While everyone’s upset — what’s a bit more?
As a white female blonde, this story on Damond had me thinking about our parallels. My view remains unchanged — in that the indoctrination within the US police force that is overrun with people, mainly men, mainly white (but the culture seeps throughout) are those that should never hold a gun to “protect and serve” as they psychologically biased (and dangerous) when it comes to protecting too many POC, including children.
That said, and aside, I can see how white privilege led to yet another tragic police shooting of one of many innocent victims. Yes, white privilege and if whites can read this dispassionately, they probably can relate.
As a white blonde female like #JustineDamond, I grew up in a world where the presence of police was reassuring . That viewpoint ended during my 20th year due to my circle of friends and their experiences. But the point is, like many whites, it would never cross my mind to NOT call 911/999
- if a car backfired
- if a drunken roommate trying to unlock the door worried me
- if anyone as much as threatened me — and yes,
- if I heard an assault outside my house.
You see, it would never, EVER have occurred to me that the arrival of police could be more dangerous to me than what I was calling them about. This is not the case for most POC That’s one example of my white privilege.
Another is the outcry that comes from those indifferent to victims that don’t look like me but are now outraged — is it at the failure of privilege to protect her #JustineDamond.
