Still Invisible?. Elvin J. Dowling

      Casualties of Conflict

      Can A Kid Just Be a Kid?

      Noted educator and activist, Catrice Jackson, once said: “If you don't have an anti-racism plan, you plan to be racist.” In the United States, for all practical purposes, when the institutions that racial supremacy have built are ignored and allowed to function as designed, more often than not, that is the end result. In fact, since the founding of our great republic almost two and a half centuries ago, our nation has promoted the concept of a white male patriarchy that has always placed Caucasian men at the top of the pecking order in American society. Followed closely behind white men in this impenetrable social construct is, of course, white women (like me) who, by virtue of our station in life, often enjoy the spoils of our male benefactors who afford us the pleasure of living a life of privilege and favor in the land of unlimited opportunity. After that, the social constructs of our society tend to get a bit complicated, if you will... except for the fact that Black men have always been at the bottom of the American social caste system--to be clear--without question. How do I know? I know because I alone stand between those who seek to maintain the status quo and those who seek to change it through judicial precedent. I am Lady Justice.

      As the arbiter of jurisprudence in this, the greatest, freest country in the world, I am loathed to admit that, when it comes to the inequities faced by Black males, that is, not much has been done to change the narrative of this century’s old reality. Now, of course I would never admit this undeniable truth outside of polite company and, were I to be placed under oath in the very same system I oversee, I would "plead the fifth" on the grounds that I could incriminate myself, if ever confronted with the systemic inequalities attended upon even the youngest Black males amongst them. To that end, it goes without being said that, as a matter of pattern and practice, the frivolities of childhood and its accompanying youthful exuberance, is really never fully extended to Black children in America. "Too bad... so sad..."

      According to Stacey Patton of the Chronicle of Higher Education, in her article, "In America, Black Children Don't Get to Be Children," Black childhood is considered inherently less valued and oftentimes indistinguishable from Black adulthood. In fact, research has revealed that the overestimation of a Black child’s age begins as young as age twelve, impacting the way they are often seen and treated by others. "A study published... in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology — which long ago published racist studies on Black children — linked the higher use of force by police on Black youth to the common perception that, by age 10, they are less innocent" (Patton). As such, I'm sure you can understand how police officers acting in the heat of passion, and well-meaning majority white juries, can justify state sanctioned aggression against these "larger than life" threats, can't you? Even with my delicate sensibilities and limited vision, I can see that... Can you say: "I feared for my life?" I rest my case.

      In 1955, during the trial for the group of white men exonerated in the murder of a 14-year old Black boy, Emmett Till, one of his assailants remarked that Till “looked like a man.” Nearly sixty years later, in 2014, Tamir Rice a 12-year old child in Cleveland, Ohio, would go on to meet his untimely demise when, what I can only presume was a well-meaning community patriot fulfilling his unwritten public duty of protecting white America from what could have been a menacing Black threat, when he called 911 with reports of "a guy, tall for his age" playing with a gun in a park. Granted, the caller did say, "it’s probably a fake" and "he's probably a juvenile" to the emergency services operator, but, then again, those are just the details--way too many for the police to keep track of, of course. After all, it’s a fast-paced job, and everybody's entitled to a few mistakes. Including the police, right?... Right?!

      At the close of the Civil War, African-American citizens, through the passage of the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the Constitution of the United States, were successful in establishing political parity and participation for millions of newly freed Black people, but in doing so, the need to minimize the value of Black boys in this country became central to maintaining a white supremacist construct that continue to this day. "If a white life cycle features innocence, growth, civility, responsibility and becoming an adult, Blackness is characterized as the inversion of that. Not only are Black children cast as adults but, just as perversely, Black adults are stuck in a limbo of childhood, viewed as irresponsible, uncivil, criminal, innately inferior" (Patton). As perverse as this may be to the untrained eye, in my America, white is always right. That's just the way it is. And though the fate of some of our most vulnerable citizens is something that is of little consequence to people who look like me, I do, in fact, sympathize with the women who must bear the brunt of it all, the mothers of young Black boys who may never make it into adulthood. Their pain may never be my reality, but as a woman, I understand.

      In a poignantly gripping letter to her son about the challenges he will ultimately face in the world he was destined to inherit, Celia K. Dale, a contributor to the Atlanta Black Star, wrote, in part, the following heartfelt plea:

       To my beautiful boy,

       It is with profound sadness that I sit here writing this letter to you. You are only 8-years old and your world revolves around your friends and your family. You are oblivious to the ways of the world and what’s in store for you as you learn and mature and leave the safety of my arms. I wish that I could guarantee this safety for the rest of your life; but I can’t. I am no longer able to pretend that raising you right is all you’ll need...

       Son, you, no, we live in a country built on hate, fear, and oppression. We live in a country that will judge you, NOT by whom you are and what you stand for, but for what some random person with the same skin color does. We are a part of a race of people that are looked at collectively. You are an African American and you’re a male and being those two things can be deadly...

       ...What I’m about to tell you will make you question my sanity, but I am telling you this because I want you to live. There is NO room for mistakes in your life, Braxton; none. You cannot dress a certain way, you cannot talk a certain way, you cannot walk a certain way and you CANNOT EVER commit ANY kind of crime that will put your life in the hands of someone else. You CANNOT hang around certain people, walk in certain areas, or even go to the store with a group of friends to buy a sandwich. I may never see you alive again. Your life can be taken by police and there will be NO recourse because all they’ll have to say is 5 words…. “I feared for my life.” That’s it. Guess what? They will be believed because it appears that the prevailing belief is just by virtue of your skin color and sex that you are to be feared. It doesn’t matter that you’re very sensitive. It doesn’t matter that YOU don’t care about what color your friends are. It doesn’t matter, honey.

       A lot of people will assume you’re a thug… not because you act like one, not because you’ve EVER walked the streets of an inner city, but because you are Black. It doesn’t matter that I worked my fingers to the bone to ensure that I raised you in a safe environment away from the issues that prevail in poor communities. It doesn’t matter that I’m educated and articulate. It doesn’t matter that I didn’t let you run the streets doing what you wanted to do; NONE OF THESE THINGS MATTER!

       If you are ever stopped by the police, Braxton, I want you to do the following: