This morning, I found this. A bunch of sick messages were spray painted around Lake Merritt in Oakland. I lived there for six years (one message was painted literally across the street from my old place). Watching this almost made me cry with anger and sadness. Everyone needs to calm down and direct their energies and emotions into something positive and productive.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Oscar Grant Johannes Mehserle BART shooting graffiti at Lake Merritt
While dining at a quaint Chinese restaurant in a sleepy suburb yesterday, I heard the table next to me discuss the potential for rioting in Oakland if the BART shooting trial goes a certain way.
This morning, I found this. A bunch of sick messages were spray painted around Lake Merritt in Oakland. I lived there for six years (one message was painted literally across the street from my old place). Watching this almost made me cry with anger and sadness. Everyone needs to calm down and direct their energies and emotions into something positive and productive.
This morning, I found this. A bunch of sick messages were spray painted around Lake Merritt in Oakland. I lived there for six years (one message was painted literally across the street from my old place). Watching this almost made me cry with anger and sadness. Everyone needs to calm down and direct their energies and emotions into something positive and productive.
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5 comments:
We tell ourselves lies, because were afraid of the truth.
To be rational in this case involves a very un-bias approach to understanding both sides of the situation. Although this was very sad, and I feel for the family and friends involved on both sides.
The shooting of Mr. Grant was an incredible accident committed by an Officer who was in the middle of a potentially stressed situation. Watching the film from any angle will clearly show and support that. My prediction is that the verdict will result in a hung trail or manslaughter III, with time served.
I know for most Black people that what I’m about to say will be hard to swallow, but its true. We (Yes, I am a young Black from Oakland) need to take responsibility in our own actions. If we would take a moment to look at the actions that caused Oscar Grant to get shoot in the back, we would see that this situation could have been avoided.
But, no. We, Me, My, and I never take responsibility. And until we do this will continue to transpire.
In my Opinion if Oscar and who ever he was fighting with or against on the BART train would have acted as if they momma and daddy had raised them with some fucking sense
He would not have been shoot in the back by an officer who thought he pulled a taser gun in the mid’s of a situation that appeared to be growing wilder by the second.
Unfortunate, but true. People, We need to take responsibility of your own actions...
The truth we run from is that we are the blame. We are at fault.
( I know you dont want to hear this , and your calling me names like Uncle tom, .... But take a look at the truth, how hard it might be for you to see... and then call me names...)
We can only controll our actions, not anyone else's.
Grant was already prostrate, what reason was there for tazing him? Do you regularly confuse your wallet for your cellphone? They share about as much in functionality, weight, shape and feel as a handgun and a tazer.
This was an execution. Mehserle deserves life without parole.
I'm all for personal responsibility, but it's a fact that kids get high/drunk and fight sometimes - to suggest that one should accept possible police brutality in its most brutal and inhuman form as a consequence of childish indiscretions is beyond my comprehension.
To preface this, I was in law enforcement for 5 years before some common sense kicked in and I decided that the private sector offered more money and more importantly less stress.
That said, in a nutshell (after viewing the video from multiple angles), the shooting was accidental. Ofc Merserle have very limited experience with a newly issued Taser. In the stressful events leading to the death of Mr. Grant, is seems that Ofc Mehserle mistakenly took his service weapon instead of the Taser and shot Grant.
This is, in short, a tragic event that resulted inthe death of a young man and father. Obviously Mr. Grant did not deserve to die, however he did not help to reduce the stress by not following the officer's commands and resisting. The anonymous poster stated that some common sense actions of the part of Mr. Grant would have probably eliminated or greatly reduced the stress of the Officers. This is not to say that the Officers were not at fault in their demeanor. The goal for any officer in any stressful situation is to de-escalate and reduce the threat. This they did not do effectively and they should have sequestored the individuals(either under arrest or field interviewed) away from a train full of passengers.
Again, individual responsibility is something that seems to be sadly lacking in today's society. It is this lack of responsibility that lead to the death of a young man and father. It has also lead to the arrest,suspension and jail time and ongoing internal guilt of a police officer. It is a sad event, but ultimatley one that could have been avoided.
Anonymous...I see why you stayed ANONYMOUS.....Your response is Complete BS.....
Black people have never been favored by the police through out the hands of time,but we keep putting ourselves in predicuments to be victims of police brutality.Oscar Grant made a decision to carry his self poorly that night witch ultimately resulted in his death.This unfortunate event could have been prevented by using proper judement and common sense.Always remember to put your life in your own hands, or your life just might end.
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