The historically black fraternity Alpha Phi Alpha marched in Chicago recently to calm a gang riddled neighborhood. Other than, the Huffington Post, there hasn't been much coverage.
Feeling Rebloggy
"Nearly 300 men of the [Alpha Phi Alpha] fraternity marched in the freezing rain and snow in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood on Saturday to demand an end to violence in their community. Joined by Alderman Michelle Harris and Illinois state Reps. Marcus Evans and Elgie Sims, all Democrats, the fraternity marched down 79th Street, where community members say a gang war is raging...
The march focused on general violence in Chatham, but it occurred as community members wait for police to release footage from 17-year-old Laquan McDonald's fatal October 2014 shooting. A police officer reportedly shot McDonald in the back 16 times. According to ABC 7 Chicago, the city has until Wednesday to release the dash cam video of the shooting. "
~ HuffPost
The little coverage there has been isn't as complete as I'd like it because the fact that crime is intra-racial needs to highlighted very single time a march like this occurs.
Crime is usually intra-racial and often intra-racial at rates above 84% for all crime including white-on-white crime according to FBI UCR data. But you wouldn't know that from listening to people like Ronald Reagan and his minions speak over the last 30 years. Even though evidence is all around us constantly, when crime is predominantly white race is not mentioned - hence our collective unawareness of white-on-white crime despite so many images coming at us all the time.
Mass murderers that took place at a Colorado movie theater, near a college in Santa Barbara, and Sandy Hook are examples of the truth of white-on-white crime. And the reason that crime is intra-racial can be seen in these mass shootings. It is a simple and understandable fact that people beat, rob, and murder the people they live near. The reason crime is usually intra-racial shouldn't be any more confusing than the reason why the specific crime of domestic violence is often intra-racial.
Poverty, which increases desperation and decreases hope, also increases crime. Concentrated poverty in neighborhoods dense with black people, in places as segregated as Chicago have intra-racial crime happening in concentrated areas.
Reducing the poverty, the need for alternate forms of income as well as reducing the desire of young men to prove their manhood via toughness (substituted for the materialistic goods that white men use to prove manhood) is the only thing that will reduce violence in black inner cities. But hope has to be grown there first.
Those that live there already care about themselves, but without interest from those that materially have more the changes can stop the cycle of violence born of trying to compensate for lack will not happen --not within an individualistic, materialistic, and capitalist society such as this one.
The men of Alphi Phi Alpha are showing the necessary interest. I hope they can draw the right attention and resources to the area. And if they are second generation, children of black fraternities and sororities I hope they can draw their parents money to the area too.
Read More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/alphas-in-the-streets-march_565364c2e4b0879a5b0be458
Video of the March at the link:http://www.watchtheyard.com/alphas/alpha-march-chicago/
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