Confessions of a Public Defender

[stroo]

I was ready to discount this because of the magazine the article appears in. But Col. West's comments on the article give you something to think about.

[txcharvel]

Guys, I just read this article and I actually felt a little dirty when I finished. I did a web search of this so called magazine and was shocked at what I saw. I would rather explain visiting a porn website than this web site. It's basically a white supremacist web site.

Click at your own risk

[Texas_Blaze]

Guys, I just read this article and I actually felt a little dirty when I finished. I did a web search of this so called magazine and was shocked at what I saw. I would rather explain visiting a porn website than this web site. It's basically a white supremacist web site.

Click at your own risk

Based on the ADL (anti defamation league), Southern Poverty Law Center, and Wikipedia? If so, those aren't very creditable sources for naming individuals, organizations as white supremacists.

Those were the first few hits when I googled.

I have never heard of this organization (American Renaissance) and really and have no interest, but I certainly don't trust the sources listed above.

Did you read some very much outright white supremacy garbage from their own websites or from what others are saying about the source of the article?

[txcharvel]

Guys, I just read this article and I actually felt a little dirty when I finished. I did a web search of this so called magazine and was shocked at what I saw. I would rather explain visiting a porn website than this web site. It's basically a white supremacist web site.

Click at your own risk

Based on the ADL (anti defamation league), Southern Poverty Law Center, and Wikipedia? If so, those aren't very creditable sources for naming individuals, organizations as white supremacists.

Those were the first few hits when I googled.

I have never heard of this organization (American Renaissance) and really and have no interest, but I certainly don't trust the sources listed above.

Did you read some very much outright white supremacy garbage from their own websites or from what others are saying about the source of the article?

I had never heard of the site before and did a quick Google search to find out about it. I admit that the organizations calling it a supremacist site are not exactly above board, but there is an agenda there that I don't subscribe to. Is there truth in the article, yes there is...without a doubt, but it's not the complete story. And just because a black man commented on the article doesn't give it any more instant credibility than Michael Brown being the poster child for race relations.

Decent article that merits further conversation, I just wish I hadn't read it on a wacky, trying to look legitimate, supremacist web site.

[Dadtodabone]

While I can't subscribe to the veracity of the article, I do believe there has been significant damage done to Black families in the U.S. since the "War on Poverty" began.

[jmra]

Guys, I just read this article and I actually felt a little dirty when I finished. I did a web search of this so called magazine and was shocked at what I saw. I would rather explain visiting a porn website than this web site. It's basically a white supremacist web site.

Click at your own risk

Based on the ADL (anti defamation league), Southern Poverty Law Center, and Wikipedia? If so, those aren't very creditable sources for naming individuals, organizations as white supremacists.

Those were the first few hits when I googled.

I have never heard of this organization (American Renaissance) and really and have no interest, but I certainly don't trust the sources listed above.

Did you read some very much outright white supremacy garbage from their own websites or from what others are saying about the source of the article?

I had never heard of the site before and did a quick Google search to find out about it. I admit that the organizations calling it a supremacist site are not exactly above board, but there is an agenda there that I don't subscribe to. Is there truth in the article, yes there is...without a doubt, but it's not the complete story. And just because a black man commented on the article doesn't give it any more instant credibility than Michael Brown being the poster child for race relations.

Decent article that merits further conversation, I just wish I hadn't read it on a wacky, trying to look legitimate, supremacist web site.

This is why this "conversation" can not/will not occur in the main stream. I know nothing about the website, but I can understand why you would only find this article on certain websites. Why? Because if somehow this article found its way on BET the organizations listed above would accuse BET of being owned and operated by white supremacists.
IMHO the article contains some ugly truth. Society does not want to deal with ugly truth. The only time any organization wants to deal with ugly truth is when it serves their agenda.
The article describes a vicious cycle, a cycle intentionally created by powerful people in order to build more power (another ugly truth). The only way to break that cycle is to bring the conversation about these ugly truths into the main stream. Unfortunately I don't see that happening in my life time.

[RoyGBiv]

Good point - here's the link to Col West's article:

http://allenbwest.com/2014/12/quite-pos ... ever-read/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If you've ever lived in an inner city, you know that article (OP) to be spot-on.
When you are managing unknown contacts, you'd be a fool to count on the person approaching you possessing rational thought or any empathy.

I've liked Col. West since he first came across my radar, running for Congress in my mothers district in FL.
IMO, we need more people like him in positions of leadership.

[jayinsat]

Although the premise of this article may be accurate, despite the source, the conclusion is off, at least in part.

The behavior should be attributed to the socio-economic class as opposed to the race of the perpetrator. What the public defender does a poor job of correlating is the fact that his clients all come from the same socio-economic class and their behavior reflects that mindset as opposed to the mindset of the race of the person. It just so happens that the majority in the lower socio-economic are blacks and hispanics. The whites who grow up in these neighborhoods tend to behave just like the blacks and hispanics. It is a socio-economic thing that is generational. It is very dangerous to drawn conclusions of how certain races behave based on this public defenders experiences.

Pay attention the behaviors of blacks and hispanics in middle or upper class neighborhoods. Do they behave the same? So for the PD to label it "black behavior" is errant. He should label it "lower class" or "poverty" behavior. That truly reflects to demographics of the people he observed.

[Dadtodabone]

Well said Jay. My question is what has created this underclass in the U.S.?

[jayinsat]

Well said Jay. My question is what has created this underclass in the U.S.?

There are many factors. As an African American who grew up in some of these "hoods", I can only speak to some of those factors. Since blacks switched to the Democratic party, and embraced socialistic philosophy, ambition has been replaced with entitlement. The message repeated throughout the community, from churches, social organizations, political organizations and others is that the reason you can't get ahead and enjoy the "American Dream" is because the deck is stacked against you. The proverbial "Man" has and continues to hold you back. This message is so ingrained into the mindset of the poor and lower class. Slavery, segregation and the southern jim crow laws certainly build a great foundation to build this paradigm upon. What you see now is more and more ethnic groups are integrating these neighborhoods and sharing the poverty while embracing the mantra. You see more and more white kids embracing the gangsta lifestyle and hip-hop, which is a culture of its own that reinforces these messages. Of course the mexican american population share a similar background with migrant farming etc. This mentality is generational and children rarely move far from the parents, if at all. The stronger minded, independent thinkers break free from this and either move their families out (what families are left) or send their children away to take advantage of opportunities not available locally.

Really, if we want to end the ghetto, entitlement mentality, you have to re-educate the community. That is very difficult. It has to happen on a one-on-one basis and requires great time and commitment. It will take a lot of time but it's doable. I do it by volunteering at a half way house for young men exiting the juvenile detention system as a mentor. I actually see more whites and hispanics there than I do blacks, and they are just as ghetto. That's one of the reasons I know it's not a race thing but a socio-economic thing.