ScapeGoats

Rham Emanuell condemns gang violence and asks ‘who raised you?’ to accused gang member charged with killing a 7 year old girl during a gang related shoot out.

This is a heartbreaking story and an infuriating story on so many levels.

I’m saddened that a child was killed while minding her own business, selling lemonade with her mother.  I’m infuriated at gang culture, both street gangs and gangsters who wear $1500 suits and ties. I wonder what the little girl was selling lemonade for. Was she raising money and if so, for what?

I’m infuriated that gangs even exist period. I’m infuriated that a lot of folks will read that story and start assigning blame, rightfully so, at the shooter, but then stop and not put some blame on the deep and systemic problems that breed this type of violence in the first place.

Rham asks the shooter ‘who raised you?’.   Good question Rham.  While we’re at it, what school did the shooter attend as a child? What kind of job did his parents have? Were they employed at all?  What kind of job did the shooter have?  What is the unemployment rate in the shooter’s neighbourhood? What about where the shooter grew up?  Any violence in the shooter’s childhood stomping grounds?  I just wonder if ANY of these things have any bearing on gangs, criminal activity and violence?

And since you brought it up Rham, and while we’re on the subject, what school did the little seven year old girl attend? What about her mother, does she have a job at a living wage? In the news story, they say that the little girl wanted to move because of the violence in the area, in fact, she had asked her mother to move.  What were the mother’s prospects of being able to make that happen Rham? What programs do you have in place or what programs are you pushing for to ‘clean up the streets’ to make this kind of tragedy a thing of the past?

Do you think that defunding public schools and transferring them to private, for profit entities will have a positive or a negative impact on gang violence Rham?

How about heading up the push to close those corporate tax loopholes that make Illinois the state that loses the most revenue to corporate tax breaks?  Is that a ‘value’ that you are willing to stand up for Rham?

Hypocrisy is a hell of a thing, and it comes in all forms.

One of the little mind games the corporate media and the people in positions of power like to play is putting a spotlight on what is in actuality a symptom of a problem and trying to convince you that it IS the problem. It’s a political sleight of hand, a dirty trick that belongs in an unlicensed card game, and not on our airwaves and in our houses of legislation.

Final jeopardy question: What do you call a U.S. bombing that kills 1 ‘bad guy’ and 25 innocent civilians?

A. collateral Damage

B. Casualty of War

C. Unintended consequences

D. Gang Violence

Song: Ice Cube ‘Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It’