On New Year's Day of 2009, Oscar Grant was shot in Oakland, Calif. The shooter was a Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) officer by the name of Johannes Mehserle. Grant was 22-years-old at the time of his death, and the shooting was captured by cell phone cameras and disseminated throughout the Internet. Adding insult to injury, the Grant family just found out that there will be no African-American jurors in the trial of Grant's shooter. Jack Bryson, whose sons were with Grant the night he was killed, is angry about the jury selection:
"This is like a slap in the face," Bryson told the Associated Press. "This case came all the way to Los Angeles, after the judge in Alameda County said they couldn't get a fair and impartial jury there.
"This is the best you can do, and you did this in two days. We could've stayed back in Oakland for this."
The Oscar Grant shooting case has been racially divisive, to say the least. Up until this point, there has not been any logical explanation for the officer's decision to shoot Grant in the back that night. What's most amazing about this shooting and others is how officers are often acquitted even after it appears that they were clearly in the wrong. This only adds to the frustration.
Los Angeles County has 9.8 million people, with approximately 10 percent of them being black. So the fact that blacks were excluded from the jury is surprising in light of the pool from which the jury was selected. What is not surprising, however, is the fact that the defense attorneys wanted to keep African Americans off the jury.
What's most egregious about cases like this one is the sense of powerlessness that many in the black community feel, when one of our own is killed by police in what appears to be a highly questionable situation. Police are not accustomed to having their authority questioned, and some of us forget that officers are human like the rest of us, often carrying a temptation to abuse their authority. Unless a reasonable explanation can be provided regarding why this officer shot an unarmed young man in the back, there is no reason for anyone to believe the officers should be found innocent. Let's hope these jurors do the right thing.
01-June-2010 - In an effort to tackle the latest crisis, the horrendous BP oil spill in the Gulf Coast, Bill Maher thinks Obama needs to act more like a "real black president" and go in to the BP meetings flashing his gat.
25-May-2010 - Ex-police Lt. Jon Burge may have overseen the torture of and obtained coerced confessions from more than 100 African-American men over the course of a 22-year career.
27-May-2010 - CNN was a little embarrassed after accidentally playing a rap song with the N-word in it. The gaffe was part of a segment about a 103-year-old woman, Gladys Flamer, who still drives herself around and lives alone in Coatsville, Pa.
25-May-2010 - Mattel has launched a new line of Barbie dolls called "Back to Basics (pictured below)," which features several dolls, white and black, in (what I can only term) "after-5" wear: There are off-the-shoulder dresses, strapless minis and plunging necklines. The whole thing is absolutely freaky. It's like some odd soft porno featuring call-girl dolls.
24-May-2010 - The 21-year-old R&B sensation recently went on a Tweeting tirade against Atlanta-based celeb gossip blogger Sandra Rose. Reportedly, Brown resorted to attacking the blogger's complexion by using juvenile "you're so black" jokes.
23-May-2010 - If I'm blessed enough to live past my 10th decade on this planet, then 103-year-old Gladys Flamer is going to be my blueprint for how to behave after I pass the century mark.
We can't do this by our self. We have to hold our public officials accountable, we the people put them in office not we the white people or we the black people its we the people. This is so sad but this is why we the black people need to teach our children that white people don't love us. And we should LOVE each other with all our hearts and treat each other with respect,and stand together not just in times of injustice but stand up for the sisters and brothers in this country that can't get a job. Stand up for the young brothers and sisters who want a college education and can't get a loan because our goverment is sending illegal aliens to college with our tax money.So lets keep intouch with this case,and if justic is not serve then we the black people will have to take action. There is something really wrong in this country when the people you pay to keep you safe KILLS You.ITS CALL RACISM.
Gary I know that you would like to believe that there are more blacks on welfare, but that's not true and you know it. I bet that you have several relatives on welfare, and you are ashamed. But you need to stop blaming blacks for your troubles, that's very white of you to do so. I guess you think that all blacks should be shot in the back and murdered. How racist is that? If you are tired of hearing the racist word, then stop behaving as one.
The problem is as a people, black folks do not command any respect. If anybody really wanted justice they would have planned for the verdict and sent a real message that this type of behavior is unacceptable. Look at the federal bldg bombing, etc. Bringing gridlock to a city for weeks, months is more effective than protesting and destroying local businesses. Who cares about small business, Nothing but shame at the impotence of Farahkan, NAACP, Obama, Sharpton, Jackson, a bunch of clowns. Ignorant blacks have not learned from the past nor planned for the future.
By: Marshall on 6/13/2010 1:13PM Neutral How would you feel? If this was a black cop that shot a white man like that? Also there are white people in prisons to. Report This
Not sure this is a black and white thing here, but some like to make it out to be just that. This cop made a grave mistake, no doubt about that. I just don't think it was murder and neither did the jury.
In Oscar's case; you live by the gun you die by it. Let's face it. It's not like he was minding his own business.
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Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here. 
Comments: (26)
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By: Lee on 6/13/2010 9:29PM
We can't do this by our self. We have to hold our public officials accountable, we the people put them in office not we the white people or we the black people its we the people. This is so sad but this is why we the black people need to teach our children that white people don't love us. And we should LOVE each other with all our hearts and treat each other with respect,and stand together not just in times of injustice but stand up for the sisters and brothers in this country that can't get a job. Stand up for the young brothers and sisters who want a college education and can't get a loan because our goverment is sending illegal aliens to college with our tax money.So lets keep intouch with this case,and if justic is not serve then we the black people will have to take action. There is something really wrong in this country when the people you pay to keep you safe KILLS You.ITS CALL RACISM.
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By: Jeannette on 6/14/2010 12:44AM
Gary
I know that you would like to believe that there are more blacks on welfare, but that's not true and you know it. I bet that you have several relatives on welfare, and you are ashamed. But you need to stop blaming blacks for your troubles, that's very white of you to do so.
I guess you think that all blacks should be shot in the back and murdered. How racist is that? If you are tired of hearing the racist word, then stop behaving as one.
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By: showoffpoetry on 6/14/2010 6:11PM
smh
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By: Boo on 7/08/2010 10:17PM
The problem is as a people, black folks do not command any respect. If anybody really wanted justice they would have planned for the verdict and sent a real message that this type of behavior is unacceptable. Look at the federal bldg bombing, etc. Bringing gridlock to a city for weeks, months is more effective than protesting and destroying local businesses. Who cares about small business, Nothing but shame at the impotence of Farahkan, NAACP, Obama, Sharpton, Jackson, a bunch of clowns. Ignorant blacks have not learned from the past nor planned for the future.
A spook who sat by the door, read it and weep.
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By: babs on 7/21/2010 2:04AM
By: Marshall on 6/13/2010 1:13PM
Neutral
How would you feel? If this was a black cop that shot a white man like that? Also there are white people in prisons to.
Report This
Not sure this is a black and white thing here, but some like to make it out to be just that. This cop made a grave mistake, no doubt about that. I just don't think it was murder and neither did the jury.
In Oscar's case; you live by the gun you die by it. Let's face it. It's not like he was minding his own business.
Reply to this Comment | Report This