Can we talk about the recent shooting??

[redandblue]

So I don't want to derail the randoms thread, and in all honesty I try to stay away from reading most of the horrible things that go on in the world. Totally selfish I know. I popped on the parenting thread for the Minnesota shooting yesterday I believe. I am so so so bothered by it. I watched the video (which was traumatizing and part of me feels I shouldn't have watched it, but then I feel like everyone should watch it, and everyone should feel angry about it).

I am horrified about this. SO so so many things wrong with the scenario.

How someone is shot in the front seat of their car over a broken taillight with a 4 yo CHILD in the backseat??? How??? That smart/brave woman going into action and filming what happened next is incredible. It will truly be hard for the police to not do something about this. The state of racism and probably untrained police is very unnerving.

My heart brakes for that little girl. The trauma she witnessed. Her feeling the need to comfort her mother.

Why was the girlfriend put in handcuffs and put in the back of the cruiser???

I am so upset (clearly and rambling) .

I'm worried for what this does to our youth, and more specifically DS1, who watched this video and stated 'see police are a waste of space'. Like I have major work to do with him to help bring his teenaged brain back around.

Anyways, I just wanted a place to maybe discuss this (and parenting is just too big for me).

[carabassa]

Oh god, another shooting? I thought this was about Alton Sterling, but then you said Minnesota and I checked the news.

I don't have the words. It's beyond horrible. I'm sorry to not be a good contributor to the conversation. It's just...it's all the worst. And I can't watch any of the videos.

[flippinchica]

I just can't right now. I hate that I'm burying my head in the sand. I lived in the city where Alton Sterling happened and I still have family there. Can't say I'm shocked.

[runningmommy519]

I am from Minnesota. This happened less than an hour from me.

I can't begin to describe how much my heart hurts. I can't contribute much either.

[redandblue]

My heart hurts so much over this. I don't know what can be done, except continuing to find ways to fight discrimination (IMO the root cause of this officer to feel his safety in jeopardy and shooting in a very unnecessary manner). I heard someone recently say it's not good enough to not be a racist, but we need to be anti-racist.

The mistrust this continues to add against the very institution that is meant to protect us (someone on parenting posed an excellent question wondering when police went from protecting our citizens to protecting themselves). Fortunately Canada in general does not see these extreme examples (not to say it doesn't happen, because there is definitely racism here), but I worry for my son's and what this means for them. DS1 is bi-racial (as well as DS2's siblings are bi-racial) and I know feels these incidents in a different way (mix in his hormones and teenage angst is a recipe for disaster with respect to figures of authority) .

I don't know what discussing it will do except ensuring that people feel enough emotion and anger to fight and challenge racism around us, making positive examples for our LO's to fight for social justices and equality. Always keeping the conversations going. Especially for our LO's, as they grow may have questions and if things are not openly discussed, then they will fill in the blanks themselves.

Again rambling, thanks for allowing me to ramble. I just feel so passionate about this.

[flippinchica]

Ugh, yes. Systemic racism and police violence has been going on for a long time. Now that everyone has a camera in the Palm of their hand it has allowed it to come to light. While terrible to watch it is a good thing for society to see the situation. Before it was the word of a policeman vs a dead man with a criminal record.
That being said retaliatory violence against police is disgusting and horrific.