Troy Davis has been executed. As it was happening, I decided not to chime into it. I sat back and watched. I didn’t sign any petitions or involve myself in any conversations outside of my home about this case simply because I didn’t know all of the facts. When this crime occurred in 1989, I was a young child who dismissed it for what it was, just more news my mother talked about. With that said, I know there are many others like me in that they weren’t old enough to take a stance on this case. Instead of researching or withholding their blind judgements, they took to twitter and Facebook and talked about injustice, civil rights, and in some cases cats were even talking about rioting if the Supreme Court didn’t stay the execution. These people even pointed the finger at President Obama.
I’m noticing a trend. That trend is human reaction to emotional stimulus amplified through social media. I know this type of behavior is an integral part of our DNA but with the advancement of technology it’s stronger than ever before. When Thomas Ruffin Jr., Davis’ attorney, said “this was a legal lynching”, it was very irresponsible. I definitely understand the frustration but what was he looking to gain from saying that? It’s not like it would bring Troy back. Verbiage like this perpetuates reactionary behavior. What if someone took those words and ran with them?
Like I said before, Troy Davis has been executed. So the question is, how do we take this moment in history and ensure it never happens again? The question is in no way “man fuck the system, who wanna riot?” That’s stupid. To take it a step further, that’s the “nigga”/expected reaction. We want so bad to be a part of something but instead of being proactive, we wait for the things that garner the most attention, then we decide to do something. Emotional occurrences such as these leave people uneducated, unsatisfied, and lost in ignorance.
-STANZA
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