What’s Good for the Goose is Good for the Gander
People are people.
Evil is evil.
And racism is racism.
Often people, from all demographics, focus on the discrimination and inhumane treatment of people from their demographic group and are oblivious to the fact that evil and bigotry knows no color.
The recent Chicago hate crime in which a group of four African-Americans kidnapped and tortured a White man with special needs is proof that we are capable of the same hatred that we have historically experienced at the hands of White bigots.
And unfortunately, if we do not call out Black racism when we are exposed to it, how do we expect others to call out the racism that we endure?
According to the Washington Post, “Authorities in Chicago charged four young African-American adults with hate crimes…after a video broadcast live on Facebook appeared to show them shouting obscenities about President-elect Donald Trump and White people while abusing a man authorities say has mental health problems…
“The assault went on for up to five hours, authorities said, and police found the victim—an unidentified 18-year-old from Crystal Lake, a city northwest of Chicago—wandering the streets ‘in distress.’”
The four suspects include, Jordan Hill, 18, Tesfaye Cooper, 18, Brittany Covington, 18, and Tanishia Covington, 24 according to ABC News.
While the four deservedly got hit with hate crime charges and justice will hopefully be served, the alleged crime shows a reality that all people are capable of being bigots.
Furthermore, the alleged crime shows that there is just as much hatred in the Black community towards other races as there is hatred towards Blacks from others.
But those blaming Black Lives Matter for the Chicago hate crime are totally wrong.
And likewise those asking for the death penalty are even more wrong, because unlike in Dylann Roof’s case, no one lost their life, fortunately.
For years, many African-Americans have stated that African-Americans cannot be racist because the community does not hold any power but I respectfully disagree with that.
While the African-American community does not hold as much political and economic power as the White community, any human being is capable of holding power over another human being if they choose to misuse that power.
If I held a gun to someone’s head, and they are unarmed, best believe I hold power over that person.
If I own a business and hold a position of power at a company or an organization, I hold power over my subordinates and I have the power to discriminate against them.
Although that ability to discriminate pales in comparison to systemic racism, tell that to the person being discriminated against because the effect is probably the same to them as it would be if I were the victim.
Throughout my childhood I heard many African-Americans say do not trust your White colleagues who pretend to be your friends because they are probably putting on a façade.
The victim in the Chicago hate crime thought Hill was his friend, and was going to spend the night at his house, and ended up being tortured live on Facebook.
Unfortunately, the victim of the Chicago hate crime found out that his “Black friends” were capable of putting up a façade too and that they were really not his friends after all.
Throughout the last year, and all of my life for that matter, I have heard racist things come from White, Black, Hispanic, Native American and Asian mouths.
I have seen evil committed by people of all backgrounds.
And while the hate aimed at the Black community obviously affects me more, I would be the definition of a hypocrite if I ignore how hate affects other people who do not look like me.
