T-Brand

America keeps telling Black people to trust the system, respect the verdicts, and accept whatever the courts decide. The problem is we’ve been watching who gets the benefit of the doubt. Kyle Rittenhouse crossed state lines with an AR-15, inserted himself into a volatile situation, killed two people, and was acquitted. Donald Trump later welcomed him to Mar-a-Lago for photo ops and praise. Daniel Penny placed Jordan Neely in a chokehold until he died. Jordan Neely never touched Penny. Penny was acquitted and later celebrated by Donald Trump and J.D. Vance as a hero. Meanwhile, Karmelo Anthony, a Black teenager involved in a confrontation with a larger white student who initiated the physical encounter, claimed self-defense and was sentenced to 35 years in prison, more time than former white police officers Derek Chauvin and Amber Guyger got for the murders of George Floyd and Botham Jean combined. That’s why many Black Americans are not interested in lectures about “self-defense,” “respecting the verdict,” or “trusting the law” from people who applauded Rittenhouse, celebrated Penny, defended George Zimmerman, raised money for Derek Chauvin, and still make excuses for Amber Guyger. The pattern is impossible to ignore. When a white person kills a Black person, we’re told to understand the fear, consider the circumstances, extend grace, and give the benefit of the doubt. When a Black person kills a white person, suddenly there is no grace, no nuance, no context, and no benefit of the doubt. Don’t tell us the system is colorblind when we’ve watched the same people cheer one verdict and rage against another based almost entirely on who was holding the weapon and who ended up dead. The issue isn’t whether America believes in self-defense. The issue is whose self-defense America is willing to believe.