this is not a duet

When The Media Treats White Suspects And Killers Better Than Black Victims

On the afternoon of Aug. 9, a police officer fatally shot an unarmed, black teenager, Michael Brown, in Ferguson, Missouri. Details remain in dispute.Eyewitnesses have said that Brown was compliant with police and was shot while he had his hands up. Police maintain that the 18-year-old had assaulted an officer and was reaching for the officer’s gun. One thing clear, however, is that Brown’s death follows a disturbingly common trend of black men being killed, often while unarmed and at the hands of police officers, security guards and vigilantes.

After news of Brown’s death broke, media-watchers carefully followed the narratives that news outlets began crafting about the teenager and the incident that claimed his life. Wary of the controversy surrounding the media’s depiction of Trayvon Martin — the Florida teen killed in a high-profile case that led to the acquittal of neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman — people on Twitter wondered, “If they gunned me down, which picture would they use?” Using thehashtag #IfTheyGunnedMeDown, users posted side-by-side photos, demonstrating the power that news outlets wield in portraying victims based on images they select….

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to everyone saying “what has happened to our world”

She gets it.

#Iftheygunnedmedown which pic would the news use??? Would they label me a hoodlum or a humanitarian? Would they tell the world I was a girl from the ghetto or a woman with goals? If they gunned me down, would the news blast me as threat to society because of the way I dressed? Would they pinpoint me as a menace or a mentor? Would they bring up my past or would they focus on the things Ive done in the present? If they gunned me down, they would probably say it was my fault…that I somehow provoked, somehow threatened, somehow they were just doing their job right smh. Too many black people getting killed on accident on purpose. Watch how they attack this mans character to justify what that officer did. They did it with Trayvon, Sean Bell, Rodney King and too many others to name smh this world is mad

the #IfTheyGunnedMeDown tag is so important

“Defining myself, as opposed to being defined by others, is one of the most difficult challenges I face.” – Carol Moseley-Braun

#IfTheyGunnedMeDown #MikeBrown #RIPMikeBrown

Which one would they use #iftheygunnedmedown?

#IfTheyGunnedMeDown what picture would they use the levels of injustice have gone on for far to long without notice we barely hear from it or the media distracts us while the culprit gets away or a slap on the wrist #BeingBlackInAmerica is not easy nor is racism dead it’s alive and well and subconsciously distributed to our people the willie lynch papers still dictate how we live if we choose to be #MikeBrown #EricGarner #TrayvonMartin #SeanBell #EmitTill #RodneyKing Don’t be distracted don’t forget do something

#IfTheyGunnedMeDown would they say I’m a wild girl who goes out all the time? Or would they say I’m a college grad, working 2 jobs? Would they say I’m a daughter. A sister. A friend. A mentor. A human being. #michaelbrown