Racism and other forms of hatred. Silence is not an option.

Lukaris said:

The fallout from the rioting will perpetuate the same problems in another generation (if there is one). It happened in the 1960s riots where most of the areas became permanent, economic tombs. Looks like more of the same. The system, however long it lasts, is all we have. I doubt the wisdom of those who claim it is as pervasively bad.

Crime can often be transplanted like when drug dealers from metro areas set up shop in small towns. Demographics change, murders increase, social conditions start to break down.

I think some of us realize the system is probably doomed. The challenge is to not become desensitized & trust in the Lord ( John 16:33).

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The 'system' needs reform. I have been racially profiled myself, as long as another black family friend, in a predominately white suburb that we live in. There needs to be reform of the 'system' because it is failing us.

lovelife34 said:

Exactly. But I'm almost 100% sure that the officer did not expect to be going on trial for murder...he thought his 'badge' excused his behavior. I'm also glad that the 3 police officers who were bystanders were also charged. Silence is compliance.

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Oh me too! And I hope others learn from this brutal behavior. There are consequences (the ripple effect)

gzt said:

Saying that Black lives matter is really the quickest way to make enemies on a religious forum.

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Because you link yourself to a movement which promotes abortion and normalises abnormal sexual orientations, both of which are anti-Christian.

prodromos said:

Because you link yourself to a movement which promotes abortion and normalises abnormal sexual orientations, both of which are anti-Christian.

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Exactly. Then people are surprised.

lovelife34 said:

so this excuses the inhumane murder of George Floyd?

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Said no one in this thread.
Please respond to what people are saying and not what you imagine they are saying.

AMM said:

Yes. Lord have mercy.

Why does this mean that black lives don't matter? Why does this mean that there are not other tragedies?

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It doesn't, it just means that the movement is morally bankrupt.

This an irrelevant and disingenuous distraction from the topic.

gzt said:

This an irrelevant and disingenuous distraction from the topic.

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Of course you would say that

gzt said:

Saying that Black lives matter is really the quickest way to make enemies on a religious forum.

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Not, it’s not saying the words as words. Nobody argues against the proposition. We all think black lives matter BECAUSE all lives matter. It’s much more declaring support for an organization that openly declares war on what the Church says the family and sexuality is. THAT will get anyone who does it well-deserved flak for hypocrisy. And what is hypocrisy? Well, as a language guy, I can say that the word in translation essentially means “insufficient self-criticism”. All Orthodox Christians should affirm the Church’s teachings on sexuality and the family, and condemn denials of it. If an Orthodox Christian promotes an organization that says, “No, the Church teachings are wrong, and we seek to overthrow them”, then that’s hypocrisy. He’s publicly declaring both for the teachings of the Orthodox Church and against the teachings of the Orthodox Church. It should not surprise anyone who supports the organization “Black Lives Matter” (as distinct from the words “black lives matter”) if they get called on such hypocrisy.

lovelife34 said:

OK, so you have an issue with black women aborting their unborn black children (and other races doing so as well, I assume), so this excuses the inhumane murder of George Floyd?

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Nope. We all condemn that murder. It is disingenuous and self-deceptive to pretend that we don’t. But it IS true that most of the people who make much of Floyd’s murder while making nothing of the murder of uncounted thousands of black babies are a) not as interested in black lives as they pretend to be and b) tend to be on the Left/Democratic Party side of the political system that supports and promotes abortion. See my previous comments on “hypocrisy”.

AMM said:

Yes. Lord have mercy.

Why does this mean that black lives don't matter? Why does this mean that there are not other tragedies?

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No one, no one, thinks that black lives don’t matter. You are miscaharacterizing my words, I’m beginning to think, deliberately. I’ve said a dozen times now that we all agree that black lives matter. Why are YOU silent about the black police officers murdered over the past week attempting to stop the riots and mayhem falsely described as “protests”?
You’ll repeat Floyd’s name a thousand times because he fits the racist narrative of racism. The black babies, black police officers, you should be bewailing THEM in this thread, and they were far more innocent than Mr. Floyd.

lovelife34 said:

Did I call you racist? Not once. I am trying to explain something, but it doesn't matter. It's not worth it. Think what you want. Go and live your life. It doesn't hurt you, right?
The FACT is, there is a widespread problem in America with regards to police brutality. You can talk about what is 'true' all you want. If YOU would be okay with your father/brother being knelt on for 9 minutes by a police officer, then just say that, and move on. Or just say the truth, that you don't really care about all this stuff because it 'doesn't affect you.'

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I have suffered police brutality first hand. I’m against it. We all are. If you have personally been arrested on false charges, strip-searched, robbed of your money, and jailed, and forced to sign a paper saying “No complaints” (against the police treatment) then maybe I’ll listen. Don’t tell me I don’t understand police brutality.

But that’s not the real effect of the narrative you push. The real effect is (however well-meant) one of deliberate racial division, by making what divide there is seem much larger than it really is.

rusmeister said:

I have suffered police brutality first hand. I’m against it. We all are. If you have personally been arrested on false charges, strip-searched, robbed of your money, and jailed, and forced to sign a paper saying “No complaints” (against the police treatment) then maybe I’ll listen. Don’t tell me I don’t understand police brutality.

But that’s not the real effect of the narrative you push. The real effect is (however well-meant) one of deliberate racial division, by making what divide there is seem much larger than it really is.

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Chill out, lol. Quote me where I said you don't understand police brutality. I'll wait.
LOL, I don't need you to listen. There are a bunch of people on this forum who haven't been arrested on false charges and you're still talking with them, so your point is moot. I've been racially profiled, I don't need to be arrested to be able to talk to you.

LOL. I never have and never will push racial division. You're reaching.

rusmeister said:

Nope. We all condemn that murder. It is disingenuous and self-deceptive to pretend that we don’t. But it IS true that most of the people who make much of Floyd’s murder while making nothing of the murder of uncounted thousands of black babies are a) not as interested in black lives as they pretend to be and b) tend to be on the Left/Democratic Party side of the political system that supports and promotes abortion. See my previous comments on “hypocrisy”.

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That's your subjective opinion. You can't prove that 'most of the people who make much of his murder make nothing of the murder of black babies." This has nothing to do with being on the Left/Democratic party. I myself am neither Democratic nor Republican. I don't support abortion. But I don't look at someone and say, 'oh they're Democratic, so they must support abortion. Or oh they're Republican, so they don't support abortion."

prodromos said:

Said no one in this thread.
Please respond to what people are saying and not what you imagine they are saying.

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I asked someone a question. I wasn't talking to you. Please respond to people who are talking to you.

lovelife34 said:

I asked someone a question. I wasn't talking to you. Please respond to people who are talking to you.

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Actually, you were talking to me. I was responding to your question to me.

lovelife34 said:

Did I call you racist? Not once. I am trying to explain something, but it doesn't matter. It's not worth it. Think what you want. Go and live your life. It doesn't hurt you, right?
The FACT is, there is a widespread problem in America with regards to police brutality. You can talk about what is 'true' all you want. If YOU would be okay with your father/brother being knelt on for 9 minutes by a police officer, then just say that, and move on. Or just say the truth, that you don't really care about all this stuff because it 'doesn't affect you.'

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The is no “widespread problem” of police brutality in the US. What happened to George Floyd was a tragic anomaly.

I have already provided the statistics. There are a handful of cases, declining year by year.

The number of cases of the police killing an unarmed black in the US without cause is in the single digits annually.

Single digits is not “widespread”.

If you really want to help black Americans, there are 100 other priorities that actually will address “widespread problems”, starting with discouraging having children outside of wedlock and absentee fatherhood.

If you could get black fathers to stick around, you would be benefiting about 2/3rds of the black population.

Here’s a great organisation that is actually making a difference in the black community:Our Mission | National Fatherhood Initiative

prodromos said:

Actually, you were talking to me. I was responding to your question to me.

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OK, my bad because your profile pic looked like another guy's I was talking to.

Jesus4Madrid said:

The is no “widespread problem” of police brutality in the US. What happened to George Floyd was a tragic anomaly.

I have already provided the statistics. There are a handful of cases, declining year by year.

The number of cases of the police killing an unarmed black in the US without cause is in the single digits annually.

Single digits is not “widespread”.

If you really want to help black Americans, there are 100 other priorities that actually will address “widespread problems”, starting with discouraging having children outside of wedlock and absentee fatherhood.

If you could get black fathers to stick around, you would be benefiting about 2/3rds of the black population.

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You have a right to your opinion and I have a right to mine. If you don't believe there is a widespread issue, that's your prerogative.
What single digits? LOL. The last time I checked, it wasn't up to you to tell me what my priorities should be. Furthermore, what do you suggest I do? Go up to random people who I assume are going to have children out of wedlock and tell them not to? LOL. If I could get black fathers to stick around..... um it's actually impossible. I unfortunately don't have that power. I could maybe try that if systemic racism ended, and things like the school-to-prison pipeline were taken care of. And things like racial disparities in prison sentencing were taken care of. But yes, I agree, my job is to get black fathers to stick around....not.

Key Findings:

• Police killed at least 104 unarmed black people in 2015, nearly twice each week. (See which police departments were responsible for these deaths)
• Nearly 1 in 3 black people killed by police in 2015 were identified as unarmed, though the actual number is likely higher due to underreporting
• 36% of unarmed people killed by police were black in 2015 despite black people being only 13% of the U.S. population
• Unarmed black people were killed at 5x the rate of unarmed whites in 2015
• Only 13 of the 104 cases in 2015 where an unarmed black person was killed by police resulted in officer(s) being charged with a crime. 4 of these cases have ended in a mistrial or charges against the officer(s) being dropped and 4 cases are still awaiting trial or have a trial underway. Only 4 cases (Matthew Ajibade, Eric Harris, Paterson Brown Jr., and William Chapman) have resulted in convictions of officers involved, with a fifth case (Walter Scott) resulting in the officer pleading guilty.
• Of the 4 cases where the officer(s) involved have been convicted and sentenced, none were sentenced to serve more than 4 years in prison. Only 1 of 2 officers convicted for their involvement in Matthew Ajibade's death received jail time. He was sentenced to 1 year in jail and allowed to serve this time exclusively on weekends. The officer who killed Paterson Brown was sentenced to only 3 months in jail. Deputy Bates, who killed Eric Harris, was sentenced to 4 years in prison and Officer Cobb, who killed William Chapman, was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison. Officer Slager, who killed Walter Scott and pled guilty, has yet to be sentenced.