Dear Editor,
As I was driving down South High School Avenue, here in Columbia, the other day, I witnessed several impassioned protestors holding Black Lives Matter signs. I immediately thought about the tens of thousands of black-on-black killings in Chicago, New Orleans, Jackson, St. Louis, Memphis, Baltimore, Washington D.C., etc. In fact, there have been more than 260,000 black-on-black killings in America since 1980.
Over the recent weekend of May 29 to May 31, 2020, there were 25 black-on-black killings and 85 blacks wounded in Chicago. One can only conclude that the Black Lives Matter movement has either chosen to ignore these facts, or perhaps these facts, if addressed, would distort their narrative, which suggests the biggest problem faced by blacks in America is systemic racism by white law enforcement. Should one conclude that black lives matter only when taken at the hands of a white law enforcement officer? Do black lives not matter as much when taken by another black? I am very confused. Hence, I decided to do a little research. My findings from FBI Crime Reports are as follows:
1. Blacks comprise 13% of America’s population (6% are black males).
2. Black males commit 44% of all murders in the United States.
3. 94% of blacks who are murdered in the United States are murdered by other blacks.
4. 13.6% of whites who are murdered in the United States are murdered by blacks.
5. There were a total of nine unarmed blacks killed by law enforcement officers in 2019.
6. There were a total of 19 unarmed whites killed by law enforcement in 2019.
My point is not to defend abuse of blacks by white law enforcement, rather to point out that there is a much larger and more sinister problem than police racism faced by young black males that should be addressed. The Black Lives Matter movement, to be truly credible, should focus its attention where the largest problem for young black males exists. There was an average of over six killings per day of young black males by other black males in 2019 in the United States. There is a much greater chance that a black man will lose his life at the hands of another black rather than at the hands of a white. In fact, his chance is about 15 times greater.
An older black preacher recently pointed out to me that when he was young blacks were afraid of being killed by the Ku Klux Klan. He said the Klan killed about 3,500 blacks in 100 years. He said that today young black males are killing that many blacks every two years. He further pointed out that 75% of black children are raised in a fatherless home. He said that is the biggest problem black children face today.
Again, my point is not to make light of the recent tragedy in Minneapolis. Rather my point is that when it comes to black lives, the Black Lives Matter movement is missing the mark by a mile. If the Black Lives Movement is sincerely interested in addressing the real problems facing young black men, they should focus their attention on Baltimore, Washington D.C., Richmond, Memphis, St. Louis, Jackson, New Orleans and work with the Democratic black mayors in each of those cities.
I submit to you that the real challenges facing young black males is not systemic racism by white law enforcement, rather it is the danger of being murdered by another young black male. This problem is exacerbated by lack of education, lack of job/social skills and lack of economic opportunity in general, and fatherless homes.
Bill Simmons
Columbia
