Police Only Protect And Serve Each Other

So, yet another video surfaces of police using excessive force during an arrest.  The suspect later died after being taken into custody. 

During the video, the man pleaded for mercy and indicated that he couldn't breathe quite a few times.  He kept trying to adjust his head to find relief, but the number of cops on him wouldn't allow him comfort.  Not to mention the one cop who applied pressure from a knee to the back of the man's neck.  He was clearly increasing the pressure the more the man appeared to be adjusting to get some air.

Despite the man being in custody and no longer a threat, this cop still felt the need to "punish" him by keeping the knee in the back of the man's neck which ultimately may have led to the trauma that killed the man.  The onlookers pleaded with the cop to ease up. They begged the police to just put the guy in the squad car.  They told them to check the man's pulse when he became unresponsive.

The cops did none of that.  An ambulance was called, but the man appears to have died before they arrived.

Look,  I understand that police are humans and get frustrated, too.  They get tired of people who may run and / or resist.  But some cops don't realize how what they do comes off as severe bullying to the general public.  Especially minorities.  Once the suspect is subdued, the fight is over.  You don't have the right to continue to punish someone who is in handcuffs and not in a position to be a threat to anyone.

I have met some really good cops in my life.  Cops who wouldn't dare think of intentionally harming someone.  But until THEY start to speak out against this, we'll continue to see videos like these.  When was the last time you saw a cop testify against another cop for police brutality?  Wait.  When's the first time you've ever seen that?

This "loyalty to the uniform" stuff needs to end if they ever want to truly gain a reputation for "protecting and serving" the people.  Because right now, the police only "protect and serve" each other.

White People Need To Stop Being Racists

This logo is as accurate as it is iconic.  PE#1.

Now that I have your attention, let me give some background on myself to explain why that I think that statement is 100% true: I grew up in a predominantly white school system.  I had a lot of white friends in my childhood, so I saw the good in white people.  I was oblivious to a lot of the atrocities in the U.S. because of the type of education that I received and the environment in which I was raised.

Then I went to an HBCU (Google it if you don't know the acronym) and I met other people who looked like me who had totally different experiences growing up.  By the way, this is generally how one learns about the world.  Being exposed to all walks of life is what expands our way of thinking.  But, back to the topic at hand...

I spent a lot of my youth and some of my adult life explaining to minorities how "the conversation" about racism should be approached with white people.  I found myself speaking from a place that protected the good white people that I knew.  It took growing older in society to realize that they didn't need me to defend them.  Their privilege alone gave them the protection that they needed.

The point I'm trying to make is that black people have no responsibility in stopping racism.  White people do.  And it's always been that way despite how others have tried to spin it over and over again.  It's not a woman's responsibility to have "a discussion" with an abusive husband.  He just needs to recognize that he's wrong and stop abusing her.  See how simple that is?  Problem solved.

We don't need a table of "black leaders" to sit down and discuss why we shouldn't be unlawfully shot by police, denied opportunities for leadership positions from being a CEO of a Fortune 500 company to being an NFL head coach, or refused loans and/or housing based solely on the fact that we are enriched with melanin.  Black people have complained for decades on the things that prevent us from truly being equals in this country, so there's nothing new to talk about.  All white people have to do is stop doing it.  It's just that simple.  Nothing else is required.

And for all white people who have done things to help promote the end of racism, I thank and applaud you.  We wouldn't have made it this far without some of you.  But, you're going to have to do more.  Because in order for you not to be unfairly grouped in with racists, you have to convince the racists to cut it out.  So, it looks like you have the responsibility of helping this madness end.  Not black people.

Does Boycotting Huge Companies Really Work?

I read an article today about how a Chick-fil-A restaurant in the UK will be shutting down after its 6 months lease is up.  It's their very first location there and I'm unsure of if there will be others any time soon.

The restaurant opened in early October 2019 and has faced heat from an LGBTQ rights group calling out CFA for its previous financial support of anti-LGBTQ groups like The Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Paul Anderson Youth Home.  The pressure was great enough to get the Oracle Shopping Center to not renew its lease with CFA.

CFA faces scrutiny on a regular basis from LGBTQ groups for their previous actions yet they are still the 3rd largest U.S. restaurant when it comes to sales.  They're just behind Starbucks and McDonald's.

Will it hurt a company that has earned billions or will it hurt those who lose their jobs when the company closes?

CFA gets over 20,000 inquires per year from franchise candidates.  They open 70-80 new restaurants annually.  Those restaurants bring jobs and tax money to the communities they service.

How people handle discrimination is completely their prerogative as long as it's legal.  I'm just playing devil's advocate here and I have two questions because I want to know how people feel about this:

Who does the boycott really hurt?  The huge company or its employees?

Are you anti-LGBTQ if you patronize or work at Chick-fil-A?

Do Other Languages Offend You?

(thinking to herself) "Oh, no she didn't wear that!"

Okay, so I'm sitting in an Asian restaurant last week.  A Japanese restaurant to be exact.  The waitress comes to my table and speaks very good English while getting my order.  I noticed about five minutes later that she and a co-worker were off in the corner having a good laugh.  They were looking towards a customer and giggling all while talking in their native language.

Were they making fun of the customer?

I haven't a clue and I can't say that it bothers me to know what they are saying.  I just assume that they're more comfortable in speaking their native tongue.  However, I do remember a story a former coworker told me once.

First of all, my former coworker is black.  I have to give you that background to help you understand the context of the story.  She was one of four other black women getting a pedicure at a local, Vietnamese nail salon when an older, black woman walked in and sat down next to her.  The older woman was wearing something resembling African tribal attire (really gaudy ensemble including a large hat).

After greeting the older woman (in the English language) and figuring out what services she needed, the Vietnamese lady working at the location proceeded to start the pedicure.  Another Vietnamese salon worker walked by, laughed, and hurled an insult in her Vietnamese tongue about the older woman's attire.  She assumed that since everyone in the salon was black that they wouldn't know what she was saying.

What she didn't know is that my former coworker lived in Vietnam for three years and is very fluent.  She told the salon workers (in Vietnamese) that they would do that lady's pedicure for free or she would tell the woman that they were insulting her.  Of course they were stunned (along with everyone else in the shop) that someone spoke the language and to make a long story short, they did do the older woman's pedicure for free.  The older woman never knew why she received the free pedicure, but she was appreciative on top of being confused.

A lot of English-speaking people are skeptical when we don't understand something.  We feel extremely disrespected to think that someone could be bad-mouthing us right in front of us.  A lot of times we assume the worst, but I think that story is an isolated incident.  With so many people being educated in foreign language, it's not wise to assume that someone doesn't understand what you're saying.

Do you get offended when people, who speak good English, speak their native tongue around you?

"Ay, que feo!"