What's The Price For A Black Man Life?
By
Nicholas Brown
Since the beginning of time, life for a black man in America has been one that consist of
trials and tribulations. As history has foretold the life of a black man is valued less than that
of any other ethnicity, race, or gender. However, in this so called "post racial" society we
reside in today, the perception of the black man in America is to be feared. We have been
casted out by the media and government to be violent, unintelligent, and criminals within
society. These allegations are supported with statistics such as black men making up more
constitute nearly 1 million of the total 2.3 million incarcerated population, and have nearly
Disparities in the United States Criminal Justice System, submitted to the United Nations,
"one of every three black American males born today can expect to go to prison in his
lifetime".
In 2013, by age 18, 30% of black males, 26% of Hispanic males, and 22% of white males
have been arrested. By age 23, 49% of black males, 44% of Hispanic males, and 38% of
white males have been arrested. This is evidence to the simple fact that black men should
be feared in the United States, an these statistics contribute to this dehumanizing
perception. My life, as a black man is not as valuable as other human beings because I am
deemed a threat, that statement alone leads to the Trayvon Martin and Mike Brown
scenarios where young black men can be killed without any repercussions to the murders.
Police officers have demonstrated throughout the years that stereotypes within our society,
can lead to imprisonment and death. According to a ProPublica analysis of federally
collected data on fatal police shootings, black men were at a far greater risk of
being shot dead by police than their white counterparts, "twenty one times greater".
The federal data displayed that of the 1,217 deadly police shootings from 2010 to 2012, from
ages 15 to 19, black males were killed at a rate of 31.17 per million. While just 1.47 per
million white males in that age range died at the hands of police.
On July 17, citizen Eric Garner was chocked out and killed on the side walk by a police
officer. While standing on the side walk Eric Garner's final words were, "Get away [garbled] ... for
what? Every time you see me, you want to mess with me. I'm tired of it. It stops today. Why would
you...? Everyone standing here will tell you I didn't do nothing. I did not sell nothing. Because every time
you see me, you want to harass me. You want to stop me (garbled) Selling cigarettes. I'm minding my
business, officer, I'm minding my business. Please just leave me alone. I told you the last time, please
just leave me alone. please please, don't touch me. Do not touch me. "Video of the arrest shows four
officers wrestling Garner to the ground and restraining him." I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't
breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe. I can't breathe," he said, as
officers restrained him. The video not only depicts this exact scenario but shows how peaceful and
calm Mr. Garner was being before his life was taken away. And just like the countless other cases
involving the police and the death of a black man, the police officer was not convicted.
“The history of the American Negro is the history of this strife, --
this longing to attain self-conscious manhood, to merge his double self
into a better and truer self. In this merging he wishes neither of the
older selves to be lost... He simply wishes to make it possible for a
man to be both a Negro and an American...”
―
W.E.B. Du Bois,
Souls of Black Folk & Era of Franklin D. Roosevelt 1933-1945 & Movements of the New Left 1950-1975 
I like you post, and I feel the same way. America has always target a certain race over time, and it is just pretty sad. I am so glad and happy that people are organizing to have their voices heard. At the same time, I feel like this kind of movements shouldn't just focus on African Americans but in general, but there have been Latinos, Asians, Middle Eastern, ect killed by the police. Is not just that Black lives matter, everyone's does.
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