White man with AR-15 O.K. - Black guy, well.....

[packman]

I've said it before, in those states with right-to-carry laws, if a 100 black guys would march down the streets with guns the law would change overnight.

[stevenleser]

1. Yep. It would be fascinating if Soros or other wealthy liberals would fund an organization dedicated

to providing AR-15's and beaucoup ammunition for it to every African American person in the country. As you said in your last sentence above, the law would change overnight.

The NRA supporters don't want that. They don't want right to bear arms for people of color. It's only for white people.

[DeadEyeDyck]

56. I am black and visit our range twice a week.

On the nights I go, there are usually more blacks than whites. Especially since Ferguson.
Everyone is welcome where I shoot and I am a volunteer female trainer.

I own an AR-15 (LWRC) and PLR-16. I grew up around an arsenal that few of you would comprehend. I can't think of a friendlier place than the range.
We have a canteen where we all gather and tell lies.

This is Braselton, Ga.

Why do some people insist in portraying marksman as people we aren't?

[sarisataka]

59. It doesn't fit

The Narrative ™

Some people want all gun carriers to look like this

and get disturbed to find some look like this

or this

or even this

[Backwoodsrider]

77. I agree the image of gun owners is a little jaded

I live in the rural part of Oregon and neighbor saw a bear last year. ALL neighbors on the road shoot and we are talking from kids shooting up the woods to a spinal doctor to a bunch of us old retired hippies its just what we do. I am trying to visualize a peace between gun owners and gun law reformers. Hope we can find a common ground soon.

[Buzz Clik]

2. Ugh. This demonstrates the point we already knew, putting the second kid in grave danger.

[randys1]

3. No they wouldnt, quit exaggerating.

It couldnt happen overnight, it would take at least 2 or 3 days to call a special session in the State House to craft a law stating only white people can own guns or carry them in public.

Sheesh, you liberals.

Always exaggerating






During those two or three days there would be PA's on all local television warning non white people NOT to be confused into believing they have the same rights as white people.

Silly Black people, thinking they have rights oh you guys are so funny



Overnight, what a wild ass liberal exaggeration, two days AT LEAST

[world wide wally]

4. That says it all

Aren't you glad we have equal protection under the law in our "post-racial" society?

[CincyDem]

5. Interesting video but, so what...no new data here

I don't mean to be crass about the whole thing but this is simply a derivative of breathing while black. Nothing here is a surprise. Of course he's carrying legally and he's not being detained for carrying - he's being detained for BWB.

My question, and it's one I ask over and over of myself and others - WTF are we going to do about it? How do we change a system that is stacked from top to bottom against black males of every age and socioeconomic level. This guy could have been wearing a 3 piece suit and carrying a $2,000 leather brief case along with his AR-15 and he'd still be face down on the street surrounded by cops with weapons drawn.

I like pacman's suggestion - the best way to diminish the misinterpretations of the second amendment are for 100 black guys to exercise the same rights given to 100 white guys. You start seeing black guys hanging around at Walmart or Kroger with their AR-15s out and things will start to change.

[randys1]

16. Yes, when they show up at Walmart and so on, that will get attention.

Some white people, many white people, have guns because of their fear of Black people.

Many white people did what we call "white flight" to get away from said Black people, they still do.

I dont care why anyone says they own a gun, because the 2nd amendment requires they ALL be locked away at militias, but while we continue to interpret that differently, we need to encourage gun ownership by people who need them the most.

[Voice for Peace]

26. well we just might get a shootout

all the white guys with their guns will fear for their lives
and therefore have reasonable cause to shoot.

[derby378]

6. Already happened in Texas

A hundred black guys marched the streets of Dallas with guns. And our laws went unchanged.

[sarisataka]

7. This one?

?w=626

[leveymg]

10. Panthers did the same thing at the Sacramento State House in '67. Prompted CA gun legislation

Reagan and most of the CA Assembly freaked out, as did the Bee.

[bullwinkle428]

11. BINGO! The right-wing's fucking messiah REAGAN goes down as a hardcore

gun-control guy, upon freaking out over the sight of the "armed Negro band"!

[sarisataka]

13. At the risk of sounding cliche

That was then... {"Armed Negro Band" sounds like the state police stopped an insurrection }
This is now

AUSTIN – The state House on Monday gave final approval to legislation that would legalize the open carrying of handguns in Texas.

House Bill 910 by Rep. Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, would allow those with recognized concealed carry licenses to openly carry their handguns in a shoulder or hip holster. It already is legal in Texas to openly carry rifles or shotguns without any license.

http://www.chron.com/news/politics/texas/article/Texas-House-gives-final-OK-to-open-carry-6212146.php

You do make a good point. Historically Republicans have been far more restrictive than Democrats regarding gun laws. It is a point I always make to fellow gun owners.

[BlueCollar]

8. I remember that..n/t

[LittleBlue]

90. Yep

Not sure why this keeps being brought up. It happened already and no laws are changed

[MohRokTah]

9. This video needs to go viral. eom

[Kurska]

12. Denial of a second amendment rights to minorities by racists has a long and tragic history.

This does not surprise me, although I wish it did.

[ileus]

14. The 2A belongs to all citizens...

[jeff47]

15. History has repeatedly shown otherwise. (nt)

[Hoyt]

19. The policeman should have wrestled the stupid white right wing toter to the ground.

Not only was the officer in danger, but so were bystanders. The officer was way too nice to the fool. I'm sorry, these ignorant people have no place walking down the street with gunz.

And, if it weren't for Republican gun nuts and their sympathizers, people wouldn't have "right" to parade around with their gunz.

[JI7]

17. The pro gun crowd is very much about racism

[Hoyt]

20. Exactly.

[Eleanors38]

39. So should blacks have the same 2A rights? If there was that much racism...

Why are gun laws much more liberal, now?

Should Newton Gun Club CONTINUE to exercise their open-carry rights? Have the laws in Texas changed in fact, or is the OP engaging in dated speculation?

[JI7]

44. blacks Don't have the same rights. tamir rice

And many more

[Eleanors38]

46. So, do you want to make it de jure? Malcolm X said 2A was for all citizens...

What do you think about his position?

As has been noted over the months, numerous times in these fora, the H. P. Newton Gun Club has had several marches wherein long guns were carried. In Texas. Yet, state laws pertaining to the RKBA have only gotten more liberal.

When folks say that gun laws will become more restrictive if armed backs march in the street -- or as has been speculated, blacks will be shot down -- I have to worry about their grip on reality, let alone respect for intellectual honesty. It's as if they are yelling "pay no attention to the man behing the curtain."

[Hoyt]

51. I don't know about the poster, but I want all ethnicities treated the same if they are walking down

a city street with a gun, like a threat to society until proven otherwise by inspection of license, intent, stability, etc.

[Eleanors38]

52. "a threat to society until proven otherwise." Nope. It works the other way.

[Hoyt]

53. I don't think so, not with a gun.

[Eleanors38]

84. You ought to re-check your views about the role of government in society...

This site is by and large not authoritarian.

[NutmegYankee]

67. What license?

No license is needed for open carry and a drivers license is only required when driving a car. It's perfectly legal to walk down a street without ID - we are not a "your papers please" state. If a man is walking down the street with no ID, do you think he's a criminal?

[Hoyt]

71. Look, quit readin one word at a time while pointing. These yahoos have a gun, they are unstable and

ignorant, and enjoy intimidating decent citizens. In some states you need a permit/license, in others you might not -- but that still doesn't change fact person might be a threat (in fact, if they have a gun, they are definitely more of a threat than a decent person who would never dream of carrying a gun down the street).

[NutmegYankee]

73. Your posts are just outlandish.

If a person really wanted to be dangerous, they would hide the weapon. I don't agree with open carry, but it IS legal and therefore immoral to harass them for the free exercise of rights. If you don't like the law, then change it.

[Hoyt]

74. Kind of hard to hide an AR15. You don't think these guys are dangerous?

[NutmegYankee]

75. Funny, we were talking about streets in Texas.

Those don't appear to be from there...

[uponit7771]

81. There's no "should" POC do NOT ... NOT have the same 2a rights as whites, RayGun showed us that

[Eleanors38]

86. No doubt blacks' rights are circumscribed in most ways, but I don't see that with 2A.

In fact, the RKBA has been substantially liberalized, and Pew Research now records black citizens polled as viewing armed blacks much more favorably, up from 29% two years ago to some 54% now. This is massive, if for no other reason that what caused blacks to view being armed so unfavorably have quite suddenly given way.

Since this thread has "gone gun" in some ways, I can relate an astute observation made by an anti-gunner who was finally forced to confront the reality of the Newton Gun Club marches (paraphrase): The cops were afraid to attack that many people who were openly armed. Yeah. Kind of the point.

[brewens]

79. I recently told my "racist" joke to group of about 5 dealers at a gunshow. It's actually a joke

about racism. It goes like this.

You need to have a few witnesses to make it really funny and someone that will likely respond well. Just say, "Hey! (friends name) what do you call a black man that flies an airplane?" Say it nice and loud and obnoxious like.

Usually, they will be surprised by an out in the open racist joke like that, maybe even look around to see who might be listening, then typically respond with, "uh, I dunno." As soon as he says that reply, "A PILOT!" As if he's a dumbass and then add, "jesus! What the hell else would you call him? You're not some kind of a racist are you?" In this case, along with laughing at the guy that got burned, a couple of them nodded and said yes.

You get around the right bunch at the right time, they have no problem with admitting they are racists. The same people that get overly defensive when we call racism on numerous issues. In this case, at a gun show, redneck looking dude like myself, they thought I was one of them.

[aikoaiko]

18. More examples of racism in policing.

Brave souls, while I don't generally support open carry activists
I do support how they revealed racism in policing.

I don't condemn open carry either because it is legal behavior.

[Hoyt]

21. Actually, I think the policeman's response in the second video was proper. The first guy should

been taken down just as aggressively, perhaps more so.

Anyone carrying a gun down a city street is a threat to police and innocent people. The first guy should have been treated similarly, but was not because the police think white armed militia fools aren't a threat. Look at the mass shooters and compound dwellers -- they are usually racist white unstable screwballs.

I don't care who one thinks they are, or whether they think they have a "right" to walk around with weapons -- they should not.

[aikoaiko]

35. "they should not" but they do and all people should be free from harassment.

[Hoyt]

37. A policeman, or a bystander, seeing someone with a gun walking down the street has the right to

subdue them to determine if they are "legal." These are not people just enjoying a walk down the street. There is probable cause they are a menace to society when sporting a lethal weapon.

Further, even if they are "legal," the police and bystanders should ridicule the fool for causing a public disturbance and endangering innocent bystanders.

[sarisataka]

42. Like this?

Wal-Mart video of shopper tackling man with gun

Brandon, Florida -- A Lithia man has been charged after he tackled another man Tuesday who had a handgun in a holster -- and a permit to carry -- at a Wal-Mart.

About 11:58 a.m., deputies responded to the store at 11110 Causeway Blvd. where Clarence Daniels had been taken to the ground by Michael Foster, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.

Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office
Surveillance video from a Hillsborough Walmart, showing a customer with a more
Foster had seen Daniels getting out of his vehicle in the lot with handgun, under his coat and in a holster. Foster followed him into the store and attacked the Daniels, the sheriff's office said.

The report said Foster did not call 911 until he tackled Daniels

http://www.wtsp.com/story/news/local/2015/01/20/shopper-tackles-man-with-gun-at-wal-mart/22067325/
(video at link)
The bystander who "subdued" the carrier was convicted of assault.

[Hoyt]

43. I'd suggest calling police, but you gotta do what you gotta do when an unstable person walks down

the street with a rifle slung over their shoulder. No stable person would do that.

[sarisataka]

45. Gotta do what you gotta do

One DUer's suggestion

we have a right to protect ourselves against gun toting idiots.

he should have broken his damn arms....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1172&pid=159688
Another idea

I say shoot them on sight , just to be safe. No sane person would carry a rifle around a grocery store. Only the insane and the criminally motivated. So, again, I say shoot them on sight, let their bodies rot in the streets as a message to other hell-bent gunners.

Nothing but good could come of this.

[Joe Chi Minh]

48. Why aren't you berating the legislators and

the white people who are actually, as well as formally authorised to carry such weapons in the street.

They were not fools as you claim; they were making a very important point.

What do you mean 'to determine if they are "legal." Were they not assault weapons? It seems anything short of heavy artillery is OK. No need to stop to check what is clearly visible. You'd likely be killed by the person as a common robber with violence, if you tried to pull a stunt like that... to check if it was what it looked like.

[Hoyt]

50. So you are saying the ignorant racist carrying a gun is as likely to kill a concerned citizen as a

criminal.

THAT'S MY POINT. They are a danger to society.

[Joe Chi Minh]

58. No. I am saying that the people you should be criticising are the legislators, not the

loons who are legally authorised to carry weapons.

[Hoyt]

61. I agree with legislators are fools, but the laws do not REQUIRE yahoos to walk around with a gun.

They make the choice to strap on a weapon of intimidation when they walk out the door.

[Joe Chi Minh]

62. The priority of blame must rest on the shoulders of the legislators, not the governed. It's why

Ideally, people should have enough good sense and sense of responsibility to make the right choices, as you say, but the laws are made to control those with the least sense of personal responsibility for their actions.

[NutmegYankee]

68. So in other words - you support police brutality, particularly when no crime is being committed?

[Hoyt]

69. I support treating armed people like a potential terrorist, criminal, mentally unstable person, etc.

I really didn't see any brutality in the video. If you have a gun, police and bystanders should treat you as a significant threat until the situation is assessed. If their guns were exposed in an open carry state, I suppose you think police should have just smiled at Loughner, Holmes, Dunn, J T Ready, etc., as they walked on by.

[NutmegYankee]

72. I consider drawing a weapon on someone to be brutality.

Police should never even remove from the holster a firearm unless a direct threat is encountered. And a rifle slung across the back is not a direct threat. I've encountered it many times while hiking.

[leveymg]

76. Legally, it is Aggravated Assault with a Firearm.

If you or I did it.

[NutmegYankee]

78. I dream of a day when the police are held to the same rules as everybody else.

As it is now, they are practically untouchable.

[jmowreader]

95. WHILE HIKING is the operative phrase in your post

Out in the woods, it's the correct thing to do - not sure if they have bears in Connecticut, but we have a shitload of them in Idaho and people have been attacked by them.

In the middle of town is a different story.

[NutmegYankee]

104. It's turkey hunting season right now.

It ends at noon, so I pass by many hunters on their way out of the state forests while starting a hike.

[Hoyt]

96. A gun fancier walking down a city street is a threat.

[friendly_iconoclast]

94. This is not the first time you've advocated vigilantism directed against gun owners

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=118x471849#471995

Further, every citizen should report anyone carrying a gun in public -- Maybe even hold them until police arrive. You just never know when the gunner is a criminal, has bad intentions, or just walked off their compound with a plan to harm innocent people.

Some fool in Florida did exactly what you advised- and was arrested and convicted of battery:

Man arrested after tackling shopper carrying gun

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1172159686

Shopper guilty in tackling of man with gun at Walmart

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1172166018

I note there was no expression of support from you in that first thread...

[Hoyt]

97. I would suggest that you not strap one of your gunz on when walking in public. You avoid

any confrontation and make society much better for everyone who doesn't need a gun to participate in life.

[friendly_iconoclast]

106. I would suggest that you abandon your support for vigilantism and police oppression...

...directed at people doing legal things you don't like. And, by the way, I don't own any guns.

[Hoyt]

107. Legal maybe. Moral or good for society, not hardly.

[friendly_iconoclast]

109. You are part of a long American tradition, Hoyt

The nearest other example of this today would be the American Family Association

They, too, "know" what's good for society, claim to have the moral high ground, and
regularly stereotype others. All these others differ from you only in their choice of
boogeymen:









http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parents_Music_Resource_Center

[sarisataka]

116. Not to worry, all those

who want to legislate your morals are doing it for your own good.
Some day you will thank them.

[uppityperson]

22. That is a couple very brave people

The guy carrying and his wife I mean. k&r.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

29. Sorry, meant to post elsewhere. nt

[Joe Chi Minh]

31. In complete contrast to the bunch of police cowards. Just look at them!

The first one, seemingly in a state of terror from start to finish, had his gun aimed at the black lad who was prone on the ground, with his hands stretched out in front of him. He didn't move one step forward from his car door, looking as if he wanted to feel he could duck behind it or dive inside the car, if the lad could miraculously manipulate his rifle to fire at him from that position, before he could pull the trigger.

The second one, sneaked alongside a parked semi--trailer - behind the lad, as if fearing the same thing. It even seemed as if the one who picked up the rifle from the ground half-expected it to have a life of its own and shoot him. No. I've just checked. He walked up to it quite briskly But walked BACKWARDS, either to keep an eye on the spot where it had been lying, or the man's wife. In fact, they all still faced her with guns half trained in front of them.

I expect much of what they did was doing it by the book, but what a bunch of wusses to feel the need to carry on like that. It didn't seem to occur to the first one to take his eyes off matey just for a second or two, from time to time, to check he didn't have a mate somewhere behind him ready to shoot him stone dead. He looked as if he was wetting himself, as it was.

Anyway (or 'anyways', in deference to American parlance), the white guys know that, man for man, the blacks would knock seven colours of sh*t out of them in a fist fight or a street-fight, so it's amusing how the Hollywood film-makers had to have the black detective in the Jackie Chan film speaking with a very high voice; and in Get Shorty, Travolta get to beat up a black guy who looked as if he'd have eaten him for breakfast in real life. Some film producers must think it an American male's kind of G-Spot, to have the white star seem more macho than a black supporting actor.

[A Simple Game]

38. The first cop hiding behind the car door was smarter than you think. From that

distance with a pistol and as nervous as he was, he would have had to empty his clip to hit the prone man once and he knew it.

[Joe Chi Minh]

60. That's part of the reason why I was so astonished that he stayed so far away.

On the other hand, on reflection, I'd have to admit that, at least for the first few moments, there must have been at least a 50/50 chance that the lad 'meant business' of some nefarious kind, simply because African American males would be only too well aware of 'how the land lies' there with the police and themselves, despite their being as fully entitled to carry weapons as the whites.

However, after the lad and his wife spoke to him, John Law didn't need to be a rocket scientist to see that it was some kind of a journalistic set-up, and that he was harmless from a shooting point of view.

[A Simple Game]

65. And once Johnny Law saw that it was a set-up they all still played it as if they

were working with a script written by the husband and wife to make cops look their worst. Not too bright on his part, he and his buddies, couldn't have looked more racist, at least compared to the confrontation with the white open carrier, if they tried.

But I agree with another poster on this thread, this is the way all of the open carry ammosexuals should be treated, make them pay for their privilege. Make them realize that every time they carry a deadly weapon in public they take the chance of being shot by the police because they look dangerous and could be a threat to the general public. It's funny how the good guys with a gun look just like the bad guys with a gun.

[Joe Chi Minh]

83. Well, I have to concede - second best is better than third or nowt.

But I really think the politicians who caved to the gun lobby over that open-carry lunacy should be tarred and feathered then jailed. And the merchants of death who hired the gun-lobbyists, shot - preferably with their own merchandise.

[Joe Chi Minh]

33. For sure.

[fbc]

23. I saw the black guy w/ gun and immediately thought, "OMG he's going to get killed"

[ChisolmTrailDem]

30. And the first cop kept him covered, just waiting for him to make any wrong move. nt

[Jamastiene]

93. Any wrong move or any move at all.

Most of the videos I see of cops and black guys, all the black guy has to do is flinch and the cops open fire on him. Really, any move at all while black seems to make cops start shooting.

[Dawson Leery]

24. Law enforcement exists to protect the status quo.

The status quo is racial discrimination.

[DFW]

25. Considering how trigger-happy cops are with black guys these days

I'd say that guy risked his life just to prove a point (although prove it, he most certainly did).

One fine day, instead of two people doing this, there will be a group of ten black guys with assault weapons waiting around the corner to draw upon the cop who drew his weapon with no more cause than his fellow cop had with the white guys carrying (which, as shown in the film, was zero).

I'm waiting to see what one lone cop will do when suddenly confronted with ten armed citizens sticking up for the Second Amendment rights of their fellow citizen, telling the cop with the drawn gun to stand down immediately or they will fire in self-defense. Will he holster his weapon and rethink the legality of his action, or will he risk a firefight which he must realize he will surely lose? I guess that would depend on his steroid dosage before coming on duty.

At the very least, this film demonstrates that cops react very differently depending on the race of the person with a weapon. It demonstrates beyond any doubt how a man legally and openly carrying a weapon under the law of his state can be threatened with immediate lethal force by the police with the only determining factor being the race of the man exercising his rights under the laws those cops supposedly swore an oath to uphold.

[SamKnause]

27. Every time I hear the police or a

politician say we need more cops, I just

want to puke.

[napkinz]

28. K&R

[aikoaiko]

63. But only when there are no LEO present to see that behavior

[JTFrog]

87. The guns were pointed at officers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundy_standoff

According to Las Vegas assistant sheriff Joe Lombardo, there were 24 BLM rangers and Las Vegas deputy sheriffs present at the standoff.[79] Las Vegas police were not allowed to wear protective gear because of fear that it would be seen as a provocation.

Assistant Sheriff Lombardo recounted that "they were in my face yelling profanities and pointing weapons," and said, "We were outgunned, outmanned, and there would not have been a good result from it."

Las Vegas station KLAS-TV also reported that guns were pointed at officers.

[aikoaiko]

88. There were no LEO on the bridge to see him doing it.

But people like to make it seem as police or other LEO were honky dory with it.

It makes for a sensational, albeit false, meme

[JTFrog]

89. So the news and the assistant sheriff just made it up that guns were pointed at the officers?

Is that what you are saying?

No one said that the LEO were "honky dory" (what the fuck does that even mean?) with it. They are saying that the reaction to a bunch of armed white dudes was completely different than what the reaction would be to a bunch of armed black dudes.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that tensions reached a "critical level" during the standoff, "with rifles pointing toward each side."[9] Las Vegas station KLAS-TV also reported that guns were pointed at officers.[80] Assistant Sheriff Lombardo recounted that "they were in my face yelling profanities and pointing weapons," and said, "We were outgunned, outmanned, and there would not have been a good result from it." [80]

[aikoaiko]

92. They were describing what was happening in the ravine, not on the bridge

which is the subject of the meme.

There are a lot of pictures of the Bundyites in the ravine and I haven't really seen any with rifles pointed at the LEO involved.

[Eleanors38]

32. Google Huey P. Newton Gun Club. Is it photoshopped or not?

Your OP is unnecessay speculation when hard facts are readily at-hand.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

34. Wonder if he's going to be billed for the police response.

[Joe Chi Minh]

85. Why? He didn't break the law. It specifically protects every one who chooses to

carry even an assault weapon, in public, obviously potentially including the multiple killers, cowards, who go to schools and shoot the unarmed children and teachers. As if it proved their machismo - when a four year old girl could wreak havoc with a loaded gun. That is something journalists should always trumpet, but nary a word.

The gun manufacturers and their lobby make a farce of the law with this. I revile the police for their own cowardly bullying of A-A males, but the fact is that, while some are just plain murderous (like the old girls who phone the police because they think a black man looks suspicious!!!), there may well be a good reason why many seem borderline psychotics. I mean, not only the above, but above all, because their victims might well be running away to escape being returned to prison, because of some minor infraction, technically in breach of their catchall, parole regulations.

They may on the surface seem happy to persecute the A-A's, but deep down they must wonder why, in a country already steeped in violence, they have to put their lives on the line because of footling parole regulations that ruin the lives of the A-A's males and their families, for no better reason than to enrich those who would 'build their house, on high' on the misery of the incarcerated A-A's, a well as white victims.

[captainarizona]

36. gun laws have always been to stop african-americans from owning guns

The sullivan gun law in ny was to stop african-americans from having guns. The white establishment doesn't care how many guns white red necks have or even black criminals have as they are no threat. They care big time when law abiding african-americans own guns!

[Eleanors38]

40. Sullivan Laws rode in on a wave of anti-Italian sentiment.

[Flatulo]

41. Does anyone know how these incidents ended?

Did the black kid get his gun back, or was he arrested and forfeit of his property? What could he have been charged with, since open carry is legal in that state?

Similarly, how did the white kids make out? Did the cop call for back up, were they pinched, etc.?

I completely understand the point that the video was trying to make; the black kid is treated very differently than the white kids were. But walking down the street with assault rifles? One never knows. I'm pretty sure that if enough white kids did it, you'd get a similar reaction eventually.

When we were kids, we used to hike to the local sandpit with a .22 slung over our shoulders, and the cops would drive by and wave. But that was 45 years ago, before there was such a thing as mass shootings. Nowadays? You have to be nuts to do something like that, black or white.

I'm aware that black kids get hassled for walking down the street with a hot dog in their hands, and that every day is fraught with danger of being killed by the police. Still, I know black guys who have their LTC and regularly carry. It's their legal right and I support it.

I don't support open carry of AR type rifles. It's just stupid. Black or white.

[Journeyman]

100. The cops detained him another 5 minutes or so, gave him his weapon back, sent him on his way. . .

Probably told him he's a dumbass for walking around with an AR15 strapped to his shoulder, gave him back his phone, and everyone started to leave.

This second, longer video -- which seems unrelated to the first segment -- is about 16 minutes long. Neither the guy nor his friend ever explain what was said by the police or anything else. And this one ends with the cops getting into their cars.

[Flatulo]

105. Thanks for finding that. While I don't doubt for a second that blacks are being profiled, I have

to believe that anyone open-carrying an AR type weapon can expect a police response.

Which is interesting in itself, because the vast majority of criminal acts are carried out with illegally-held handguns, not military-style semi-auto rifles.

The exception, of course, being mass killings, which are actually extremely rare.

[Journeyman]

101. The white guys were detained for approximately the same amount of time, then let go. . .

They were treated nicer than the black guy, but there are so many extenuating circumstances -- beyond the issue of race -- that are not treated with in either video so it's hard to say if the white guys just lucked into a nicer cop or the black guy was carrying during a time of tension in the neighborhood.

These three white guys were also dumbasses.

Interesting, however, while searching for these videos*, I found a whole slew of videos where white guys open carrying are detained, harassed, and arrested by the police. A quick search of youtube will reveal pages of such videos.

*The white guys video was shot in March 2013, the black guy's in January 2014.

[olddots]

47. I wish I didn't watch that

[imnew]

49. It would be better if it was the same cop on another day

This cop seemed like he would act like that with anyone carrying a rifle down the street.

[rollin74]

66. I agree. It wasn't the same law enforcement agency... or state

[uponit7771]

80. ... POC don't have that benefit to govern actions from individual officers, we're not judged by

... officers as individuals

[imnew]

55. Is this a joke ?

[Journeyman]

64. So how did it end? . . .

Evidently, the black guy wasn't arrested. Or at least, he wasn't handcuffed when taken from the street. Guns were still semi-trained on both he and his wife when the officer picked up the gun, but we don't see how this ended. Was he given his gun back and allowed to continue on his way? Or was he arrested and taken into jail on some bogus charge? Did the officers find a way to "explain away" their overreaction, or was it simple racism at play? Be curious to know where this took place, too.

And what of the white guy? There too, the video stopped in the middle of the scene. I'd be curious to hear what transpired, both between the officer and the white guy and the gang of officers (gaggle? herd? murder -- as with crows?) interrogating the black guy. It wouldn't change the dynamic of inequality, but it would be enlightening to learn the ending.

[Journeyman]

102. Answered my own question . . .

See Posts 100 & 101 above.

[frankieallen]

70. They both should of been told to drop the gun

and get on the ground . Common sense says the gun should be in a case, not slung over the shoulder walking down the street. If you act like an idiot you should be treated like one

[hack89]

110. So even though they broke no laws nor explicitly threatened anyone

you support the police harassing them. Amazing how gun control bring out the authoritarians on DU. All of the sudden police brutality is perfectly ok.

[frankieallen]

119. Brutality? Taking control of a situation is police brutality? Amazing how

police protecting the public from a guy walking down the street with an assault rifle slung over his shoulder brings out the authoritarians on DU.

[hack89]

120. It is perfectly legal to walk down the street with a rifle over your shoulder

Last edited Sun May 24, 2015, 01:37 PM - Edit history (1)

it is not a crime so what exactly was the police protecting the public from? What's wrong with the cops knowing and respecting the law? You are scared of guns - I get it. Your fear should not be used to let the police break the law.

[frankieallen]

123. I am not scared of guns, I own a pump shotgun for home protecting, which i traded in

my winchester 30/30 and my ruger 9mm to purchase. I have a license to carry large capacity concealed, and have had it since my 21st birthday.
The cops had every right to detain them and inquire into why they were acting so stupid. They are not required to be polite about it.
While it may not be a crime, it's stupid. They got the response they wanted so they could film and post it on the internet, while screaming that their civil rights were being infringed.
There is no reason to walk down a crowded public street with a deadly assault weapon over your shoulder, possibly loaded and ready to shoot, and not in a carrying case, unless your looking to get attention. Or you want to start shooting any moment.
They got what they wanted, and rightfully so.
If the weapon was in a carrying case, I doubt they would of gotten a second look from the cops or anyone else.

[hack89]

125. Do they have to be polite when approaching young black men?

So cops can violently detain people who the cop knows are breaking no laws. Ok. Don't complain when they misuse that power to kill another innocent person.

[sarisataka]

113. Tamir Rice and John Crawford

would disagree about what is common sense.

[frankieallen]

124. huh? What does that have to do with the conversation?

[tblue37]

82. That is why Gov. Reagan pushed for gun control laws in California--because the

Black Panthers, who armed themselves to protect their communities, scared the heck out of white people.

http://www.theroot.com/articles/politics/2013/01/black_panthers_and_gun_control_the_nras_flip_flop.html

Fear of a Black Gun Owner
Ironically, the NRA used to support gun control -- when the Black Panthers started packing.

BY: EDWARD WYCKOFF WILLIAMS
Posted: Jan. 23 2013 12:21 AM

<SNIP>

It is ironic that the modern-day argument for citizens to arm themselves against unwarranted government oppression -- dominated, as it is, by angry white men -- has its roots in the foundation of the 1960s Black Panther movement. Huey Newton and Bobby Seale became inspired by Malcolm X's admonishment that because government was "either unable or unwilling to protect the lives and property" of African Americans, they ought to defend themselves "by any means necessary."

UCLA law professor Adam Winkler explores this history in his 2011 book, Gunfight: The Battle Over the Right to Bear Arms in America. "Like many young African Americans, Newton and Seale were frustrated with the failed promise of the civil-rights movement," Winkler writes. In their opinion, "the only tangible outcome of the civil-rights movement had been more violence and oppression, much of it committed by the very entity meant to protect the public: the police." Winkler goes on to say, "Malcolm X and the Panthers described their right to use guns in self-defense in constitutional terms." Guns became central to the Panthers' identity, as they taught their early recruits that "the gun is the only thing that will free us -- gain us our liberation."

The Panthers responded to racial violence by patrolling black neighborhoods brandishing guns -- in an effort to police the police. The fear of black people with firearms sent shockwaves across white communities, and conservative lawmakers immediately responded with gun-control legislation.

Then Gov. Ronald Reagan, now lauded as the patron saint of modern conservatism, told reporters in California that he saw "no reason why on the street today a citizen should be carrying loaded weapons." Reagan claimed that the Mulford Act, as it became known, "would work no hardship on the honest citizen" <emphasis added>. The NRA actually helped craft similar legislation in states across the country. Fast-forward to 2013, and it is a white-male dominated NRA, largely made up of Southern conservatives and gun owners from the Midwest and Southwestern states, that argues "do not tread on me" in the gun debate.

<SNIP>

[cprise]

91. K&R

[bobGandolf]

98. I'm speechless! Though I should not be.

[Cassidy1]

99. This is the first time I've seen a black guy confronted this way, but plenty of white rednecks.

I have seen youtubes of white rednecks being put on the ground, arrested, etc. while carrying pistols or rifles. A lot of them get arrested. At least they did not arrest the black guy or handcuff him.

I just googled "open carry arrest" and they're all over the place. My understanding is that this is commonplace because these nuts want to make a point. Didn't they invade Starbucks? These people are taking a chance being shot, so they must be crazy. Just to make a point? I don't get it.

[mwrguy]

103. Lots of white gun toters have been proned out by the police

As they should.

[friendly_iconoclast]

108. Are there any *other* groups that you think ought to be proned out...

...for doing something legal that you don't like?

[hack89]

111. Police brutality is fine when directed at the proper people?

At least you don't hide your authoritarian streak. Who else can the police prone out with impunity?

[WestSideStory]

112. The Black Panthers did and open carry was passed in TX

[tammywammy]

118. Open carry isn't legal in Texas yet.

The bill is still in work and the governor has to sign it (which he will). It'll be done within the next two weeks.

[nadinbrzezinski]

114. Yup

[sylvanus]

115. This Is White Privledge, Full On!

It's also hypocrisy, disproportionate use of force, obvious cowardly actions to no real threat. Nothing scares a weak minded white man than an equally armed brown person. One has to wonder, if seeing equally armed minority's isn't the greatest white fear. I wonder, how southern men must have wet their britches faceing black men with guns during; American civil war, WW1, WW2 etc. Must have made them kinda terrified , to see them act the way they do.

[napkinz]

117. kick nt

[DirkGently]

121. The Islamic Youth Peaceful Right-to-Carry Brigade.

Gayz with Gunz. Armed Women for Choice.

Any of the above would put a swift end to the NRA's brilliant social theory about armed citizenry as a hedge against government you don't like.

Once it stopped being all about disgruntled conservative guys making not-so-subtle threats, it wouldn't be fun anymore.

[DanTex]

122. A very stark illustration of white privilege and police discrimination.

To state the obvious, it should be illegal to walk down the street with an AR-15. But it's not. And the white man gets some friendly questions, while the black man ends up facing the ground with a gun pointed at him.