Monday, March 26, 2012

#TrayvonMartinProsecuteAsHateCrime?

The tragic case of Trayvon Martin has been getting more attention by the day.  Celebrities and new outlets are bringing attention to this story.  Users on Facebook and Twitter have been reposting stories and news updates on the case of the unarmed 17-year-old black teen that was shot by a self appointed neighborhood watch leader.  A lot of people are looking at the case from a racial point of view.  Black teen wearing a hoodie, jeans, and sneakers is shot down by a white man.  Of course, there must have been a racial motive.  But the fact is that this was not a white man but a Hispanic man who shot this young man.  And as his father told reporters that he [George Zimmerman] is not a racist because he grew up in a multicultural family and apparently mentors black youth in his neighborhood.  And that is why I feel the prosecution should not focus on racism but focus that this man’s careless, irrational actions are the cause of the death of Trayvon Martin.

After being told by 911 not to follow the young man, Zimmerman left the safety of his vehicle to follow Martin.  Zimmerman did not have any reasonable cause or authority to confront Martin.  Zimmerman is not even a part of the national organization for Neighborhood Watch which in their bylaws has specified that watch leaders are not to carry weapons.  Trayvon was not in any way on Zimmerman’s personal property.  This information alone should debunk Zimmerman’s self defense claim.  Not to mention the fact that Martin is 140 pounds and Zimmerman is 250 pounds.  When the police arrived, all that was found on Martin was a bag of Skittles and a bottle of ice tea.  There was no need for this type of deadly force to be used by Zimmerman.

On the 911 calls you can hear Martin yelling for help.  Anybody who is attacking someone and possibly winning is not yelling for help.  After the cries for help you hear gun shots on the 911 calls.  Trayvon was also on the phone moments before he was shot and describing to the caller that he was being followed.  It is obvious that Martin knew he was in trouble and not trying to attack anyone but maybe was trying to defend his self.  Martin had the reputation of being a cheerful A and B honor roll student and did not have a history of getting in trouble with the law.  I do not suppose that he chose this night to engage in a life of crime. 

I feel the prosecution can build a better case by focusing on the fact that an innocent young man was murdered by an overly zealous vigilante.  All the evidence is there: calls, witnesses, and past histories (Zimmerman has called 911 46 times since January 2012).  Do not get me wrong, I do believe that this man is a very ignorant man and it is possible he thought Martin looked “suspicious” because he was black, but when it comes to this particular case race should not be the focus.  All in all, I hope justice is served. 

Monday, March 12, 2012

#GuiltyPleasure:RHOA

As the title points out my guilty pleasure is Real Housewives of Atlanta.  Other women reality shows have burnt their bonds with me (Basketball Wives and Love & Hip Hop) but these Georgia Peaches do not give me Champaign bottle tossing and hair pulling brawls but they give me just enough drama to keep me wanting to tune in every week.  These past two weeks did not leave me disappointed.

Last week’s episode had the ladies back in Atlanta after their drama-filled trip in Africa.  Ms. Sheree “I have my Gucci bags and my dirt lot to keep me company” Whitfield comes back dishing all the tea and her tea is anything but sweet.  She informs Kim that Kandi was talking trash about how she could not see Kim holding “black babies.”  When they showed the flashback clip of the conversation Sheree is referring to, Kandi clearly does not say anything about Kim not wanting to hold a black baby.  Kim being naive believes everything Sheree tells her without even hearing Kandi’s side of the story.  (Just to remind you, about two or three seasons ago Sheree was trying to pull Kim’s wig off her head. Now they are best friends.)  But let’s keep it real, Sheree knows who butters her bread and that person is Bravo.  Sheree is trying to keep up the drama because she is not trying to get Deshawn Snowed (Remember her? If not, look at Season 1 line-up).  You all saw that dirt lot, Sheree cannot afford to get kicked off this show.

Something else that has happen is Nene’s  son, Bryson, went to jail for stealing razors from Wal-Mart (Two $14 razors to be exact).  These women, particularly Nene and Sheree, are not shy about talking about all their name brand clothes and handbags.  So it is hard for me to understand why Nene’s son shoplifted something so simple.  Razors? Really?! Bryson, I could have given you some change on a razor and I do not even get “Trump Checks.”  I agree with Nene, she should have left him in jail for the full 30 days.  By the way, I like Nene’s motherly side. 

Now let’s get to Cynthia.  I am really on the fence when it comes to Cynthia.  Cynthia is missing something…..ummmm, oh yea, a backbone.  Now I believe that you are suppose to respect your husband as head of household but when he convinces you to give him $1,000 of your own money so you can impress the guests who are going to be at the party that is where you should draw the line.  Peter going to have him and Cynthia in the poor house trying to impress the “socialites” aka posers of Atlanta.  And also, who throws a big fancy party for a ONE year anniversary.  Peter and Cynthia should have went to Red Lobster and called it a night.  After he spends all her money that is the only “fancy” restaurant they are going to be able to afford.  And how he called Mallory out at the party was so childish.  Peter needs a dose of “grow-up.”  I need Mallory to get her nose out of Cynthia’s marriage and let her [Cynthia] realize on her own that she has married a hot mess. 

Okay, guys I that was my recap of just some of the highlights of RHOA.  Stay tuned because I am sure that these ladies are going to give me more material to write on. 


Thursday, March 8, 2012

#Kony2012

Diddy, Jennifer Hudson, Kevin Hart, and George Clooney are just a few celebrities that are bringing attention to the title of this post.  For a day and a half, #stopkony, Uganda, and Invisible Children have been trending.  On your newsfeed, you might have seen links to Youtube titled Kony 2012.  If you have not have not heard by now about what Kony 2012 is, then simply put, it is to make a man famous. 

Famous for what you might ask? Nobel Peace Prize Winner? Saved a baby from a well? Found the cure to cancer?  Unfortunately, it has nothing to do with anything positive or uplifting.  Joseph Kony has started a pointless war (as far as I am concerned most of them are but I digress) in Uganda where he abducts children from their homes and turn the boys into young soldiers and the girls into sex slaves.  In some cases, the soldiers have had to kill their parents.  If a child refuses to not be a part of the war effort, they risk being mutilated or killed.  The Youtube video says that he has accumulated 30,000 children for his unnecessary war. 

I have stated before that I do not write on current events or jump on bandwagons unless I have researched both sides of the story and considered everyone involved.  I was not a journalist major but I try to have a journalist approach with stories as sensitive as this one.  With that said the rest of this post is about what has been told to us and what others have had to say about the matter. 

Around March 5, a video was released on Youtube describing who Kony was and what needs to be done.  A couple of days later the video had over 1 million views.  The video instructs viewers to make the name known (do this by tweeting celebrities and contacting policy makers) so that policy makers will see that people care and possibly continue to send U.S. troops to Uganda to advise the army there, who are trying to catch Kony.    The video also ask viewers to donate what they can and then they will get an action kit.  In the action kit you get braclets, posters, and stickers that have Kony 2012 printed on them.  You are to put these items up in your community to inform those in your community about Kony. 

The video not only pulls, but grabs tightly at your heart strings.  When I was done watching the video I was ready to post Kony 2012 poster all over central Arkansas

With any cause you have your critics.  Some have said that the video makes it seem as if we kill Kony then the country of Uganda will magically become this booming society.  Others have said that the footage of Uganda we see in the video is over 6 years old.  And even others have said that the non-profit has spent more money on films, salaries, and office space than on the ground in Uganda.  The video is said to be misinforming people by saying that Kony is still in Uganda.  According to reports, he has not been in Uganda for years. 

Relief workers in Uganda have been in some way insulted by this video making it seem as if there has not been any effort done by those who are in Uganda such as Betty Bigombe.  I am not writing this post to make short of the efforts of Invisible Children but before you jump on any cause step back and see the bigger picture.  In this case, is finding and killing Joseph Kony going to poof-be-gone the problems in Uganda?

To read more about what is going on in Uganda, click here