#BLM Movement – Mash-Up
Data and Analysis
Video: One Month
in Ferguson – The Death of Michael Brown (The Young Turks)
The
video by The Young Turks is a powerful one, but it unintentionally follows a theme
from the rhetorical aspects of shame. Heather Brook Adams wrote “Rhetorics of
Unwed Motherhood and Shame” as a tale of the utilization of shame to deter
woman in the 1950s and 1960s from getting pregnant outside of marriage (which
likely involved waiting to have sex after marriage). The central topic is that
unwed mothers were forced to hide their pregnancy to avoid bringing shame on
the family name. Shame is a power force, albeit a social construct.
Shame
in the video is not hidden or put away, but put on display and shown! Shame is
used in the film, by documenting police killing black civilians and the outrage
that shortly unfold thereafter. This shame is used to deter the activity of
police killing black people. It is as the videos were saying:
“How
DARE you kill innocent and unarmed black citizens! How DARE you discriminate
during searches and when using force! HOW DARE YOU BUST OUT THE RIOT GEAR
BEFORE THE PROTESTS BEGIN!!! You know what you did was wrong, and now you are
in damage control mode! You should be ashamed of yourself!”
(The
Capitalization is not intended to commit the Accent Fallacy, only to emphasize
the words.)
This
shame is utilized to bring forth change and to stop the murder of blacks by
police, and to cease preemptive preparation for riots before any protest occurs
(to downplay the militarization of the police pre-protest).
Press: Salon.com
Article – Regarding Waning Press Coverage of Police Violence on Blacks
Like
the Ferguson video, the Salon.com article is meant to shame the guilty party.
This time, the news article is bashing the mainstream media, due to their lack
of coverage of black suffering under police brutality in favor of other
news-worthy stories.
Admittedly,
the mainstream media may have sensed that the coverage of blacks being
victimized by the police was losing its shock value and was becoming “boring”
to the public. The mainstream media needs ratings to stay afloat and to pay its
workers, so they will shift to hot topics when they arise, abandoning “old
news” if need be.
The
Salon.com likely knows this, and they are flexing a value-hierarchy when they
call the mainstream media out for covering the political turmoil in Washington
D.C. and the inauguration of Trump as the President of the U.S., but not the
suffering and the struggle of blacks against the police forces across the U.S.
The
Salon.com believes that the videos, the tweets, the photos, and the stories
provide solid evidence that there is still racism and inequality in the United
States. They believe that the militarization of the police goes down a dark
path. And, the Salon.com is outraged that the mainstream media is ignoring this
suffering, this sadness, this chaos of the black people in favor of coverage of
the Trump Administration. Shame, therefore, is their weapon against the
mainstream media. It is as if this is their message:
“So,
Donald Trump’s presidency is very important, but the shooting deaths of Michael
Brown, Traevon Martin, and Tamir Rice are not important enough for media coverage.
The protests in Ferguson are lost to the Russian probes? Are the cries of the
victims and the suffering of blacks snuffed out by the pussy grabs? How could
you cover one high-profile white man, but not hundreds, if not thousands, of
blacks victimized by police brutality? Shame on you! Stop covering Trump’s
tiny, pale hands, and start covering the blood-stained hands of the racist boys
in blue!”
Again,
shame is not hidden. Shame is used to expose, to guilt trip, and to elicit
change from public reaction to the shame.
Social Media:
#TamirRice on Twitter
There
is, admittedly, a lot of passion and anger on the twitter page of #TamirRice.
Tamir Rice was a 12-year old who was gunned down by police, supposedly because
he was waving around a toy gun that looked like an actual firearm while on a
playground. I can say that this outrage and this passion from the community is
well-intended and is justified, but only some of the tweets really “hit people
in the feels.”
There
is the blatant sarcasm of many a tweet, there is “clumping” of #<insert name
here>’s, there is complete outrage, and then there is the sweet remembrance
pictures.
There
is shame in the #TamirRice page. It is simple, but effective. It is stated,
nonverbally and indirectly, as something like this:
“How
could you do that to an innocent child?”
Besides
puppies and kittens, try and name something else that is more precious and
innocent than a child’s life or a baby’s life. … It really is tough to say
something, is it not?
Shame
is prevalent, but it is only a small component. There is more towards the
aspect of Nommo – the creative force and the essence of that which is good.
Nommo is the message of the #TamirRice page, and Nommo is the result of the
value of justice for Tamir. Tamir’s death was tragic, but it does not have to
be for nothing! With Nommo, something greater could be achieved with Tamir, a
better future could result from Tamir’s “sacrifice.” I am not saying that
Tamir’s death was inevitable nor was it justified, but Nommo and the value of
justice would ensure that his death would not be a waste. Nommo can unify, it
can heal old wounds, and it can bring forth creative solutions.
I
am sure the Karenga would state that man is inherently good, and Nommo would
evoke that which is good in man. Nommo would allow blacks to stand against
oppression and would allow for bring peace and absolute good unto the globe.
I
am also guessing that Karenga would appreciate the artwork of Tamir Rice by
NIKKOLAS @4NIKKOLAS,
which is very touching and it very heart-warming. Actually, NIKKOLAS wrote a
poem about Tamir’s final minutes of life, but the artwork accompanying it
deserves an Emmy Award or a Nobel prize!
Here
is the link to the picture section of Twitter, where you can find the picture:
Here
is the picture, if you cannot find it:
Thank you for reading. If you have
comments, concerns, or criticisms, please feel free to contact me on the blog.
(You what to do.) Have a nice day.
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