100 Words 003

Thoughts on tragedy:

Most times when a white person is violent, they are labeled “mentally ill.” If their skin is another color, they are a “thug” or “terrorist” — dehumanized. This is a racist narrative and we should stop accepting it.

Black Lives Matter. That phrase does not devalue other races, so don’t knee-jerk “all lives matter.” Stop and listen.

The president lamented mass violence in America today, yet the government kills and tortures people around the world. I think to reduce violence, we must reject it both institutionally and privately.

“May tomorrow bring us more justice and some peace.” – @prisonculture

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published June 18, 2015

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Responses

★ Rachelskirts, Nicole Gardner, Laurie Guerrettaz, Joe Richardson, Isha Schmackers, and 2 others

Laurie Guerrettaz – June 18, 2015
Amen brother

am – June 18, 2015
Good.

Suzi – June 19, 2015
I’m not trying to be racist in any sense, nor am I attempting to justify the violence to which I think you are referring. I do think that if any human has the capacity to mass murder other people that there is a possibility that the person may be a sociopath, which is a form of mental illness.

gRegor Morrill – June 21, 2015
Suzi: The point wasn't whether there is mental illness involved or not. It's that there are different, racist narratives around violent people based on their skin color. White people tend to get nuance when they are talked about—humanized. Other races don't get that nuance and are often presented in a two-dimensional, dehumanizing way. See the link in that paragraph for an article on the topic.

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