There is much criticism of the black community for “black-on-black crime.” However, a study by the U.S. Department of Justice shows that there is nearly as much white-on-white crime as there is black.
The frequency and the severity of this sort of crime gets no similar criticism and no discussion at all. However, Blacks constantly hear statements like “Why do you people do that to each other?” and all the while ignoring the vicious and violent crimes that whites commit against other whites.
The U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, states that, from 1980 through 2008, “Most murders were intra-racial.” The statistics show that 84 percent of white victims were killed by whites and 93 percent of black victims were killed by blacks.
There was no discussion about race when 20 white children and 6 adults were murdered in Newtown, Conn., by a white person. Neither was race mentioned in the case where a majority of the 13 people murdered and 72 people shot in Aurora, Colo., were whites and the shooter was white. In 1995, Timothy McVeigh, who is white, committed a terrorist act by bombing a Federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people and injuring 680. No one criticized his race. The crime was despicable.
Nevertheless, people feel totally comfortable denouncing the crimes of blacks as though there are no crimes committed by other races. Essentially, blacks are constantly used as scapegoats, taking the blame for others. More appropriately, the term “scapegoat” is about a goat in the Old Testament that was symbolically laden with the sins of others and sent into the wilderness to be destroyed. This practice of scapegoating crime is self-destructive.
At the same time, for blacks, the statistics present an opportunity to reduce intraracial violence. It’s clear that blacks are six times more likely to be homicide victims than whites, with more than 60 percent of the cause attributed to illegal drugs.
This is where the solutions are obvious. Blacks can reduce their drug usage, which would reduce the number of drug dealers, which could reduce the level of drug-related crime.
Second, America’s current gun control laws are not effective and must be changed. This change must come from elected officials, though many seem not to have any interest in reducing gun violence.
Blacks can, through voting, effect change in this area as well.
In the end, the scapegoating of African Americans on crime must stop.
John Dudley is a model, actor and freelance writer living in Miami Beach. He may be reached at Mrinvestor2u2002@yahoo.com
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