But after the shooting, a source inside the police department told ABC News that a narcotics detective and not a homicide detective first approached Zimmerman. The detective pepppered Zimmerman with questions, the source said, rather than allow Zimmerman to tell his story. Questions can lead a witness, the source said.

Another officer corrected a witness after she told him that she heard the teen cry for help. The officer told the witness, a long-time teacher, it was Zimmerman who cried for help, said the witness. ABC News has spoken to the teacher and she confirmed that the officer corrected her when she said she heard the teenager shout for help.

Neighborhood Watch Shooting of Trayvon Martin: Probe Reveals ‘Questionable Police Conduct’ - ABC News (via robot-heart-politics)

The officer. corrected. the witness.

Okay.

(via deliciouskaek)

(via somerset-deactivated20120910)

Source: abcnews.go.com

nonplussedbyreligion:

[TW:Racism]

Mississippi Conservatives Talk About Their Hatred Of Obama

People in America’s poorest state talk about how they’d rather remain wretched than accept anything from Obama, that negro in the White House. They hate government handouts even though many of them are on food stamps. They think Obama care is “retarded and pointless” even while acknowledging that many in their state need health care. It’s really a sad video to watch. 


I’m well aware that those interviewed represent a small fraction of those who live in Mississippi.  However, having lived in the Southeast for over a decade, I can personally attest to the fact that this way of thinking is also found in the best of neighborhoods amongst those of varying social, economical, and educational backgrounds.  The leaders of the Klan and other hate groups usually wear a suite and tie and are better educated than many think.  They feed this level of racist based fear and ignorance into those who listen to them and you end up with this.  

I rarely talk about race on this blog for my own mental health.  It’s not something that can be mentioned casually, it’s not something that blacks can get over as something in our past.  It’s alive and well in America, and regardless of your status, be it President or pauper, there are always those who will look at your success or lack of success as a direct relation to the color of your skin.  

I’m secure enough to acknowledge the ignorant and not allow them to impede on enjoying the successful and wonderful life I’ve created for myself.  Unfortunately, this is not about me.  These are the people who vote their faith and their prejudices.  These are the ones who voted for McCain simply because he was white, no policy considered, just the color of his skin.  These are the people who will vote GOP for the same reason.  

This has nothing to do with poverty either, as this ignorance has little to do with economic status.  These are learned behaviors of hate and intolerance, passed down from generation to generation.  Ignorance that moves past the slums and spread across all sectors of the nation. 

This isn’t a pro-Obama post, because I’ve shared before that my voting for him is strictly a result of doing my research and finding him the less of the evils.  If another candidate was available that did not make me want to flee the country every time they opened their mouth, I’d be seriously researching them.  This is about living in America in 2012 and having people still make political decisions based on faith and race.  

Just a few of the scary highlights from this video:

“God should come into his (The President) mind in every thing that he does.”

“This is America, our President should be American not Muslim.”

“It’s not because he’s black cause he’s a half breed…”

Man: “I guess I’m a little prejudices.” Reporter: “Are you? You don’t like black people?” Man: “Not much.” Reporter: “Why not?” Man: “I just don’t”

Reporter: “So you don’t care about the economy?” Man: “No, it will take care of itself.  If you put God back in the saddle it will all be ok.”

“We would rather go broke and die hungry than to give up our moral beliefs.”

“I feel like voting God and voting faith is more important to me than voting for free money…” 

“I’m gonna stand up for what I believe in even if I go broke doing it.”

“…and like the tag on the front of my truck says, ‘The South Will Rise Again’.”

~ Kim

(via nonplussedbyreligion-deactivate)

madgastronomer:

red3blog:

resting-at-last:

mohandasgandhi:

Black teen shot and killed in mostly white gated community he lived in while going to a convenience store to get snacks by a Neighborhood Watch official who said he looked suspicious

Via Global Grind: “17-year-old Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by a Neighborhood Watch captain inside his own gated Orlando, Florida community where he was living with his father, stepmother and little brother, according to the family’s lawyer. Martin was shot after returning home from a local convenience store, where he bought snacks including Skittles candy requested by his 13-year-old brother, Chad.

According to the family’s lawyer Ben Crump, the family is calling for the Watch captain’s arrest, saying Martin was “on his way home and a Neighborhood Watch loose cannon shot and killed him”…”.* Was the teen singled out and shot because he was black in a white neighborhood? Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur discuss if race was involved on The Young Turks.

HE HAS A NAME: Trayvon Martin, Shot & Killed By His Own Neighborhood Watch (DETAILS)

I know Tumblr doesn’t like hearing about this but when people talk about “white privilege,” part of what is meant is stuff like the ability to exist beyond the confines of your home without the fear of being killed due to your race or ethnicity.

I can’t believe this yet I can, horrible.

There is no just reason that his murderer George Zimmerman isn’t under arrest. If a black man was found with a smoking gun with an unarmed white teen dead, do you think for one second he’d be allowed free while police collaborated, oh sorry, corroborated his claims of self-defense?

Murderer George Zimmerman has admitted to murdering Trayvon Martin. If wants to claim self-defense because of an altercation that was entirely of his, George Zimmerman’s, choosing, he should make it to a jury. The bottom line is that murderer George Zimmerman created this confrontation. Murderer George Zimmerman escalated this confrontation. Murderer George Zimmerman decided to start following a teenager because the teenager was black in the wrong place. Murderer George Zimmerman continued following him after being advised not to by police. Murderer George Zimmerman got out of his car carrying a concealed weapon when his victim recognized he was following him. I don’t care if Murderer George Zimmerman then got himself beaten up. He had a choice in every step of this experience and he consistently made the choice to escalate the situation. His choices led to an innocent teen’s senseless death. He must be held accountable. If Florida won’t do something, maybe the federal government can. A 17-year old is dead because some white wanna-be cop made the decision to violate his civil rights and followed-up that decision with a bullet.

Reblogging for Red3’s commentary.

Also, I was just looking at the comments on linked article, and the murderer turns out to be a 25yo Criminal Justice student. Uh-huh.

(via always-tete)

Source: mohandasgandhi

What I’ve learned about privilege-denying white people in the past couple of days

always-tete:

is that they like to blame “the government” and “our society” for the problems faced by people of color. 

The general sentiment is, “I agree it’s a problem, but don’t blame the white (or rich) people. It’s not my fault! Blame the government because they’re not doing anything! Blame society for forcing you to go through such hardships!”

Who the fuck do you think is IN government? For the most part, white people.
Who do you think rules our society and implements measures to make sure that oppressed people REMAIN oppressed? White people.  

Seriously, it’s like they see government and society as these all-powerful, anonymous entities and never bothered to think that government and society are driven by actual human beings.

occupyallstreets: FACT: 94% of Academy Award voters are white, 77% are male. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the group that votes for the Oscars, is nearly 94 percent white and 77 percent male, according to a Los Angeles Times study published Sunday. Blacks are about 2 percent of the academy, and Latinos are less than 2 percent. In some sub-branches the racial disparities are even higher. The executives and writers groups, for example, are 98 percent white. And all of this year’s five nominated directors are white men, and none of the 21 producers of the nine best picture nominees is a person of color. Read More
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occupyallstreets:

FACT: 94% of Academy Award voters are white, 77% are male.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the group that votes for the Oscars, is nearly 94 percent white and 77 percent male, according to a Los Angeles Times study published Sunday. Blacks are about 2 percent of the academy, and Latinos are less than 2 percent.

In some sub-branches the racial disparities are even higher. The executives and writers groups, for example, are 98 percent white. And all of this year’s five nominated directors are white men, and none of the 21 producers of the nine best picture nominees is a person of color.

Read More

(via petitsirena)

Source: occupyallstreets

thetart:

White kids? I need y’all to listen.

We are not all Troy Davis.

This would not happen to us.

No, cork it and let that settle in for a second. This would not happen to us in this country and in this “justice” system and in this white supremacist culture that lets us think it’s the appropriate progressive response to stomp out feet about Not! Being! Racist! at this or any moment. Save your stories of unjustly accused white people, this is not the same at all. You mourn this man and you mourn the rotted soul of a nation that can allow this exact pattern of violence to carry through centuries, but do not for a second think it makes any sort of sense to co-opt this moment.

We are not all all Troy Davis.

This would not happen to us.

(via thesexuneducated)

Source: thetart

America was colonized by male and white people. All women experience alienation due to the overwhelming male standard based in this history. Women of color experience alienation for the overwhelming white standard, too. I consider it perfectly acceptable to expect men of all ethnicities and classes to educate themselves and take responsibility for their individual role in women’s oppression. I likewise consider it perfectly acceptable to expect white women of all classes to take responsibility for our individual role in the oppression of women of color. Women of color have no call to trust white women until white women take a gander at the world around them, investigate, learn and annihilate ignorance founded in being white in a society where the perspective and voice presented to the general public is white.
Inga Muscio (via criticallegaltheory)

(via thesexuneducated)

Source: criticallegaltheory

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