God, I wish I didn't have to write about racial issues in the 21st century. But,alas,these problems still persist. It is the 150th anniversary of The Civil War & the focus is on how relations are between blacks & whites. Instead, we should be talking about how blacks(and Hispanics,for that matter) are still regarded as less than. In Los Angeles,killing a black person is actually a status symbol amongst many who are in Latino gangs.
And this racial animosity between Blacks & Latinos is widespread. In New York, racial issues have bubbled up to the surface. Reports of African-Americans attacking Mexicans have become more prevalent there. What is going on? Both Hispanics & Blacks are still at the bottom of the ladder in America.
Shouldn't we be focused on changing that horrible reality instead of attacking each other for the crumbs that are being thrown our way? Why are we not collaborating with each other, Blacks & Browns?! We should be lifting our communities up,not dragging them down!
The respect for those of African or Hispanic descent is still sorely lacking in today's world. Just take the brutal murder of James Shamp as an example if you don't believe me.
No one should be attacked because of their skin color. The tensions between races must cease. Let the violence decrease & the peace increase.
Here's more from The Los Angeles Times:
"A little more than a year after the racially motivated killing ofJames Shamp, a 48-year-old black man, the prosecution of his killers appears to be drawing to a close. Last week, Richard Bordelon, 22, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, one count each of attempted robbery and conspiracy to commit murder, as well as admitting to special-circumstance allegations of drive-by murder, racial killing and that he was an active gang member at the time of the offense, according to Deputy Dist. Atty. Daniel Akemon of the Hardcore Gang Division.
The defendant confessed that the victim was killed because he was African American, officials with the district attorney's office said. Los Angeles police sources said the case was part of a larger series of incidents in which Latino gang members in the West Valley threatened blacks and sprayed racist graffiti.
At Bordelon’s March 24 appearance, Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Martin Herscovitz sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole, plus 47 years to life. The judge also ordered Bordelon to pay $14,386 in restitution for burial expenses and mental-health costs incurred by the victim’s family.
According to police, Shamp, a husband and father of two, was taking out the trash at his job in Winnetka on Dec. 22, 2008, when a car carrying Latino gang members pulled up. A group of men approached him and shot him in the chest. Friends heard the shots and ran outside, where they found Shamp lying face down. He was taken to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries."(END OF EXCERPT) Read the rest here.
