On September 21, 2011 at 11:08 p.m., Brother Troy Davis was executed for the 1989 murder of police officer Mark MacPhail. Before I go on, I must pay my respects to Officer MacPhail and his family. That man did not deserve to die as he was doing his duty breaking up a fight. His family did not deserve to lose their loved one to a senseless act of violence. I pray that your soul is resting beautifully with our Lord and Savior, Officer MacPhail.
With all due respect to Officer MacPhail and his family, this piece is about bringing the true offender of this crime to justice. I'm not sure that was done when Troy Davis was executed on 9/21/2011. Quite frankly, I don't think that the State of Georgia can say that they laid the true offender to rest themselves. In my opinion, the doubt that loomed over this case was large enough to not only not execute this man, but grant him a new trial. Instead, the State of Georgia unjustly (in my opinion) executed a man that was in all probability innocent. The more that I have learned about this case, the stronger I can say this with conviction.
The other reason I am writing this is because of the socially immature people that need to wake up. Since I have joined the social networking world, I've come to the realization that people: 1) don't know what's going on 2) don't wanna know what's going on 3) don't care what's going on. I realize that I dwell amongst a generation of people who are filled with a toxic combination of complacency and entitlement. The work that our ancestors started many years ago is still not finished. The torch has been passed to us to carry on with the fight. Problem is, many think that we've already won. If we continue on this path, the weed of complacency will strangle the life out of us.
As I read tweets on Twitter the day Troy Davis was to be executed, I became very angry at the ignorant mentality of a lot of folk. Many didn't care because in their words; they didn't know him, and it didn't concern them. If you remotely think that the blatant miscarriage of justice doesn't concern you, then you're sadly mistaken. Many people spoke, or, tweeted without any real knowledge of the situation at hand. You must understand that this could've been any one of us. The next time it can be me, you, my brother, cousin, or even any one of my sons. This is why it is imperative that we carry on the fight against an oppressed system.
As a black man, I've been profiled many times. I'm not flashy, don't wear my pants below my behind, don't wear bling, don't blast my music, don't have one tattoo or piercing. I'm an ordinary citizen just like many of you who actually has served this country called the United States of America. But I know that as long as my skin color stays this color, I will have to deal with certain things. Some will say; "why do you have to make it about color?" If you know me, then you know that I deal with facts. It is a fact that since Africans were brought to the New World (America) in the 1600's in the transatlantic slave trade, it has always been about color. As black men, we've dealt with this and swallowed the pill that you've (America) force fed us. Now it's time for America to swallow this man made elixir. Now let me get something else straight. Brothers: "The Man" cannot hold you down if you never fill out any job applications, or, apply to any schools. Some brothers use that; "the man is holding a black man down" excuse but are not actively pursuing a better life. And that is exactly what it turns out to be--an excuse.
If some of you don't think that color has played a part, ask the families of Emmett Till, Medgar Evers, James Byrd Jr., and Troy Davis. You can even ask the families of our white brothers Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner who were murdered with fellow civil rights worker and black man James Chaney in Mississppi in 1964. If you've seen the movie Mississippi Burning then you know what I am referring to.
People ask if I would feel the same if it were a white man. Of course I would! Injustice is injustice, no matter the race of the person. Problem is, who has historically been on the side of injustice? Ask the family of Sean Bell. A black man who was killed by NYPD as he and his friends left his bachelor party. Sean Bell and his friends were fired upon a total of 50 times when none of them had a weapon. Ask the families of the victims of the shootings on the Danziger Bridge in my hometown of New Orleans, LA after Hurricane Katrina. Six people were shot (all African-Americans), two were killed, in which one of them was Ronald Madison. Madison was a 40 year old mentally disabled man who was shot in the back while he was seeking safety. Ask the family of Oscar Grant. Grant was killed by a BART police officer in Oakland, CA. Grant was forced down by police, kneed in the neck, then shot by one of the officers. Grant was merely an unarmed citizen breaking up a fight. Instead, he ended up dying at the hands of a police officer. I know that these examples are of black men. But, it doesn't stop there. The poor and disenfranchised are subject to injustice as well--no matter what race or ethnicity you may be.
I must say that I still feel that our judicial system is the best around. But it is still flawed and imperfect. Is anything or anyone perfect? No! That doesn't mean that we should just accept a flawed system that jails and executes innocent citizens. Everyday that you get up, you strive to be better than the day before. That should be true of our judicial system as well. Who wants to get locked up for crimes that they didn't commit? Not me! Who wants to be executed for a crime they didn't commit? Definitely not me!
In Troy Davis' case, I believe that this man was innocent. The witnesses that have come forth changing or recanting their statements suggest so as well. I know that they're countless inmates in prison with claims of being innocent of the crimes that they have been charged with. I'm well aware that some or most of the them are full of it. But lets not be naive to the fact that there are not people sitting in jail/prison who are actually innocent. Of course there are! That isn't justice when an innocent individual is sitting in a cell for a crime that they didn't commit. Actually, that's a tragedy. Some have tweeted me on twitter for my beliefs in Troy Davis. Fact is, many people have been exonerated after sitting in prison for years after it came to light that the individual was actually innocent. So I, and all of the Troy Davis supporters out there are not crazy for supporting and believing in this mans innocence.
Please do not make the mistake of not educating yourself and your family on social issues. These issues do concern you and everyone around you. If you've ever been to any courthouse across America you would probably see Lady Justice with the scales even in her right hand and a blindfold over her eyes. This is to signify that justice is blind and it dishes out justice regardless of race, gender, or class. Be careful, because I think she's peeking over her blindfold.
~R.I.P. Troy Davis October 9, 1968-September 21, 2011 murdered by the State of Georgia by lethal injection.
No comments:
Post a Comment