Race riot (well kind of)

[Shape D.]

Story
For the life of me I don't see how this is not being considered a hate crime or a racially biased attack.


Discuss.

[RayB]

Well... look at it this way. The violence was motivated by the punks wanting the girls off the court so they could use it. The race related comments were incidental.

But yah, it's awfully close...

[Shape D.]

But switch around the two races.

a group of 30 white guys and gals go onto a basket ball court beat the crap out of 5 black guys yelling "white power".

That to me sounds racist.

Witnesses say the attackers were all black and called their victims

[JackTucky]

But switch around the two races.
a group of 30 white guys and gals go onto a basket ball court beat the crap out of 5 black guys yelling "white power".
That to me sounds racist.

That's the problem with hate crime or bias related mumbo jumbo.

I can kill you, keep my mouth shut, and get one sentence.

I can kill you, call you a stinkin <insert "offensive" word here> and get a tougher sentence.

Doesn't make sense.  The victim is still dead.

Now, on the other hand, if you drag someone behind a truck for miles to murder them, that is a more heinous crime and deserves a much harsher penalty than a , er, plain ol murder.

Art

[Shape D.]

Thats not really my point though. I'm wondering why this isn't concidered a racially motivated crime when if the roles were reversed people would be screaming about how these people are racists.

[ChadTower]

It is a hate crime.

[shmokes]

I'm a little leary of the article.  It seems like it's written deliberately to blow things out of proportion.  "Some of the girls were literally running into traffic to save their lives."  WTF?  It was 30 on 4 and the "attack" had been going on for 20 minutes.  I have no doubt that this was a bunch of kids picking on some other kids.  And there probably were racial undertones or even overtones, but I don't think it was a hate crime per se.  I think a hate crime would be more like if the girls were just walking down the street and been attacked.  These kids had already had a verbal altercation about who got to use the basketball courts and were pissed off about that.

Don't get me wrong...the kids should be punished, but I don't think this rises to the level of hate-crime.

And personally, I think it's good to distinguish between hate-crime and non-hate-crime.  The cirminal justice system is concerned with cimes against society.  If you want victim compensation take it to the civil system.  Hate-crime is a more serious crime against society, I think, because there is no motive.  The victim has done nothing to provoke the attacker and the attacker doesn't stand to gain anything by killing the victim.  If somebody holds up a liquor store and the clerk pulls a gun and gets shot, that's awful and the robber should be put away, but one can at least see a reasonable motive for holding up the liquor store.

Plus, hate crimes feed on eachother.  Every time a black person is killed by a white person purley out of racism it widens the rift between the races and increases the likelihood of even more hate crimes, from either side.  This is especially bad for society so society should be especially concerned with preventing it.

That's my $2.00 

[Shape D.]

That's my $2.00

Don't we think highly of ourselves. 

I agree somewhat with you that this isn't a full blown hate crime, but if the situations were reversed the NAACP would be up in arms over this.

[ChadTower]

When one person screams a racial epithet and then attacks someone, they have made their rationale and intention clear.  It is a hate crime.  Both things occurred here.

[Zakk]

Often when there is a real hate-crime, I have noticed that it isn't the authorities what label it as such, but the parties involved.  If a bunch of white guys beat the hell out of a black guy, the police would likely call it an 'isolated incident', whereas the black community would label it a hate crime. Even the Rodney King incident was just a 'wardrobe/baton malfunction' to the police 

Chalk it up for what this is; an unfortunate incident that can and will happen in the community.

[Shape D.]

Even the Rodney King incident was just a 'wardrobe/baton malfunction' to the police

whoa hold on there. Have you ever seen footage of the rodney king beating? That was by far the most horrific thing I have seen in my life. Not because it was just violent, I've seen tons of violence in movies video games, because it was real. the cops that beat rodney king are horrible people and should have been fired immediatly. how they ever got away with it is beyond me. Every once in a while I will see something that will make me completely disgusted with humanity, the first time I saw that was one of those times.

[ChadTower]

whoa hold on there. Have you ever seen footage of the rodney king beating? That was by far the most horrific thing I have seen in my life. Not because it was just violent, I've seen tons of violence in movies video games, because it was real. the cops that beat rodney king are horrible people and should have been fired immediatly. how they ever got away with it is beyond me. Every once in a while I will see something that will make me completely disgusted with humanity, the first time I saw that was one of those times.

They got away with it because he had enough PCP in his system to be legally considered a lethal danger.  I'm not saying it was right, they could have subdued him with less force, but pain and strength were off the charts for him that day.  PCP is a messy thing.  The media never really talked about that part of it.

[Chris]

Even the Rodney King incident was just a 'wardrobe/baton malfunction' to the police

whoa hold on there. Have you ever seen footage of the rodney king beating? That was by far the most horrific thing I have seen in my life. Not because it was just violent, I've seen tons of violence in movies video games, because it was real. the cops that beat rodney king are horrible people and should have been fired immediatly. how they ever got away with it is beyond me. Every once in a while I will see something that will make me completely disgusted with humanity, the first time I saw that was one of those times.

I think it may have been topped by the Reginald Denny beating in the riots to follow, though...

[Shape D.]

They got away with it because he had enough PCP in his system to be legally considered a lethal danger.  I'm not saying it was right, they could have subdued him with less force, but pain and strength were off the charts for him that day.  PCP is a messy thing.  The media never really talked about that part of it.

I knew about the pcp, Although I saw the video before I knew about it. but they deffinatley crossed the line.

[ChadTower]

The beating of the truck driver was far worse, agreed.  He wasn't a criminal being arrested, he was just a guy doing his job in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[shmokes]

Don't we think highly of ourselves. 

heh....I was actually referring to my post probably being overly long.

[Zakk]

Even the Rodney King incident was just a 'wardrobe/baton malfunction' to the police

whoa hold on there. Have you ever seen footage of the rodney king beating? That was by far the most horrific thing I have seen in my life. Not because it was just violent, I've seen tons of violence in movies video games, because it was real. the cops that beat rodney king are horrible people and should have been fired immediatly. how they ever got away with it is beyond me. Every once in a while I will see something that will make me completely disgusted with humanity, the first time I saw that was one of those times.

Hope you don't think I was condoning the police's actions.  It was barbaric and horrific.   

[Shape D.]

Hope you don't think I was condoning the police's actions.  It was barbaric and horrific.   

I didn't think you were condoning it but your post made me think you thought it wasn't that bad.

[Zakk]

Dude, really.

[psik0tik]

What happened to those girls was a hate crime not doubt and its gonna get worse and there isnt  a damn thing we can do about except watch it get worse. We don't speak up any more...we just watch from the sidelines and say "OH thats horrible".  I'm sure there was people around and it shouldnt have gotten to that point I dont think it would be to hard to see a group of 30 kids walking down the street and thats my $2.50

[shmokes]

I think it was a dislike-crime

[JCL]

They got away with it because he had enough PCP in his system to be legally considered a lethal danger.

[ChadTower]

I would swear that there was evidence that he was on PCP during the trial... it could be that I am either remembering it incorrectly, or that he had PCP on his person and they assumed he was using it at the time...

[JCL]

I would swear that there was evidence that he was on PCP during the trial... it could be that I am either remembering it incorrectly, or that he had PCP on his person and they assumed he was using it at the time...

If you can find this evidence I'd like to see it. Everything I've read that isn't just hearsay says that he was tested and no trace of PCP was found.

[ChadTower]

Like I said, you may be right, and I'm not motivated enough to look for evidence on a nice saturday morning. 

[JCL]

Like I said, you may be right, and I'm not motivated enough to look for evidence on a nice saturday morning.