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I wish I had learned this earlier in life. I truly didn’t understand this when growing up. “The system isn’t broken. It was built this way.”
A reply I saw on Twitter this week has stuck with me. Someone said “racism is illegal in the United States.” (thread below) https://twitter.com/berniceking/status/1266450842623901704
A reply I saw on Twitter this week has stuck with me. Someone said “racism is illegal in the United States.” (thread below) https://twitter.com/berniceking/status/1266450842623901704
In addition to being flat out wrong on many levels, it reminded me of how little people seem to know about the laws in the United States and their roots. I see a lot of people crying out in replies to #BlackLivesMatter 
threads asking for facts, so let’s get into a few of them.
threads asking for facts, so let’s get into a few of them.
Note: there are MANY ways in which black Americans are treated differently by the U.S. government and legal system. I’m listing a few examples, but these are just drops in the bucket; there are many more & I implore you to do some research and reading to better understand them.
Let’s talk about privilege and systematic inequality.
When we talk about inequality in the U.S., it’s not just about the sentiments and interactions between two people face to face. It’s not JUST about your likelihood to get hired for a job or how you get treated walking down the street. It’s also about laws and policies.
Let’s start with VOTING. For those who don’t know, the United States’ laws often vary between the federal vs. state level. Disenfranchisement (the state of being deprived of a right or privilege, especially the right to vote) is handled differently in different states.
As of right now, only 2 states (Maine & Vermont) have laws in place so felons never lose their right to vote, even while incarcerated.
( http://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/voter-restoration/felony-disenfranchisement-laws-map)
( http://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/voter-restoration/felony-disenfranchisement-laws-map)
In 16 states (& the District of Columbia), felons lose voting rights while incarcerated but receive automatic restoration upon release.
In 21 states, felons lose voting rights while incarcerated and for a period of time after release, oftentimes requiring outstanding fines/fees to be paid before voting rights are restored.
In 11 states, felons lose their voting rights indefinitely for some crimes, or require a pardon in order for their voting rights to be restored.
It’s important to note even within states that technically allow felons to vote while incarcerated, there are often still restrictions in place (in California, those in county jails can vote but not state or federal prisons).
( http://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/felon-voting-rights.aspx)
( http://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/felon-voting-rights.aspx)
Of the 11 states where felons lose their voting rights indefinitely, 7 of them are in the South (roughly 64%). Of all black respondents to the U.S. census in 2010, 55% lived in the South ( https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/2010_census/cb11-cn185.html).
So, why is this important?
A line of thought I found as to why felons shouldn’t be allowed to vote was “If you’re not willing to follow the law, then you should not have a role in making the law for everyone else, which is what you do when you vote.”
( http://www.heritage.org/election-integrity/commentary/there-are-good-reasons-felons-lose-the-right-vote)
A line of thought I found as to why felons shouldn’t be allowed to vote was “If you’re not willing to follow the law, then you should not have a role in making the law for everyone else, which is what you do when you vote.”
( http://www.heritage.org/election-integrity/commentary/there-are-good-reasons-felons-lose-the-right-vote)
This line of thought is problematic for many reasons, first and foremost being that black people are disproportionately convicted and incarcerated in the United States.
This means their right to vote (and thus their ability to potentially enact change in our government to alter these very same laws that disproportionally affect them) is disproportionately stripped as well.
Some facts on incarceration as it relates to Black Americans:
1. Black prisoners who were convicted of murder are about 50% more likely to be innocent than other convicted murderers and spend longer in prison before exoneration.
1. Black prisoners who were convicted of murder are about 50% more likely to be innocent than other convicted murderers and spend longer in prison before exoneration.
2. Innocent black people are about 12 times more likely to be convicted of drug crimes than innocent white people.
3. A black prisoner serving time for sexual assault is three-and-a-half times more likely to be innocent than a white person convicted of sexual assault.
4. On average, innocent black prisoners convicted of sexual assault spent almost four-and-a-half years longer in prison before exoneration than innocent white prisoners.
(source for the 4 above facts: https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Documents/Race_and_Wrongful_Convictions.pdf)
(source for the 4 above facts: https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Documents/Race_and_Wrongful_Convictions.pdf)
Time to talk about wealth inequality.
Even after accounting for factors such as level of education, marital status and income, overall black households still have less wealth than white households in the U.S.
Even after accounting for factors such as level of education, marital status and income, overall black households still have less wealth than white households in the U.S.
This wealth gap has widened over recent years & “leaves black Americans in an economically precarious situation & creates a vicious cycle of economic struggle... [they] are less economically mobile & therefore unable to grow their wealth over time.” ( http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/reports/2018/02/21/447051/systematic-inequality/)
Less wealth translates into fewer opportunities for upward mobility and is compounded by lower income levels and fewer chances to build wealth or pass accumulated wealth down to future generations.
How do laws come into play here? Mortgage market discrimination means that black people are significantly less likely to be homeowners than white people, which means they have less access to the savings and tax benefits that come with owning a home.
Moreover, under the current tax code, families with higher incomes receive increased tax incentives associated with both housing and retirement savings ( https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2015/10/30/124315/the-inefficiencies-of-existing-retirement-savings-incentives/)
Wealth is often built over generations, meaning the policies and laws here make it even more difficult for black households to participate in home ownership. 73% percent of white families own a home compared to 45% of black families ( http://www.demos.org/publication/racial-wealth-gap-why-policy-matters)
Switching gears for a moment: let’s talk about COINTELPRO. This counter intelligence program run by the FBI starting in the mid 1950s was aimed at surveilling, discrediting, and disrupting the work of political groups in the U.S. ( https://www.aclu.org/files/FilesPDFs/mlkreport.pdf)
The FBI’s stated motivation for COINTELPRO was “protecting national security, preventing violence, and maintaining the existing social and political order” ( https://www.intelligence.senate.gov/sites/default/files/94755_III.pdf)
Among COINTELPRO’s targets were Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Nation of Islam and the Black Panther Party.
For those unfamiliar: Black Panther Party was a grassroots organization of young Black men and women dedicated to the empowerment of Black people.
While the Black Panthers advocated self-defense they never supported unprovoked, random, indiscriminate violence - The right to self defense was but one of the ten points of its political platform ( http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/45a/088.html).
Leaders of the BPP were targeted by COINTELPRO for “neutralization”, a term they used as a code for assassinations, imprisonments and public vilification.
They did so by means (including but not limited
to) disseminating forged documents intended to sow discourse among leaders of different political groups, suborning of perjury, harassing & intimidating witnesses, & the withholding of exculpatory evidence ( http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/45a/088.html)
to) disseminating forged documents intended to sow discourse among leaders of different political groups, suborning of perjury, harassing & intimidating witnesses, & the withholding of exculpatory evidence ( http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/45a/088.html)
Let’s highlight one BPP member in particular: Fred Hampton. Fred Hampton studied law & wanted to defend against police brutality. He was an active member of the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People). He led the Youth Council for one of their branches.
Fred Hampton brokered a non-aggression pact between “Chicago’s most powerful and dangerous gangs.” He caught the attention of the Black Panthers, rose quickly within their ranks and thus, was on the FBI’s radar.
“The FBI convinced a criminal, William O'Neal, to infiltrate the Party and get close to Hampton. O'Neal succeeded in joining the Party, acting as Fred Hampton’s bodyguard and Director of Chapter Security. At the instruction of J. Edgar Hoover... (cont.)
he worked to underminethe coalitions that Hampton had created amongst the neighborhood gangs and organizations - causing a major rift and creating a distrust of the Black Panthers.” ( https://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/individuals/fred-hampton)
O’Neal mixed a powerful sleep drug into Hampton’s drink on December 3rd, 1969. Shortly thereafter, officers were dispatched to raid his apartment. Hampton, asleep in bed, was shot multiple times and killed.
There were 7 other Panthers present at his apartment that got arrested. That night, officers fired 99 shots. The only round fired by the Panthers was a discharge into the ceiling due to a reflexive-convulsion by Mark Clark as he died, shot by an officer. ( https://books.google.com/books?id=ignjecF9pX4C&pg=PT102)
A short time later, there was a break-in at a FBI field office in Pennsylvania where the COINTELPRO documents were discovered. The cache of documents included a floorplan of Hampton’s apartment and an outline of the deal to conceal the FBI’s role in the assassination of Hampton.
In 1970, the survivors and relatives of Hampton sued the federal and local governments for $47.7 million stating that their civil rights were violated. The case was dismissed. After it was determined that the government withheld relevant documents... (cont)
... and obstructed the judicial process, a new trial was held in 1979. In 1982, Cook County and the federal government agreed to a settlement of $1.85 million.
The FBI and those in power in the U.S. government felt threatened by the rise of black power groups. They saw how these groups could disrupt the status quo from which those in power currently benefitted, and sought to prevent their success through COINTELPRO.
I could go on & on forever with examples, but I’m going to stop here and tell you: this information is out there. It is not the responsibility of the black community to teach us these things.
You may mean well when you want to learn and ask to have it explained to you, be please know that people are tired. They’ve explained the same things over & over. They’ve lived it every day.
In an age where information is at our fingertips with the internet, do your due diligence and RESEARCH. Twitter threads are great but ALWAYS FACT CHECK and look for cited sources. I’m not just talking about looking at Wikipedia pages here; look at academic resources.
Listen to the experiences of those who are willing and offering to share but don’t expect anyone to hold your hand or spoon feed this to you.
I wanted to also share these historical facts to emphasize: this is not one or two people’s personal experiences being generalized. These are FACTS & this is the reality of the laws of the United States and the way black people are disproportionately affected by them.
I know there are many patriotic Americans out there who don’t like hearing these facts because it makes them uncomfortable. They want to have pride in their nation and their history. To them I say: this is not a history to be proud of.
Ignoring the past doesn’t make it go away. Ignoring the conditions of black Americans in our present time doesn’t make it go away, either. If you want to be proud of your country, make the United States a country we can be proud of.
Amplify the voices of the black community. Research the policies of political candidates and look at how their stances affect the black community. Vote for those who will make change happen. Call and write those currently in power.
Know your place as an ally and be careful to speak up without talking over black voices. Don’t wait for change to happen, be a part of making it happen NOW.
And finally, please know:
“All lives matter” is a statement that cannot be true until #BlackLivesMatter.
And finally, please know:
“All lives matter” is a statement that cannot be true until #BlackLivesMatter
.
