Black MALE Lives Matter

Every day we see Black Lives Matter from a group of people who don't really mean it. These are black men who truly believe that black lives matter, but only for black males. There's no outrage when a black woman dies. These are the same men who are outraged with the death of Michael Brown but remain silent for Rekia Boyd. They view Sandra Bland as rude, mouthy and disrespectful but believe Eric Garner had every right to voice his displeasure with the way he was being treated by officers.

Every time a video is released or a story featuring a black woman, or girl, is released they make excuses. It doesn't matter if she's 40 or 14 to these men. They make excuses for why she was out of line. I find these people much more ignorant on the issue than they believe. The sad thing is, they view themselves as offering a helping hand, when they aren't.

They understand that police have long overstepped their boundaries and only seem to be growing worse each day. They see tanks and assault rifles in our communities. They understand that tear gas is a weapon of war banned in the 1993 Chemical Weapons Convention. These men realize that the police have declared war on us. What they don't realize is that "us" includes black women as well and not just "us" as black men. Yet, when it comes to women they simply look the other way.

What these men don't seem to understand is that every issue we face as black men, black women also face. The big difference is, they're also women so they face even more discrimination and oppression. Yes, black men make less than white men for the same job, and black women make even less than that. I don't have to worry about my access to abortion being cut. I don't have to worry about being raped by police officers. But I do have to worry when I'm being followed by a police officer, the same way they do. I do feel nervous when I enter an area and white people suddenly grasp their valuables and clench their cellphones, the same way they do.

I understand why it's hard to speak up for black women on one level. Often times, speaking up for black women can make the situation worse. When the police assaulted a 14 year old girl in Texas, young boys tried to stand up for her. That's when an officer drew his gun on them and began chasing them. When a man is almost beaten to death because he decided to ask a group of men to stop catcalling women. Time and time again men are punished for standing up for women.

Things like that stick with you and it makes it hard to stand up for women. When the video of former officer Ben Fields slamming and tossing a teenage girl several boys in the front row can be seen covering their eyes. It's because these incidents stick with you. It forces to you to freeze up because you have to decide between watching or putting your own life at risk. I can't blame teenagers for being scared. But as men, we have to stand up.

There's another issue that prevents it as well. Whenever a man speaks up about the issues facing black women or any women in general he's quickly crowded by a group of others telling him one thing, "you're just trying to get some ass." That's stupid. Black women are always on the front lines for us an nobody is telling them "you're just trying to get some dick." Black women fight for us even if it means putting their pride or lives on the line, so why can't we do the same?

It's understandable to feel rage when Tamir Rice is murdered. However, it's moronic to not even wince when Aiyana Stanley is. It can be hard to fight for women, we've seen that but it's no excuse when they're fighting for us. You can't say Black Lives Matter when you're only referring to black men.

You can hear Darrell on the CP Time and Powerbomb Jutsu podcasts. He also plays classic arcade games on The Cabinet
Follow @OriginalKingD