in Missouri!