It's Hard Being Black and Gifted

In the wake of the Trayvon Martin/George Zimmerman Case, I will attempt in the most positive, non-polarizing way as possible to share a personal story.

There has constantly been an issue in our society regarding the rights of African American men.  This case hits me because something similar (yet thankfully not as tragic) happened to my brother many years before.  My brother, the Talented and Gifted Adonis I grew up admiring, and hating, was the victim of racial profiling following the Columbine Massacre.

We moved around a lot as kids and I think that had something to do with the awkward way in which we developed.  Our first move to Indianapolis led me to a life full of friends and fun.  Darrell on the other hand, well, to put it lightly had it rough.  Okay well, maybe not rough but the boy was clearly awkward.  He was on track to be Valedictorian at his high school.  He participated in plays and was a fierce competitor on the soccer field which would later lead him to his love of rugby.

4-20-1999 - Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold effectively massacre several classmates and teachers before eventually taking their own lives at Columbine High School in Colorado.

Fast forward a few days
I'm sitting at home with my mother when a cop car rolls up with my brother.  My brother, never even stole from the candy bin at Meijer, came home in a cop car; I was tenish at the time and didn't quite understand the magnitude of what was going on but knew something was up.  My mother burst into tears when the officer revealed what happened to bring my brother home in such dramatic fashion.  He was expelled from Lawrence Central High School because he was a presumed member of the trench-coat mafia.  Who knew that dead teens crossed state lines to cause mayhem in our tiny waterfront community.

They arrested Darrell and subsequently expelled him because his poetry was dark and depressing (have you heard of goth or emo?).  He wore trench-coats, like many other law abiding citizens.  But those two things were nothing compared to something about him that will never change - he's a black male.  SCARY!  I don't even think Darrell was 16 at the time.  The high school for gifted juniors and seniors across the state started to receive his reference letters that went from glowing remarks of the great student to notes of fear and cowardice from teachers that barely knew what he was all about.

And that's what this all boils down to isn't it?  Cowardice from the leagues of people that do not seek to understand what they don't know, they only want what they want and that is to remain blissfully ignorant.

Larger Image Here

I actually googled so I could provide you with more accurate information about the subject.  My brother was active in y-press at the time, an Indianapolis based youth press organization, and there had been an article written about the expulsion.  The organization is now defunct and no amount of googling will bring back a dead domain.
See image to the right for the Y-Press article.

In the end, my brother is alive.  He's happily married and is a successful lawyer/engineer former blogger for Ghostface Killah.  I'd say that despite not graduating valedictorian from LC he's doing alright.  People like Trayvon Martin and Emmett Till don't have that chance and at this rate, no young black male ever will.

As a person of color, there are things I just don't engage in because of the stereotype that could come with it.  I went through a hoodie wearing phase and can't imagine what my parents would be doing now had I been gunned down on my way home from a convenience store, skittles and tea in hand.  These cases, though few, are still a reminder of the prejudices in the hearts and minds of many American citizens.  We need to stop the acceleration of these events and start to focus on what needs to happen to prevent this instances from occurring in the future or we are going to have full scale pandemonium in our streets.




I'll leave you with this response to the verdict: Melissa Harris Perry - George Zimmerman Verdict Response