It appears that 2015 is going to end much the way it started, with another Black person gunned down & shot dead by a police officer and the officer going unpunished. This time it was 12 year old Tamir Rice, the young boy that was playing with a toy gun in a Cleveland, Ohio park. The police were called because other people in the park didn’t know if his gun was real or not. The police arrived, jumped out of their car & immediately began firing- Tamir never had a chance. And he didn’t have a real gun- it was a toy. 
How many of your children have toy guns? Pellet guns? BB guns? I know my brother had one (maybe more) growing up. A toy gun, Tamir Rice is dead because he was a BLACK boy with a toy gun. PERIOD. A black boy with a toy gun…the officer saw that & automatically saw a criminal, instead of a 12 year old boy at the park playing with his toy. The officer wasted no time in shooting Tamir & killing him, it was all over within 10 seconds.
TEN SECONDS – I wonder what the outcome would’ve been if it wasn’t Tamir. What if it was Billy Smith? What if little (White) Billy Smith had been playing in the park that day… would 10 seconds have been enough to determine if the gun in HIS hands were real or a toy? Think about it, I mean REALLY think about it. What do YOU think would have happened?
I shouldn’t be surprised, but it still hurts. A 12 year old Black boy was shot to death, by a White (rookie) police officer, because he was playing with a toy gun in a park. No charges for the officer who shot Tamir. This took place in Ohio, where members of my family grew up, where my nephews live. Where apparently it’s ok to exit your police car & immediately open fire & kill a 12 year old boy playing with a toy gun. That’s ok as long as that 12 year old is Black, right?! How many little White boys grow up playing with toy guns? How many of them have been shot & killed with no questions asked?
My sons don’t own any toy guns & aren’t allowed to play with them. WHY?! Because their skin is Brown, that’s why. Because I fear for their safety should someone see them playing with a toy gun. My children are not allowed to just be children & do the things other kids their age do, because of the color of their skin! THIS IS THE WORLD WE LIVE IN. A world where not everyone believes #BlackLivesMatter.
I’m tired & fed up, it’s like a broken record. If you thought I was “annoying” in 2015, posting “that stuff about race” then just wait! As long as the majority feels gunning down & murdering a 12 year old with a toy gun is alright, I will continue to be a pain in the ass posting, talking & writing about it! #TamirRice
