Turn on the TV or look at your Facebook feed and you’ll see “Black Lives Matter” everywhere.  We, as Americans, cherish life.  Our actions and our laws, most of them, work tirelessly to protect human life.  So when a white cop guns down a black criminal, we are disheartened – we never like to hear about racism or a life ending senselessly.  With all this talk about talk about blacks being killed by white policemen, one would think we have quite a racist police problem in America.  Yet, I don’t believe we do.  At all.  Why?

For two reasons:

1) There is a much higher death rate of blacks than of any other race in our country currently.  Some facts:  Approx 6,000 blacks are murdered every year. If you combine the total white and hispanic homicide victims, the number of blacks murdered is still higher, and yet interestingly enough, blacks make up only 13% of the national population.  Additionally, blacks are killed at 6X the rate of whites and Hispanics combined.  In LA alone, blacks between the ages of 20-24 die at a rate 20 to 30 times the national mean.  Why such high rates? Who’s killing these black people?  Cops?  White people?  No – it’s other blacks.

It was reported from CPD Superintendent Garry Mccarthy (Nov 2015) that a black on black killing in Chicago “…shook our city,” at his morning press conference.  Did we hear about it?  Where was “Black Lives Matter”?  The biggest problem black men have is that their black lives don’t matter to other black men.

2) The “Black Lives Matter” has an agenda.  And sadly, when the media covers black on black killings, it does little to advance its agenda like a white cop on a black criminal does.  I’m not trying to be snide – this is simply a fact.  After just a couple google searches and some research of the facts (“how many black people are killed in America every year”) one can find this same information.  But that’s why we don’t hear ANY coverage on white on white or Hispanic on Hispanic killings.  It won’t get the ratings.

Here’s an interesting fact – that I’ve never heard in the media:

Chicago’s death toll is almost equal to that of both wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, combined.
There have been almost as many deaths in one American city as there have been in the two major wars carried out by the U.S. military this century.

Chicago’s death toll from 2001–November, 26 2015 stands at 7,401.

The combined total deaths during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003-2015: 4,815) and Operation Enduring Freedom/Afghanistan (2001-2015: 3,506), total 8,321.

Why don’t we hear about it?  It would not advance the “Black Lives Matter” agenda to report on any of those killings.  There’s no (implied) racism involved.

And one more…

“Dr. Richard R. Johnson also found from the FBI’s Supplementary Homicide Reports and Centers for Disease Control that an average of 4,472 black men were killed by other black men annually between Jan. 1, 2009, and Dec. 31, 2012.

Professor Johnson’s research further concluded that 112 black men died from both justified and unjustified police-involved killings annually during this same period.”  5 Devastating Facts About Black-on-Black Crime by Jerome Hudson 28 Nov 2015

I’m not making this up.  Just did a little research.

Here’s my concern with this whole debate:

The “story” that “blood thirsty, racists cops are gunning down innocent blacks like sheep in a pasture” will naturally get higher ratings.  The problem is this is completely untrue.  (Again just do the research).  And with this false narrative, comes the fact that our police force is dramatically being weakened (or killed as in Dallas) because of this false narrative.

With this contemptible movement, the police are (naturally) afraid to do what?  To Police.  This movement is waging a false war on those who are trying to protect us.  Are there some teachers that shouldn’t be teaching in the classroom because they are dangerous to our youth?  Yes – but we don’t attack all teachers because of those few.  Likewise, are there police that shouldn’t wear the uniform because they are power hungry or racist?  Yes.  But we shouldn’t attack ALL police because of a few bad apples.  But this movement is doing just that.

We should be thanking our Police who continually go into these crime ridden areas – knowing full well what they are walking into.  Because they actually GO into these areas, shows me that they care enough to risk their own lives or to help save others.  But this “Black Lives Matter” movement – is doing more harm than good.  And those of us not knowing all the facts – are perpetuating a story that is weakening our own system of law and order.

Interestingly enough, days after Ferguson, on March 11, 2015, protesters converged (once again) on the Ferguson police headquarters.  As they were demanding the resignation of the entire department, there was an innocent a six-year-old boy named Marcus Johnson killed a few miles away in a St. Louis park.  He was the victim of a drive-by shooting.  Black on black.  Did we hear about it?  Yes, STL News reported on it, but nothing national – at least not like Ferguson.  But this little 6 yr old boy was black.  Doesn’t his life matter?  Again, where was “Black Lives Matter?”  This happened right near Ferguson days after – to a CHILD no less!

And what’s more…Police Officer Don Re, who was first to the scene, knew paramedics wouldn’t get there in time to save the child, who at that time was in critical condition.  So the Officer Re took it upon his own to put the child in his police car and rush him to the emergency room.  He carried the limp child on his chest – like a dad carries his child to bed – to the operating room only to learn it was too late.  If you want to read the blog of the policeman who this happened to – you can read his blog here:  I feel myself getting choked up just reading his story.  He was there.  He lived through it.  But we don’t say thank you for trying…Thank you for rushing him to the hospital yourself to save him.  Life matters to him, and he was doing everything he could to save it.

The police believe every life matters.  That’s why they do what they do.  But yet we attack them, blame them, smear them as they are carrying our fellow dead Americans to the emergency room.  What’s wrong with this?  Somewhere the story is not correct.  We NEVER hear of the heroic work these men and women do (and they do it every day).  NO ONE is coming to their side.

I was wondering…IF black lives matter – wouldn’t you think the “Black Lives Matter” movement would capitalize on Police Officer Don Re’s story as he tried desperately to save six year old, black, Marcus Johnson?  But we don’t.  Why?  (And I hate to even have to type this) – but it would not do much to perpetuate the momentum “Black Lives Matter” is currently getting with the white cop on black criminal story.  Sorry.

The police are our protectors in this country and we are stomping on them without a care.  I am passionate about this because we are being used like pawns in this pseudo movement.  I ask, plead rather – do your own fact checking.

The media is ONLY reporting on the stories that bring ratings.  There is more news going on than what’s reported, and what is being reported is not accurate.  It pains me to see so many of my friends being duped by a false premise.

There’s more I could say – but I’m operating as a single mom this week on a road trip.  Driving 3,00+ miles on your own, you catch as much sleep as you can get.  But after reading many of my friends posts and others on Facebook – I could not be reticent any more.  When a story is simply not true – I can’t just sit here and shake my head.  Believe me – I should not be taking the time to write this all down – but I just can’t stand seeing the lies continue.  And as a citizen of this country – I’m tired of being silent.  That, I’m learning, has a price I’m tired of paying!