A dark past

The killing of a young African-American man in Florida has created yet another national debate. Was it a racist act? Was it a hate crime? Whatever did happen, it is likely only two people know the whole truth, and one of them can't say anything about it.

I think the bigger issue here is what has happened in the aftermath. I'm not trying to put the young man's life in the background, however I think the flood of people who have arrived to protest the way police have handled the matter have begun to become no more than a lynch mob. The national news media has once again shown the most inflammatory statements, as is their usual habit. But, they are not there to create the news, they are there to report it.

What most have failed to remember is that the investigation is not over. Not all the facts in the case are known, as was said by a national news anchor. They may not like how it is being handled, that is their right, but in their fury they have become judge, jury and executioner. The gunman (notice I didn't say alleged gunman) could very well be completely guilty of the worst crime. But the group yelling the loudest is now no different from those groups they were persecuted by before the civil rights movements. How are they different from the white supremacists back in the fifties who lynched Blacks just because they thought a crime was committed against a white person? How far have we really come? When has Al Sharpton ever defended the rights of someone of another race? He seems only to follow the cameras and incite others.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the young man. My family has been where you are, and for the others who will say "you don't know what you're talking about because you've never been there", I say, I have and I know.