Empowering Black America through Holistic Engagement
 
Laquan McDonald’s Death: Modern Day Lynching

Laquan McDonald’s Death: Modern Day Lynching

Laquan McDonald’s Death: Modern Day Lynching

 

laquan mcdonald
Laquan McDonald’s Death

When addressing the senseless slaughter of Laquan McDonald, 17, at the hands of Chicago Officer Jason Van Dyke, there are so many elements at play in this complex dynamic that makes it a challenge to determine where to start. So, let’s start with the proclamation that this killing was nothing more than a modern day lynching — a sanctioned hit — in the ongoing war against the black man.

In researching this story, I read a quote from reporter and activist, Shaun King, which struck a chord in the symphony of my thoughts as I tried to make sense of this.

“I believe in good and evil. I’ve seen and studied enough of both to know that they are very real. Sadly, as a historian, when I survey the chronology of time, it does not appear that evil ever dies, it just shape shifts, finds new human hosts, and expresses itself in different ways (King, 2015).”

That statement sort of frames the context of this article. One of the primary enigmas that entrenches the black collective in its position as an oppressed group is the persistent belief that those behind the system of oppression are simply misguided and unaware of what they are doing. It is time that we begin to consider the possibility that those behind the incessant atrocities against blacks are well aware of what they are doing, and these acts are far from random. We must consider the possibility that our nemesis is the ultimate expression of evil.

While I will be the first to admit that not all white people are evil, nor are they all filled with hatred, the historical context of their progression as a race is indicative of their inherent hostility toward people of color.

Allow me a slight bit of digression for a moment. There will be those who will make the assertion that we must leave the past in the past, proclaiming that slavery was abolished more than 150 years ago, and that it has no bearing on the current state of black America. First of all, I have provided more than adequate evidence that slavery didn’t end, it simply changed its appearance, or as Shaun King said, it shape shifted. Additionally, in my latest dissertation, “The Influence of Cognitive Distortions on the Social Mobility and Mental Health of African Americans,” I provide a wealth of pragmatic and empirical evidence that the trauma sustained by blacks during the chattel slavery period in America has been perpetuated down through the generations. It impacts the way we view everything, including property, finances, and our oppressors. While we must become a progressive group, that progression begins with understanding why we are currently stagnant — not for the purpose of creating an excuse for failure, but for establishing a starting point for strategic engagement of the problem.

Another assertion will be that we spend too much time whining about white cops killing black men, but spend no time addressing the issue of blacks killing blacks. Actually, I spend far more time addressing black-on-black violence than I do dealing with white-on-black violence, but I refuse to give these assassins a pass because of our internal issues.

Allow me to point out a little known fact. Blacks, especially black men, are more likely to die at the hands of a white person, solely based on their race, than blacks were during slavery. More blacks were lynched and slaughtered during Jim Crow than during all of slavery. As long as we were property, our lives had more value to our oppressors. The truth is that our oppressors see us as a threat in more ways than one, and there has been an ongoing campaign to decrease the black population by any means necessary (Bruda, 1995) (Staff, 1995) (Guilfoyle, 2015).

Population control, as a protective mechanism for the white power structure, is nothing new. Long before Henry Kissinger commissioned the National Security Study Memorandum, Margaret Sanger & William Gates — the father of billionaire, Bill Gates — were responsible for an abundance of racist propaganda focused on population control, based on the science of eugenics. Sterilization and abortion were the weapons of choice (Sanger, 1951).

There has also been an ongoing campaign to oppress blacks out of fear of what would happen if the black race would ever wake up and rise to power.

We have to stop viewing these assaults as being disconnected and arbitrary. We must also gain a lucid perspicacity of the importance of developing collective autonomy and power. Right now, we make vulnerable targets because we are divided in our thinking and in our dealings with one another.

Now allow me to deal with the shooting of Laquan McDonald, as I frame this in a manner that gives proper context to the events that are taking place now. During October of last year, Chicago police responded to a call where they find Laquan McDonald behaving erratically, within six seconds of arriving on the scene, Officer Jason Van Dyke opens fire on McDonald while he is approximately 20 feet away and walking away from him. The six seconds that it took Officer Van Dyke to assess the situation and deem it necessary to shoot McDonald 16 times would at the time seem ridiculously unbelievable at the time; however, a month later in Cleveland, OH a police officer shoots and kills 12-year-old Tamir Rice within two seconds of arriving on the scene. Tamir was playing with an air gun. As with most police involved shootings, the story that originally presented to the public, concerning the McDonald Shooting, was completely different from the facts that initially surfaced.

The original account stated that Laquan McDonald was armed; however, there are some things that remain unclear about that. The latest information reveals that McDonald did have a pocket knife on him, but the knife was not open (Sweeney, 2015). By all accounts, McDonald was actually attempting to get away from the officers, and he did not pose an immediate threat. Officer Van Dyke opens fire and unloads sixteen rounds into the teen. Out of the 15 seconds in which shots are being fired, McDonald is on the ground for 13 of them — at which time he is obviously not a threat.

What also must be understood is that police officers went into a nearby Burger King and deleted vital footage of the shooting. Based on a public statement issued by a district manager of Burger King, two Chicago police officers entered the restaurant and deleted more than 86 minutes of footage that included the shooting of Laquan McDonald (Marin, 2015).

Since the shooting, more than 400 days passed before charges were filed against Officer Van Dyke — suspiciously one day before the disturbing video of the shooting was to be released to the public.

Now, allow me to revisit the theme of this article. While lynching, in the traditional sense of the word, has ceased as the primary modality for murdering blacks, the concept behind it is still alive and well. Lynching was not simply a method for killing blacks, it was a highly effective mechanism for inciting fear and terror. This is why those who were lynched were often left hanging for days, much in the same way that Mike Brown’s body was left lying in the middle of the street for hours. When you view these killings as a form of population control, they are not nearly as impactful as the machinations of abortion and mass incarceration; however, they are highly efficacious is striking fear into the masses. They also function well as distractions from other issues that will have a more long-term significance, as far as the state of the black collective is concerned.

What blacks must understand is that simply existing makes us a threat to the white race as it exists now. It is important to understand that although whites are the majority in America, they only make up a small percentage of the global population. According to recent studies, whites only comprise approximately 15 to 17 percent of the world’s population, and that is expected to be down to 10 percent by 2060 (Buchanan, 2008). Because of the genetic makeup of blacks, the existence of a dominant genome, we pose a direct threat to the white race, as they possess a recessive genome. Simply put, just by procreating with the white race, which is becoming increasingly common, blacks can completely wipe out the white race as we know it.

Why is all of this important? It is important because it helps us frame the context of the innate hostility that the U.S. power system, and others like it around the world, have toward people of African descent.

Unfortunately, Laquan McDonald is just the latest victim in an ongoing war on black men. Although Officer Van Dyke did not use a rope to rob Laquan McDonald of his life, this is a lynching nonetheless.

While there will certainly be a narrative that points to the fact that Laquan was behaving erratically, and reportedly high on PCP — suggesting that he brought all of this on himself — we must keep in mind that drug use is only criminalized when it is predominantly a black issue. The current heroin epidemic, which is primarily affecting whites, has been approached quite differently than the crack epidemic. Instead of locking up those who are addicted, there is now a call for more treatment centers (Gile, 2015).

The system is not designed to benefit blacks. I noticed a meme on Facebook that stated that “the system in this country is like Clorox, it works great for whites, but it destroys colors.” This should not be viewed as an excuse to give up or fold, but to understand that we are never going to convince the power structure in this nation to treat us as equals. We are never going to convince them to value black lives. We are never going to live harmoniously with white people, much to the dismay of some of you. This means we must effectively prepare ourselves to engage the hostility with equal force on every level.

We must prepare ourselves economically, socially and physically to engage the hostility that will only intensify moving forward. The list of black males who have died at the hands of white cops has grown too long to list here, and unfortunately, Laquan McDonald will not be the last. The clarion has sounded, and we have been alerted to the fierce urgency of now. As a race of people, we have a responsibility to develop strategies that lead to actions that serve to protect our interest. We must stop pleading with a group of people who have historically shown themselves to be hostile toward us to relent in their devastating progression against us. It is time to build, educate and empower ourselves, because that is the only way that we stand a chance of coming out of this thing on top. ~ Dr. Rick Wallace, Ph.D.

The Mis-education of Black Youth in America

 

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Book Interior 2
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“The correlation between the disproportionate rates of young black boys being diagnosed with learning and behavioral disorders such as ADHD, mental retardation, learning disabled, oppositional defiant disorder and more, and the Private Prison Industrial Complex is especially disturbing. There is a lucid and inextricable connection between the manner in which our young black boys are treated in the early stages of the educational process and the establishment of a school-to-prison pipeline that leads from the back doors or schools to the front doors of prisons. The complexity and devastation of this one simple element of the greater scheme is worthy of its own volume; however, I dedicate a significant part of the book to unveiling this vile attempt to destroy the black male by any means necessary.” (Wallace, 2015, The Mis-education of Black Youth in America)

It has been a tedious journey in getting this book from conception to print, but it has definitely been a fulfilling experience. The information revealed in this book is the direct result of what was either discovered, validated or reinforced during my research for my latest dissertation: “The Influence of Cognitive Distortions on the Social Mobility and Mental Health of African Americans.”

With each book, I discover something new about myself, and I am excited to invite you on this journey with me, as I fight along side of my brothers to bring about the change, empowerment and elevation of my people!

According to the publisher, the final release is as close as a week or so away.

The time for pre-ordering a signed copy at a discounted price is coming to an end, but for now, you can get your signed copy at a more than 40 percent discount.

Simply click here ==> http://rickwallacephd.link


Bibliography

Bruda, J. (1995). Henry Kissinger’s 1974 Plan for Food Control Genocide. Schiller Institute, 1.

Buchanan, P. (2008, May 1). Whites Down to 10 Percent of World Population by 2060 — Does it Matter? V Dare, p. 1.

Gile, C. (2015, October 21). As Heroin Epidemic Grows, So Does Rehab Wait. NBC News, p. 1.

Guilfoyle, J. (2015, July 2). NSSM 2000: Blueprint for De-population. The Interim, p. 1.

King, S. (2015, November 24). Death of Laquan McDonald at the Hands of Chicago Officer Jason Van Dyke is Modern Day Lynching. Daily News, p. 1.

Marin, C. (2015, May 27). Missing Minutes from Security Video Raises Questions. NBC Chicago, p. 1.

Sanger, M. (1951). Sterilization: A Modern Medical Program for Health and Human Welfare. The Public Writings and Speeches of Margaret Sanger, 1.

Staff, E. &. (1995). National Security Study Memorandum. The Schillern Istitute, 1.

Sweeney, A. (2015, November 25). A Moment by Moment Account of What the Laquan McDonald Video Shows. Chicago Tribune, p. 1.

 

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