It Is Right There Are Protests: Justice for Eric Garner

Eric Garner has turned out to be a gentle giant with a lovely family. By contrast the New York police department has exposed itself as a savage, unjust and oppressive organisation. The lack of an indictment has added insult to the injury of the merciless killing of Eric Garner. It is right that there should be outrage. It is right that there should be questions. It is right that there should be protests. It is not right that law enforcement should use the authority of its office to target and terrorise Black people. 

Broadening One's Horizons

It's amazing how considering how vast the universe is human beings by the nature of their birth tend to be constrained and limited in their perspectives. Being born into nuclear families hailing from certain regions of particular tribes or ethnicities has meant that we grow up steeped in certain cultures and world views. As a result people form very definitive views about how things should be, and what is right or wrong. These come from cultural norms and practices combined with the sets of laws we are required to follow. 

Moving from one country to another as a child I found out that there were major differences in how my peers and I understood the workings of the world. My friends and relatives who had grown up in a country freed from colonialism, and still somewhat in thrall to the colonial masters; couldn't quite wrap their heads round the idea of racial discrimination and oppression. Even the notion of tribalism didn't quite prepare them for the concept of racial prejudice. It did mean that certain conversations didn't go swimmingly. But this wasn't because they didn't care or sympathise; it was just a lack of understanding stemming from the absence of a relevant frame of reference. 

It is important that all human beings broaden their horizons. It represents a form of growth through self development and introduces people to different perspectives from around the world. This allows a better understanding of what motivates others and what drives their thoughts and actions. But what it also does is offer a comparator to the the things we know and the norms we have always lived by.

Education is a great way to broaden one’s horizons and expand one’s mind. It provides us with both knowledge and information. It also trains our minds to take in and analyse information. In sound minds this develops a yearning to learn and a facility for enquiring about the nature of things. There are those who education just about brings them up to the level of buffoon. It can't work for everyone. 

Travel is another good way to broaden one's horizons. Travelling to other states in one's country isn't a bad idea. It fosters a deeper appreciation of other tribes and areas. However, if one is to discourage the notion that the whole world revolves around just one's own country then traveling abroad might be the way to go. Being abroad is like being promoted to a higher class. You're seeing yourself in all the usual situations but you now have to operate at a higher level. Travelling abroad not only introduces you to new places, history and culture; it also gives you the opportunity to personally mature. You get to organise yourself, and learn to form new relationships with things, people and places. You can no longer rely on the familiar so you are shocked into creating a new frame of reference to live by. You learn to adapt or you suffer the consequences. 

As it turns out there's more to this life than what we know. There's even more to what we know than we have learned. Being a more rounded person ultimately makes you a better person. Though not necessarily a good person (go figure). But that's just one one of the things you come to realise as you broaden your horizons. 

I Can't Breathe: Justice for Eric Garner

The police have a duty to enforce the law in all communities and spheres of society. But they don't have a right to stereotype all black people and terrorise them. A justice system that refuses to hold its police force to account is neither just nor fair. Instead it has become an oppressive system. In a democracy the instruments of government should not subjugate the people. 

There's a growing trend in America right now that appears to be drawing battle lines between white and non-White communities. Unfortunately these prejudices and paranoia have become institutionalised and are being acted upon daily in law enforcement and the justice system. It is also a shame that these prejudices are also being bred into the youth thereby polarising society and its future manifestation. 

Whatever the officer’s query of Eric Garner was there is no doubt it could have been dealt with by discussion. The need to brutally subdue him harks back to the days of slavery. There is no question that America has come a long way since the times of slavery. Unfortunately it seems that it has turned full circle. America needs to ask itself whether it is prepared to heal its institutions or would it rather just circle the wagons and ready itself for a war on non-white communities. 

Relationship Readiness

Relationships are the main thing that define existence. Whether you are a human being, animal, plant, chemical, binary code or number. They are a defining feature of humanity. They represent the essence of any society. It's the relationship between things that creates the order of elements, and yields the laws of nature. But relationships between people represents the most complicated of them all. Both for the individuals involved and the interaction between them. 

Growing up we learn how to relate to parents, siblings, relatives, neighbours, friends, strangers, professionals, symbols of authority, the world around us, and who we are as dynamic individuals (physically, mentally and emotionally). This learning conditions us for how we relate in the future and how we see our place in the world as a whole. Some of it involves socialisation, but there is also an element of an individual personality forming and starting to assert itself. In essence, our minds start to establish what is right and what is wrong in relation to the things we experience in life. 

One of the key experiences that serves as both a motivation and goal in our future lives is romantic relationships. And for many the question of whether they are ready for a relationship will dawn on them in the midst of all the chaos that is life. For some relationships are something they enter into instinctively and are immediately at ease with. For others they start of with a lot of soul searching on what relationships are or should be. Others find themselves, later in life questioning what relationships mean to them after a number of varied experiences.

So when are we ready for relationships? There are many phases of relationships that occur throughout a person’s life. In childhood we form friendships, and ‘special’ friendships. In fact in infancy even our parents and the adults around us start to point us towards romances with all sorts of snot nosed toddlers. As we grow older though we start to identify that person who we really like. But these are still just friendships born out of affection and closeness. Quite innocent really. However, with the terrible teens come the urges and the territorial claims. We have that person who is now our own. Nevermind, that we don't feed or cloth them; or even pay for their call credit. We’ve found that person we just can't do without. Though that doesn't stop us waking up in the morning, checking Facebook, posting on Instagram and putting on our “to die for” outfit for the day. At this point things are serious and urges are bursting forth from our bodies as frequently as pimples. 

The truth is that it's all so easy when we're young. When we get older knowledge and experience start to flash cautionary tales before our eyes that loom larger than a Hollywood blockbuster. We become more anxious about how things will end up rather than how they will start off. We ask ourselves if we’re ready. Or we ask ourselves if we that cool person we just met could be the one. Once we’re consumed with doubt then it is time to take a step back and question our readiness. If you're not in the right frame of mind then it will never be the right place and time. Sometimes wanting it isn't enough. You have to have what it takes to make it work. 

I think human beings are born ready for relationships and are instinctively drawn into them. That being said one must be prepared for relationships. Championship eaters tell us all the time you can't just dive into the food and start stuffing your face. You need to train hard, get your game right and know what you're getting yourself into. You need to be ready! In relationships it's important you know yourself too. If it's salvation you're seeking then look to God. A good relationship with the Almighty will set you right. However if it's romance you're considering then take a step forward and gird your loins but proceed with caution. Relationships can turn out to be a really rough and revealing rollercoaster. The kind that churns your stomach and snaps your belt while you're whooping with joy (but that's what some of us live for). The kind that makes you giggle and then leaves you crying. The kind that makes someone tell you the most stupid nonsense and it falls on your ears like worldly wisdom. The kind that has someone touching you in all the right places and you doing all the wrong things. 

So ready or not, when you meet someone you like; ask yourself some questions. How well do you know them? What do you know about them? What do you like about them? What don't you like about them? What do you have in common? What is unique about them? What do they want from life? What do they want from you? If you're not afraid to ask these questions then you're ready to set off on a path to finding out the answers. But remember that when you take step forward it's easier to look back than it is to turn back.

Go forth and relate!

Say The Word ...

Your soul seeks joy

Yet your mind sees a ploy.

Your heart feels so cold

Yet your soul is free and bold.

Happiness could be a thousand miles away 

Yet only a message from you. 

Your fingers have so much to say 

Though your head wants you to look to pastures anew.

Your memories cloud your mind like a fog

Yet one memory is bright and sweet like a Yuletide log;

Like a pearl growing in an oyster 

There's something precious nestled just beneath that terrifying layer

That keeps holding you at bay

Just as you yearn to say …

Hands Up, Don't Shoot

There are so many things wrong with what is happening in Ferguson, Missouri; the killing of Michael Brown Jr., the lack of accountability of policing, the rioting, the Grand Jury decision, the conduct of the prosecutor. To name some. However, none is more wrong than the decision of Officer Wilson to repeatedly shoot and kill Michael Brown Jr. The key issue for me is the decision making that led to the officer shooting him. This was not a split second reaction in a sudden and unpredictable situation. This was a series of carefully considered actions by the officer; each action intended to bring matters to a fatal head.

There have been reports about Michael Brown's character and his actions on that day. These may indicate that he may have been a troubled youth. More importantly they show that he was a human being, a young Black man, and most importantly someone whose life mattered to many. His life should have meant more Officer Wilson. 

It is striking how we now live in times when the standard police response to dealing with young Black men is to shoot first, and then claim to be just doing their job. Where is it written that when confronting a young Black man you can't put your arm round his shoulders and offer him guidance? Isn't that the spirit of "Protect and Serve"? Rather than drawing a weapon and threatening, which has now become the customary response. I don't know how genuine the 'hug' picture from Ferguson is but the fact that it's striking says a lot about what the policing of Black neighbourhoods has become. 

There can be a lot said about what the basis of Officer Wilson's response that day was. Was it what he was taught in training? Was it what he had heard day in and day out from other officers? Or was it his own perception of young Black men. What we do know is that he acted without hesitation and with deadly determination. Somebody should have to answer for that.

The Immigration Wrecking Ball

The UK government has decided to focus on immigration as a key element of its election campaigning in 2015. It isn’t exactly clear how this will translate into a social improvement manifesto. This focus on immigration dates back to the local interest in the BNP some years ago; and the current wave of popularity enjoyed by UKIP now. What it doesn’t equate to is a clear mandate for social action outside the apocalyptic promises that stoke the fears of the British electorate.

There has been a lot of finger pointing at the European Union as one of the causes of the rise in immigration into the UK. This is despite the fact that evidence shows that the most recent lifting of travel restrictions amongst a number of East European countries did not actually result in a net increase in immigration. It also ignores the fact that every year there are more British people travelling to live in European countries for work and personal reasons. However, the establishment and settlement of ethnic European groups in UK towns has become a sign of a siege akin to a plague of locusts.

The fears of the local populace about immigration are very varied and sometimes echoes of stricken statements by political and interest groups. Of recent claims have been made about immigration affecting British values, contributing to terrorism, draining welfare benefits, taking up available jobs, reducing availability of social housing, or contributing to crime and disorder. It is questionable how much of this true for a significant amount of immigrants. Nonetheless the perceived threat from immigration has become painfully real in the minds of many British people.

Recently a television presenter implied that immigration was a factor in the erosion of the British value of tolerance and inclusion. This was in response to the Government’s demand for schools to start teaching and promoting British values as part of the curriculum. Yet one may recall the oppression of the masses in feudal times; and more recently the "No dogs, Irish or Blacks" signs that were popular post world war 2 and the most British Enoch Powell's 'Rivers of Blood" speech.

The idea that immigrants have swamped the benefits system is a very attractive argument often heard in pubs and marketplaces. Yet there is a qualifying period before migrants can claim benefits by which time most have secured jobs or left. And it can't be illegal aliens hoovering up these benefits since they aren't eligible at all.

The assertion that migrants are taking up jobs meant for honest hardworking Brits does beg the question of aren't British companies the ones employing them. So either there aren't enough hardworking Brits to fill jobs or they just don't fancy the jobs available. In which case it would appear migrants are actually helping shore up the British economy! Surely that can't be true. Migrants are supposed to be the cancer eating away at British values and wellbeing. A recent study reports that in the last 17 years EU migrants have contributed £5b to the UK economy.

While migration presents some challenges turning the issue into a xenophobic feasting frenzy only serves to hide the real issues undermining British values - low achievement in education and a growing work shy attitude. But telling home truths was never a good basis on which to run a political campaign.