Over the last few years, some version of this question has been floating around the United States. Do black lives matter? Do white lives matter? Do all lives matter? The permutations–and the reasons behind them–are endless.
But that question has come to the fore for me as I’ve been watching a couple of trials recently–one with a verdict and one still being adjudicated.
Kyle Rittenhouse was found innocent of all charges against him. He admitted he shot three men with an AR-15 rifle…shot them because he was afraid for his life. I was not at the protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin–although I watched the news coverage. I can’t pretend to know what was in his mind as he drove to Kenosha and patrolled the streets.
But I can’t help wondering what would have happened had he been a different color. If he had been a young black man carrying an AR-15 rifle and had shot three men, claiming again that he had been afraid for his life, would the outcome have been the same? Sadly, I think not. Our history would tend to show that if he had survived that evening, he would have been described in words such as “thug,” “gangster,” or “criminal” and the jury would not have taken much time to have found him guilty.
Do you doubt that? Trayvon Martin was the same age as Kyle Rittenhouse–both 17. They both apparently had made some unwise decisions in the past. But Trayvon Martin was walking home with a package of Skittles and tea when he was chased down and killed by a white man who was found not guilty. Tamir Rice was 13 years old, playing in a park with a toy gun when he was killed. They were both black. Neither one of them had the benefit of a jury trial to determine whether what they were doing was wrong or not.
I have also been watching the trial of the three men accused of chasing and shooting Ahmaud Arbery. What was his crime? Walking through a construction site and looking around–as had numerous other individuals in that neighborhood (and as I have)…but he was black. There was never any indication that he stole anything…the owner never asked these three men (or anyone else) to make a “citizen’s arrest,” which is what they say they were trying to do. One of them took the stand and admitted that (1) he had never stopped anyone else in the area the same way he was going after Mr. Arbery; (2) he was never physically threatened by Mr. Arbery; (3) he was never verbally threatened by Mr. Arbery; and (4) Mr. Arbery was simply running.
I do believe in supporting the law. But the law–as it currently stands in the United States–does not treat people equally. African-Americans are accused, found guilty, and incarcerated at a rate far higher than whites–and that isn’t because they commit more crimes. Even when evidence comes to light exonerating people, African-Americans have to fight harder for it to be believed. In my own state, the attorney general and governor have been fighting to keep a man in prison who has been there for 43 years for a crime he says he did not commit. The primary witness recanted…the prosecutor believes him…there is evidence that would clear him. But none of that matters, apparently. Kevin Strickland is black; therefore he is guilty. We are currently waiting to find out how the judge will rule on his recent hearing for freedom.
Yes, color matters. And until we can stop believing that most whites are innocent of the crimes they are accused of…and most blacks are guilty…then there will continue to be protests.
Preacher's Kid 