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Daily Archive: 07/12/2014

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December 2014

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What I’m Reading – December 7, 2014

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Racism + Policing

– “The series of more than two dozen messages was meant to highlight the absurdity of critics who say black people are safe if they just “don’t do” things that make them look suspicious, Oluo says.” 25 Activities Black People Should Avoid Around Cops (h/t @thelindywest)

-‘I spoke with Dr. Carlos today and he said, “How about those Rams? They may be under contract to play football, but greater than that, they have a right to care about humanity. They have the right to feel whether something is just or unjust. They are entitled to their opinions, most centrally that Michael Brown’s life should not have been taken. Asking them to just ‘shut up and play’ is like asking a human being to be paint on the wall.”‘  St. Louis Rams Players Tell the World That #BlackLivesMatter (via @EdgeofSports)

– “But protesting the death of Michael Brown was not a political act – at least, not in the way it is being framed by political pundits. It was the act of black men who are or may someday parent black children. They are men with significant others and parents and siblings who also know the challenges of living and breathing while black. They are men who don’t want to die for being black. They don’t want their children to die for being black. I cannot think of a more personal act.” What the St Louis Rams know about Ferguson is a righteous glimpse of the way forward (via @rgay)

– “Officer Peter Liang and his partner Shaun Landau were “incommunicado for more than six and a half minutes” right after the fatal shooting of Akai Gurley. During that time, the cops’ commanding officer and an emergency operator tried to contact them, but couldn’t reach them.” Cop Who Fatally Shot Unarmed Man Allegedly Texted Union Rep Instead Of Getting Help (via@Gothamist)

– “What is clear is this was vicious policing and an innocent man is dead. Another conclusion is also obvious. Officer Pantaleo was stripped of his gun and badge; he needs to be stripped of his job.” A Search for Justice in the Eric Garner Case (h/t @parul_sehgal)

– “The letter recommended that the department part ways with Loehmann, who went on to become a police officer with the Cleveland Division of Police. ‘I do not believe time, nor training, will be able to change or correct the deficiencies,’ Polak said.” Cleveland officer who shot Tamir Rice had ‘dismal’ handgun performance for Independence police (h/t @tanehisicoates)

– “We can move forward with this notion that police officers wearing body cameras will make them more judicious in their use of force, but it seems pretty clear that they just don’t give a fuck, and the court system is content to allow them to keep on not giving a fuck.” The System That Failed Eric Garner and Michael Brown Cannot Be Reformed (via @mychalsmith)

– “Clearly, the social disaster of white violence has complicated roots. But the beginning of an answer is to admit that we have a problem. It’s striking that President Obama, who’s frequently found time to comment on the height of black men’s waistlines, seems oblivious to this torrent of white killing.” White-on-white murder in America is out of control (h/t @ClinicEscort)

– “Prosecutors said Bailey marched back to his truck, and Combs tried to get inside to turn off the ignition. The two briefly fought, and Combs shot Bailey, 54, twice in the chest. Combs said he was tangled in Bailey’s steering wheel and feared for his life if Bailey drove away. Last month, a judge threw out his self-defense claim and ruled Combs should have let Bailey leave. White ex-cop charged in killing of black man in SC (h/t @MichaelSkolnik)

– “African Americans’ frustation and anger over Garner runs much deeper than the decision not to indict the white cop who killed him; it is a reaction to a white supremacist system that oppresses us and excludes us in every area of American life — economic, educational, social and political. Even the most empathic white person is just not going to know what that’s like.” Dear White People: Here Are 5 Reasons Why You Can’t Really Feel Black Pain (h/t @sarahkendzior)

Reproductive Rights

– “For women in jobs that involve prolonged standing (retail clerks, cashiers), are physically strenuous or dangerous (firefighters, law enforcement officers), or include contact with toxic materials (janitors, hotel housekeepers), pregnancy can be in direct conflict with their ability to work. Simply put, in order to continue earning a paycheck while pregnant, many women will need their employers to make some adjustments.” Pregnancy Complication (h/t @Legal_Voice)

– “For all of the conservative rhetoric in the US about the importance of motherhood, parenting and family values, we sure are comfortable with trailing behind global norms on nearly every standard or policy that would support mothers, parents and families.” If we truly valued motherhood, we would actually do something to help pregnant women (via @JessicaValenti)

Rape Culture

– “We should believe, as a matter of default, what an accuser says. Ultimately, the costs of wrongly disbelieving a survivor far outweigh the costs of calling someone a rapist. Even if Jackie fabricated her account, U-Va. should have taken her word for it during the period while they endeavored to prove or disprove the accusation. This is not a legal argument about what standards we should use in the courts; it’s a moral one, about what happens outside the legal system.” No matter what Jackie said, we should generally believe rape claims (h/t @EdgeofSports)

– “So understand: I am a “false rape allegation” statistic. When they wrote their reports, sent the numbers off to the justice department to compile the information, I am down as a liar, a false allegation, even though no charges were ever filed against me. (Don’t know if that’s because they didn’t think they could make a case against me, or because they didn’t want to put a cop’s daughter on trial.) And you know what? I am not the only person. It is horrifying, the number of women that I have met in support groups and activist meetups who experienced very similar things. They too, are false allegation statistics. We were all raped.” I Am a False Rape Allegation Statistic (h/t @ChiefElk)

– “There’s no doubt that being falsely accused of rape is a dreadful thing that no one should have to endure. One of the reasons it is such a dreadful thing is that false accusations of rape basically do not happen. Statistically, between 2% and 8% of reported rapes are found to be false, but only about 40% of rapes are reported. Do a little math and that means that, for every false accusation of rape, there are up to 100 actual rapes that take place.” Jameis Winston Is Not A Victim (h/t @scATX)

– “[T]rust me when I tell you this letter is basically meaningless, penned by a group of scared kids in crisis mode, who require regular meetings to keep their floors mopped of beer.” That UVa Frat Letter Denying Rape Is Bullshit and Here’s Why (h/t @JessicaValenti)

Size Bigotry

– “In November, the CCG said it would take “urgent and necessary” measures to prioritise major treatment. That included delaying hip and knee operations for the morbidly obese, but Wednesday’s announcement applies to all routine procedures.” NHS Devon surgery restriction for smokers and obese plan revealed (h/t @fatbodypolitics)

Popular Culture

– “So, to say Obama is progress is saying that he’s the first black person that is qualified to be president. That’s not black progress. That’s white progress. There’s been black people qualified to be president for hundreds of years.” In Conversation with Chris Rock (h/t @jbouie)

Death Care

– “The choice of what to do with our bodies when we die is ours, but an $18 billion funeral industry and a cultural fear of death have kept us at arms’ length from the event. Few people know that embalming is not required by law anywhere in the United States, and even fewer realize that families can care for their own with no help from a professional in 44 states.” How Your Death Affects Climate Change (h/t @elementalnw)

– “I wanted to ask Doughty, what would a crematory design look like if we all feared death a little less, if we took down the physical and psychological fortress that separates the living from the recently deceased? Death Without Darkness (via @TheGoodDeath)