Thread by @FreedomFriesInc

(1) A case like this is directly relevant to the critical race theory (CRT) debate and whether a black kid is more likely to be killed by a cop than a white kid.

Let me tell you about the excuses used in MAGA world.

vice.com/en/article/5db…

(2) If you read the Vice article above, you'll see several points of information from the family's side of the story.

You'll also see that the PD has not yet released detailed info, while they do their job collating it. As they should, every time.

(3) Every one of the family's complaints is the same as you'll usually hear from any family, regardless of race.

Supporters of the black lives matter movement use cases like this one to illustrate their point. As they should, IMO.

(4) Whether the victim is black, white, or any other color, I aim to avoid making a judgement unless enough of the facts are available to me.

And I tend to initially err on the side of assuming the cop believed he or she had a lawful reason to use force.

(5) I've been driving for more than three decades and have been stopped by the police dozens of times, which is normal where I live.

I always strive to do whatever they tell me to. Often they have the discretion to ticket you or just warn you.

(6) BLM supporters believe that even when a person strives to do whatever the police tell them, if they're a person of color, that may not be sufficient to avoid unlawful force being used on them.

When a white family believe their kid was mistreated, they say the same things.

(7) Indeed, the family of Ashli Babbitt, who was fatally shot by a police officer on 1/6, believe and say those things, along with millions of Trump supporters.

Which from the start I found extremely ironic.

(8) BLM supporters often say "see? now you know what it's like."

I have yet to see any verifiable facts supporting the claims of the family in the case at the start of this thread. I have an open mind, but that's where things stand for now.

(9) It's _possible_ that when the PD releases some evidence it will endorse the family's claims.

I did a bit of research into how transmission and brakes usually work. The story doesn't logically fit, at this stage.

(10) Over here in NZ, we stay in the car as the cop approaches our window. If my car was rolling back due to a mechanical issue, I'd put on my hazard lights, hands clearly up, and hope for the best.

A 17 year old might panic, I get that.

(11) Some BLM supporters are going to say this white 17 yo didn't take such precautions because white privilege led him to believe the cop wouldn't use force.

That could be true. (See, I'm not like other conservatives. I admit when I'm wrong. Because I already studied CRT.)

(12) I "studied" CRT 25 years ago in college, and it didn't turn me into a revolutionary communist or make me racist against white people. LOL.

The ideas would have had another name, "cultural awareness" but its the same thing. Exposing yourself to ideas that get you thinking.

(13) I disagree with the part of a CRT argument that racism is systemic & deeply embedded throughout the laws & institutions of the USA. My degree is in pol science & history, including US history, as it happens.

The US has been on a journey to right the wrongs of the past.

(14) An extreme CRT view is that the US has not done nearly enough to banish the wrongs of the past. An extreme right wing view is that the efforts of your forebears and yourselves to protect equal rights has been so effective that no more work is needed.

They're both wrong.

(15) Nuance.

Nuance is a thing that has gone out the window wherever extremists of any stripe are involved.

Other people may see colleges as irredeemably biased. In my actions I choose to keep alive the intellectual diversity & tolerance of the past, whatever others want.

(16) I'm not a fence sitter, nor have I swung toward the far left after finally leaving the MAGA movement on 1/6. I'm a conservative, but I'm independent now. I like hanging out with the moderate right AND left.

I constantly examine my beliefs, values, and principles.

(17) I'm not asking you to do the same. I'm just sharing the way I decide what to believe in and support.

CRT doesn't scare me. Nor do I believe policing in the US is beyond help. Far from it, in fact. Most are good. The bad ones need locking up.

(18) Here's my unsolicited advice for BLM supporters.

Remind MAGA folk at every opportunity that they don't really black the blue. Nor do they support the military.

It became crystal clear on 1/6, and it's ongoing.

(19) OANN, a fledgling far right TV network that may or may not receive undeclared funding from foreign regimes, recently allowed someone to say on their network that thousands of election administrators should be "executed."

Feel free to remind them of that, too.

(20) I'll finish by linking this June 2 interview with one of my newly minted heroes, Rep @adamkinzinger. Observe the body language and words of both him and veteran TV guy @andersoncooper.

Their words give me a lot of hope. #America🇺🇸