I am frankly sick of this entire inyan already. The one main thing no one is emphasizing is that parents (black, white, purple) ALL need to instruct their children from day one, that they need to speak respectfully to people in authority, NOT give them attitude and a fresh mouth, and be compliant when confronted with the police, especially when they are doing something illegal, however minor. A little incident can rapidly escalate into a tragedy. This could have been avoided in the Garner case, had he had the brains to recognize he was doing something wrong, and do what the officer said. he should not have gotten a “death penalty” for selling cigarettes, but that would not have happened had he not tried to resist arrest.
Someone made a very valid remark on the radio today – these inner city kids are being subjected to HIDEOUS gangsta rap type music all the time which urges them to commit awful crimes, including homicide, and this is the continuous and powerful brainwashing in the guise of entertainment, with which they live. What responsible, caring adult is teaching them otherwise? They clearly have allowed this trash to become an intrinsic part of their urban culture, and are doing little to stop it. I believe in freedom of speech and expression, but not when it urges people to act like animals. If anyone reads Newsday, take a look at the political cartoon on the editorial page.