baltimore

[sexobon]

Those people should never have judged the police officers involved on only their first impression. They should have waited for the facts to emerge as the State's Attorney did.

[tw]

Originally Posted by sexobon

They should have waited for the facts to emerge as the State's Attorney did.

That completely ignored the research. An NPR reporter participated in tests. He discovered he was quickest to draw and fire his weapon on a young black man. More interesting is that NPR reporter is black.

Emotion in a human brain creates that attitude. We can speculate why without facts. Some here will do that. Relevant is why all colors are quicker to assume a black man is a greater threat. That requires research and training. But it demonstrates what racism really is: judgement only on first impressions. Making a decision based in emotions and not on actual facts.

[sexobon]

Originally Posted by tw

... Racism has always been about judging someone only on a first impression. ...

Originally Posted by tw

... But it demonstrates what racism really is: judgement only on first impressions. ...

There's an echo in this thread.

Originally Posted by tw

... Relevant is why all colors are quicker to assume a black man is a greater threat. ...

That's an easy one based entirely on factual information and the logical processing of that information into useful intelligence. Someday I'll have to explain the process to you in a way that you can understand; but, that's for another thread.

[tw]

Originally Posted by sexobon

Someday I'll have to explain the process to you in a way that you can understand; but, that's for another thread.

Racism is not posting when one does not know and has nothing to say. What extremist would post anyway?

[sexobon]

Originally Posted by tw

... But it demonstrates what racism really is: judgement only on first impressions. ...

Originally Posted by tw

Racism is not posting when one does not know and has nothing to say. ...

Awwww, there you go changing the definitions of words again. You do that when someone else has facts that you don't have. You just deny the existence of any facts that you're not aware of. It's one of your challenges. Most moderates don't have that problem; but, whacko moderates do. I'm so sorry.

*Note to self: don't upset tw by inferring future knowledge.*

[Clodfobble]

It gave vouchers to help poor families move to better neighborhoods and awarded them on a random basis...
...
Based on the earnings records of millions of families that moved with children,

One was random, the other was not. Culture, both at the family level and above, trumps everything. If you have parents who deeply want for their children to succeed, then even small improvements can be utilized by them to good effect. For parents who suck in general, no amount of free stuff is going to make them better parents. The second study doesn't trump the first, it complements and to a certain degree corroborates it.

[Lamplighter]

That 1-day riot got somebody's attention... maybe more than just 1 somebody.

Baltimore asks Justice Department to investigate police practices
Reuters - Ian Simpson - 5/6/15

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake asked the U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday
to investigate the city's police department for civil rights violations after the death of a black man
from injuries sustained in police custody.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch is considering Rawlings-Blake's request, the Justice Department said.
Lynch met the mayor, police officials and community leaders on Tuesday

Last October, officials in Baltimore asked the Justice Department to begin an informal collaborative review
of the city's police department after the Baltimore Sun reported that Baltimore had paid almost $6 million
since 2011 to settle lawsuits alleging police brutality and other misconduct
…
The investigation will look into police practices such as frisks, street stops of suspects and arrests
to see if they violate the U.S. Constitution, Rawlings-Blake said at a news conference.

The mayor said the city would seek to have its 3,200-member police department
equipped with body cameras by the end of the year.
Advocates see cameras as a way to monitor police encounters with civilians.

[tw]

Originally Posted by Lamplighter

That 1-day riot got somebody's attention... maybe more than just 1 somebody.

Why did this request not exist last week? Were they waiting for emotions to cool? Or did not take that long to digest the previous report that indicted six cops?

[Lamplighter]

Originally Posted by tw

Why did this request not exist last week?
Were they waiting for emotions to cool?
Or did not take that long to digest the previous report that indicted six cops?

IMO:
Cooling emotions ? No
Digesting indictment ? No
The request came out of the interplay of laws and politics of city/state/federal systems.

This request to the federal Dept of Justice is from the Mayor of Baltimore.
She had previously (when she first became Mayor) requested the Feds
to do a "collaborative" review of the City's Police Dept. ... before the riot.
... "collaborative" meaning the Mayor and Feds working together.

The Mayor came under fire from the Governor, for not "declaring
an emergency" before "the riot"
The Governor was eager to call up the National Guard, and had set it
in motion well before the first "peaceful" demonstrations.
Due to Maryland's "Home Rule" laws, the Governor could not send
in the National Guard until formally requested by the Mayor.

The Police Dept was keeping their "findings" secret, even from the Mayor)
for the week following "the riot", and then turned them directly over to the State.
I think the Mayor was by-passed in this, but that may just be
my own personal interpretation of events reported in the press.

During that time, the Governor made several public statements
laying the groundwork for removing the Mayor from office.

The indictments of 6 police officers were based on the independent findings
by the State Attorney and State Police investigators which
had been on-going since the day after Freddy Gray's death.

IMO, the Mayor just responded to the State Attorney's indictment of the 6 officers
to request the full investigation of the fed's Dept of Justice.

So basically, the events are a reflection of time-lines at the various levels of government.

[Lamplighter]

This article is almost a hour-by-hour description of what reporters
of the Washington Post learned about the day of the Baltimore riot.

I feel the Mayor Rawlings-Blake comes off as relatively calm and methodical in her preparations,
while the Governor Hogan is seen as impatient and frustrated, and in the end turned to political remarks.

But you should read the entire article for yourself…

In the crucial hours before Guard arrived, a communication breakdown
Washington Post - Paul Schwartzman, Ovetta Wiggins and Cheryl W. Thompson - May 10, 2015

As Baltimore was consumed with its worst outburst of unrest since 1968, Hogan, a white Republican,
and Rawlings-Blake, a black Democrat, found themselves forced into an unlikely partnership.

With the city unraveling, frustration between the two leaders was building,
according to interviews with advisers from both sides.

The governor felt the mayor was uncommunicative and slow to act.
Rawlings-Blake bristled over Hogan’s gibes, which she saw as evidence
of his inexperience as a recently elected governor.
The tension between them was exacerbated by their differing approaches:
Hogan hoped to defer to the mayor, mindful of how it would appear if he swept
into Baltimore without her invitation. But he also was concerned about widespread mayhem
and eager to send in the National Guard — if that was the quickest way to quell it.

Rawlings-Blake, for her part, was trying to calculate the least incendiary way
to restore order and ensure that her administration was prepared.
<snip>

[wolf]

I have a close connection to Baltimore. Go every two years, have friends in Baltimore fire ... I was there two weeks after the riots. The city is recovering. It was weird and scary seeing places I loved being torn apart.

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