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The BB gun was still in the packaging, but they still killed him. I wish this story shocked me.
It feels like every day there's a new story featuring an unarmed black person being gunned down and killed because they looked "scary." What's worse: These stories are too often supported by lies and there aren't any consequences. As this Twitter story from Shaun King shows, this isn't exactly a new trend.* If you aren't able to see the tweets below, try clicking "view slideshow"
09.19.14
Two little things worth calling out here:
Shaun incorrectly mentions three men tortured and killed Emmett Till and were later found not guilty.Emmett Till was killed and tortured by two men who were found not guilty. The men lied and said Till had a wallet full of pictures of white women he was going to victimize, but they'd burned it.
As of September 2014, Officer Darren Wilson (who shot and killed Mike Brown on Aug. 9, 2014, in Ferguson, Missouri) has not been arrested or charged with any crime. But there is currently a grand jury in process. The grand jury has until Jan. 7, 2015, todecide whether charges will be brought against Wilson for Brown's death.
If you're not caught up on all the stories mentioned in this Storify, you're in luck. Here's some background:
If you're not caught up on all the stories mentioned in this Storify, you're in luck. Here's some background:
— Kendrec McDade, an unarmed teen, was shot and killed by police in Pasadena, California, in 2012. A friend believed he'd stolen his laptop, so he told police Kendrec was armed with gun "so they'd move quicker."
— Ronald Ritchie admits to lying when he said John Crawford was pointing a gun at people in Walmart. When police arrived on the scene, Crawford was shot and killed from behind. He was holding a BB gun still in the packaging that he'd picked up in the store.