I'll never forget August 9, 2014. Yet, this post is not about Mike Brown.
If you've paid attention to the news this last week, two things happened that have stayed stuck in my mind.
The first...Aurora, Colorado police assaulted a Black woman and four Black children (the youngest of whom is 6) after they spent some time having mani-pedis.
The second...Waycross, Georgia police shot at a car with 4 Black children (the oldest of whom was 16) who were on their way home from shopping at Walmart.
Like Mike, these children were not seen as children. (and don't you come into my comments telling me that Mike was not a child.) They were seen as threats.
I have posted here many times before about the research which shows that white people overestimate the age of Black children AND assume that any activity they are involved in is suspect. White teachers assume that Black children are angry and acting inappropriately more often (even when the exact opposite is true).
Black non-male children are assumed to be more sexually active.
Black male children are assumed to be more violent.
When will Black children be regarded as children?
