police brutality
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James Blake Slammed And Arrested For…Smiling While Black? Being Lightskinned While Black?
After hearing the news about James Blake — the retired tennis star who was tackled, cuffed, arrested, and detained by five police officers as he waited for a car to take him to the U.S. Open — three things immediately came to mind: 1. James Blake is a Harvard grad, a former superstar athlete, and…
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This Shaun King Takedown Attempt Is Fuckin' Ridiculous
I’m so appalled. Over the past few days, conservative, right-wing people and sites like Glen Bleck, Breitbart, and The Blaze (amongst others) have accused Shaun King, an activist who gained significant attention after his in-depth analyses and social media campaign in the wake of the killing of Michael Brown by Officer Darren Wilson in August of…
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Police Crackdown On Marijuana Proving Fatal For Black People, Bags Of Weed
Via WLWT, Cincinnati local news: Some of the contents of Sam DuBose’s car at the time of his death have been identified. WLWT has confirmed through CPD’s search warrant inventory document that four bags and a jar of marijuana were in Dubose’s car at the time of the July 19 traffic stop that ended in…
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The Footage Of Sam DuBose's Murder Is Hard To Watch, Which Is Why We Must Watch It
Earlier today, University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing was charged with murder in the death of Sam DuBose, a man Tensing stopped for a traffic violation two weeks ago. Tensing has turned himself in, and the city seems poised to distance themselves as far as possible from him, using words like “senseless” and “asinine”…
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They Killed Her. They Fucking Killed Sandra Bland
My wife and I went to the YMCA tonight; her to take a yoga class, me to play basketball. After the Y we went to Giant Eagle, and sat in the parking lot for 10 minutes to create a grocery list. While doing this, I checked my phone for emails, texts, and Facebook/Twitter notifications. A link shared…
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What Those Kids In McKinney Should Have Done To Prevent The Cops From Assaulting Them
Like many of you, I’ve spent much of today watching and talking about the disturbing video of the police officers assaulting and arresting Black children at a pool party in McKinney, Texas. This incident apparently occurred Friday evening, and at least one officer has reportedly been suspended as a result. But while the suspension would seem to…
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Motherhood, Art, And Police Brutality
“I’m here and your eyes lucky. I’m here and your future lucky.”* -poet Angel Nafis, “Gravity” Part I: Motherhood Changes Everything Our son, Maze, is a miracle, born to us on May 27 of last year. In 2012, I lost two pregnancies, back to back, one in early January and the other in early April.…
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Baltimore Is Not Ferguson; Freddie Gray Is Not Michael Brown
It is not difficult to witness what’s happening in Baltimore, Maryland right now and immediately think of Ferguson, Missouri. Or New York City. Or Cleveland, Ohio. Or Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Or perhaps even Los Angeles in 1992. The parallels are obvious; heartbreakingly, evisceratingly, surreally obvious. So obvious are these similarities that it does not take much…
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"Anti-Police Brutality" Does Not Mean "Anti-Police"
According to published news reports, hours before Ismaaiyl Brinsley shot and killed two NYPD officers, he shot his ex-girlfriend, Shaneka Thompson, in Baltimore. He also stole her iPhone. After shooting her, he boarded a Bolt Bus to New York City, and updated his Instagram account from her phone, vowing to kill cops. Minutes after following…
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Ferguson Isn't About Black And White. It's About Green.
Robert McCulloch, the prosecuting attorney in St. Louis County, was first elected to the post in 1991, and has held the post ever since. He often runs unopposed. He’s been re-elected six times. One of those times came after a 2001 grand jury where he allowed four officers to go free after shooting two unarmed…