Scans_Daily

Fixed.

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jazzypom

Sorry. :(

Also, don't you have to do a legality scan?

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I'll reupload it somewhere else, but webcomics don't count?

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salinea

webcomics do count.

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jazzypom

Sorry, I erred on the legality scan thing. My apologies.

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No prob, is it showing up for you now though?

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jazzypom

All my cries. Between that poor lad, and the racist/misognic/anti LBQT of the GOP, I don't know if I'll be able to follow the US elections of 2012. I thought 2008 was crazy, a watershed moment. Nope, it only just began, then.

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jazzypom

My heart twinged at this webcomic. Oh, Miles.

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aeka

I can't decide if the author is commenting on racial profiling or parodying the incident, but if it's the latter, that's just downright insulting on so many levels.

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I don't think it was their intention to parody what happened.

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aeka

I think it's just the way it's presented that's coming off as though this is something to be humorous about. All I know is that it is being presented in a way that makes me uncomfortable.

I don't think it helps that I not only live in the county right below the one where Trayvon was killed, but stuff like the racial profiling of Hispanic and African American men as "dangerous" and being shot and killed for senseless reasons is something I see on a regular basis here in Florida. I've had a few friends in high school who have lost a friend, a family member, or a significant other in this way. So I'm a bit sensitive to how stuff like the Trayvon Martin tragedy gets presented the media, mainly because this sort of thing is never an isolated incident down here.

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Well the author linked to this article when he posted it so I think he was upset and just trying to make a statement with Miles as a symbol.

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aeka

I actually read that article a few days ago, and it was very insightful stuff. But like I said, I think the problem is with the presentation and execution. The first half looks like it's calling attention to the fact that black men in the US are racially profiled as dangerous, but the ending feels like it's parodying what happened with Trayvon.

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icon_uk

Yeah, not sure about this one either, TBH. I appreciate it's MEANT sincerely but something about it just doesn't sit right with me.

Of course I say that as a white male, and the case itself sickens me in ways I can barely articulate.

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aeka

For me, I think what sickens me most about this case is the fact that it's another reminder of the blatant racism that exists in Florida, and Florida in particular is a special case of treating racism like it's a non-existent problem.

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Are you a fellow Floridian, then? Speaking as a Floridian myself, I'm not at all sure that your assessment is fair. At least you should recognize that racism and/or the inability to treat it seriously as a problem are hardly uniform across the entirety of or state.

My personal take on the Trayvon Martin tragedy? It's utterly horrible, and the young man died under extremely questionable circumstances. On the other hand, not all of the facts of the case are known yet, and I think it's a little soon to be drawing societal conclusions from the tragedy and the ongoing controversy surrounding it.

Except, perhaps, that our "stand your ground" law was every bit as stupid an idea as the law's critics always warned it would be. I can't begin to tell you how disheartening it is to know that any one of us here in Florida have free license to use deadly force against anyone else, so long as we "BELIEVE" we are in serious danger. And, personally, I'm pretty sure that that bit of fancy brain-thinking on the part of our legislators is a large part of the reason why the shooter in this case has yet to be arrested.

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aeka

I live in Florida, but I'm *thankfully* not from Florida (no offence).

With regards to the rest of your comment, I've heard all those same arguments not too long ago and unfortunately those arguments ignore the bigger problem at hand. Racism at large treats white as the "dominant" race and people of a darker skin colour--particularly African American men--are regarded as "dangerous" by default. What happened with Trayvon was a cut and dry case of racial profiling that resulted in the loss of a young boy's life. The fact that Zimmerman was not arrested on site and jailed was an act of racism on the side of authorities as well, because should it have been the other way around, if Trayvon had pulled the trigger, he would have surely been arrested and jailed for it that same day. The added bonus that Zimmerman's attorney had to cite Zimmerman's black friends as 'proof' he wasn't racist was in itself racist.

Obviously institutionalised racism isn't unique to Florida, but it is the one state out of the two I've lived in where I'm constantly reminded of how 'dangerous' predominantly black neighbourhoods are, how predominantly black schools have a reputation of being delinquent schools, how black and hispanic men and women are the most consistent victims of senseless violence, and so on. This isn't even going into how the Florida media, government, and even Florida's school system contribute to the problem.

I don't know what part of Florida you live in, but that's been my experience living in Central Florida.

Edited Date: 2012-04-01 03:22 am (UTC)

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I'm not originally from Florida either. I'm a transplanted yankee from Rhode Island. Still am one at heart, though I moved here when I was six. And, yeah, Florida definitely does have its problems. Still can't help but feel you're overgeneralizing, though.

It doesn't help, for example, that I happen to be a teacher. And I teach in a high-poverty school where more thasn 90% of the children quality for a free or reduced lunch. So, yes, I am very much aware that there are problems in our school system. I know how easy it is for a school to get labeled as "delinquent," as you put it. I know that Florida is one of the worst states in the nation when it comes to funding public education. I could go on for quite a while about the challenges that we teachers are facing... never mind the unbelievable crap that some of our students are going through. And in spite of all the challenges I know that there are many people in that school system who are doing our damnedest to give those students every chance we can give them.

So, please, don't paint us all with the same brush by telling me how Florida's school system contributes to the problem.

As to the case in question, Zimmerman's (idiotic) decision to pursue Trayvon does seem like a cut and dry case of racial profiling. Personally I find Zimmerman's version of the events leading up to the shooting really difficult to believe. I, too, wonder about possible racial bias in the Sanford police department. However, I don't think the larger conclusions you're drawing are as obvious and as clear-cut as you say

The investigation is ongoing. Despite various leaked details, many of which have contradicted one another, we do not yet know all of the facts of the case. And Florida's ill-advised "stand your ground" law really does make it hard to successfully press charges against someone who is claiming self-defense. There was a recent article in the St. Pete Times (you can probably find it on Yahoo in the local news headlines) listing a dozen HIGHLY dubious cases of people who have gone scott free under "stand your ground," even after provoking or pursuing their victim. In one case that did go before a judge, someone was ruled innocent under "stand your ground" after shooting a fleeing man in the back. Unbelievable, but there it is.

Are racist authorities also to blame for the lack of charges against Zimmerman? Possibly! I can't even say I'd be surprised if that turns out to be true. Until I see more in the way of proof, though, I'm not ready to attribute to malice what can be blamed on stupidity. Beyond that, while I tend to suspect that Zimmerman is guilty as hell and that the police handled this case incompetently or worse, I also think it's just too soon to accept either as gospel. Personally I just hope that the state and/or federal investigations will provide some clarity here... and justice for Trayvon, too.

From:

aeka

Again completely missing the point about how institutionalised racism works. You're looking at the whole situation on an individual basis. I'm describing the problem on a sociological scale.

As to how Florida's school system contributes to the problem at large, I bet you I can sum it all up in one word: FCAT.

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Perhaps it's just a matter of perspective then. I'm not dismissing institutionalized racism, but yes, I am looking at this case on an individual basis. Maybe the big picture IS racism in our society. But the little picture... the exact circumstances of the killing, and the effect of the "stand your ground" law on arrests and prosecutions... just isn't clear at this point in time. I simply don't think that's something that should be casually dismissed.

As for FCAT... ha ha! Zing! Yeah, I'm not taking that bet, because that pretty much does sum it up right there. Just let me reiterate again that there are many of us in that school system who are fighting tooth and nail to make a difference. Obviously you are aware of the obstacles we are having to deal with.:P

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aeka

Well, no. It's not a matter of perspective. It's a matter of seeing the problem for what it really is and acknowledging that racism isn't just an act of violence where a white man just happens to gun down a black man in a confrontation. It's a matter of people on the more privileged end of the social gradient needing to reexamine their privilege and realising that racism is a systematic way of thinking that is subconscious and learned early on in life. It is a matter of realising that we're not all treated equal by society at large and that we are not socialised to think of everyone as a person. It's a matter of acknowledging that the more privileged a person is in society, the more weight their word will have against someone who isn't.

Racism occurs when people try to dismiss the disproportionate treatment of African Americans as a whole group by pretending it doesn't exist. Racism occurs when people treat a case like Trayvon Martin's as an isolated incident that needs to have "all of the facts examined" before slapping the 'racist' label on. Racism occurs when people blame the media for "ruining Zimmerman's live" instead of holding him accountable for his actions. Racism occurs when an entire government passes a law that gives a person a licence to kill while deliberately ignoring how this can especially hurt people of a darker skin colour. Racism occurs when an entire school system threatens to hold back kids who speak English as a second language, robs poor black kids out of receiving a high school diploma, and even cuts funding to predominately black schools for not scoring satisfactorily on a standardised test that doesn't do shit to examine the student's actual learning abilities.

The point is racism is a sociological and cultural problem that goes above and beyond intent. As

sadoeuphemist already pointed out to you, you need to stop thinking of racism as something deliberate and look at it for what it really is: a subconscious systematic way of thinking that treats light skin more favourably and treats dark skin as dangerous by default. What happened with Trayvon was EXACTLY that, and all the other details are completely irrelevant.

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Well, I can't argue against your definition of racism as a sociological and cultural problem that goes above and beyond intent.

And I certainly can't argue that there isn't racism inherent in the system, both here in Florida and in America as a whole.

Nor can I deny that I ought to examine my privilege.

Nor can I accept that the details of Trayvon Martin's killing are irrelevant.

Nor can I agree that racism is the only factor, or indeed the only important factor, in the creation of such absurdities as the "stand your ground" and even the FCAT.

You've given me a great deal to think about. On some points I find I have to agree with you. On others I remain unconvinced, and I'm pretty sure we could keep going for quite some time without anything else productive coming out of it. But long story short, I concede defeat. This is not a debate I care to pursue any further.

Thanks for the talk.

From:

aeka

"Nor can I accept that the details of Trayvon Martin's killing are irrelevant. "

Black boy wearing a hoodie is profiled as dangerous by a white man. Black boy is shot dead by said white man. White killer is set free by authorities when taken it at his word of "self-defence," meanwhile there's a black boy lying dead on the ground.

The point is there's nothing about this situation alone that doesn't make Trayvon a victim of institutionalised racism. None of the other circumstances can change that fact.

Nor can I agree that racism is the only factor, or indeed the only important factor, in the creation of such absurdities as the "stand your ground" and even the FCAT.

I never said that it was. But racism happens to be the topic of conversation here. If I were to go into details of all the other isms that prevail in Florida, I would (a) be derailing the conversation, and (b) I would be starting the snowball to an even bigger avalanche, and that's something we try to avoid doing on S_D.

Nevertheless, I do appreciate that you are thinking about it. Thanks for listening.

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What you are not grasping is that racism more often derives from stupidity rather than malice. I don't think the police officers involved were all high-fiving each other afterward and going 'Yeah! We let that black kid's killer get off the hook! Welp, time to head for our Klan meeting!' A society where a black man in a hoodie is automatically parsed as a legitimate threat is already racist as fuck, even without anyone actively gunning for black people.

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But I wasn't talking about stupidity as in racism. I was talking about stupidity as in passing a law that gives Floridians massive leeway in using deadly force because they "feel threatened," and makes it difficult to prosecute someone who is claiming self-defense. The law, by the way, was passed over the objections of every law agency in Florida, according to the articles I have read.

Under Florida law, the burden of proof is on the state to prove that Zimmerman didn't "feel threatened." That is not an easy thing to prove, especially since Trayvon Martin is dead and unable to tell his side of the story. So it may be that, in this case as in several others that have hinged on the "stand your ground" law, the hands of the police were tied.

Even though Zimmerman pursued Trayvon. Even IF Zimmerman started a fight with the kid. Even IF Zimmerman threw the first punch. IF Trayvon fought back and Zimmerman THOUGHT... even for an instant... that his own life was in danger, legally, Zimmerman was entitled to use deadly force in order to "defend" himself.

Is it morally right? Nope. Is it insane? Yup. But that's the law as it currently stands.

If you think I'm exaggerating, I encourage you took look up a few articles on the dozen or more highly questionable deaths where the killer walked free thanks to our beloved "stand your ground" law. It's illuminating.

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It's the same goddamn thing. If you pass a law saying you can shoot anyone who you think is a threat, and a lot of people are threatened by black men, guess what the end result's going to be?

You have to stop thinking of racism as something deliberate. Even if all the legislators and police and vigilantes are all pure as the driven snow (ha ha) and have no racist thoughts whatsoever, if they end up creating a system where a disproportionate number of black men get shot dead and their murderers go free, guess what? It's still a racist system!

Why would the individual picture even matter? How would you even prove anything either way, short of Zimmerman or the police officers or the lawmakers coming forward and confessing 'yes yes, we hate black people'?

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sianmink

Thank you. One has to remember that we do not know all the facts. We don't know exactly what happened. It's disgusting how the politicians are using this and especially how the mainstream media have already made up their mind and seem dedicated to working the public up into a froth and making the rest of Zimmerman's life hell whether he's guilty of wrongdoing or not.

I think this is a sadly necessary test of Stand Your Ground though. As it stands it probably IS dangerously vague. Caselaw can and should more closely define when it does and does not apply. No Duty to Withdraw should not == Ok to Go Look For Trouble.

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Nah, I'm pretty sure even if you take Zimmerman's account as gospel truth he is still guilty as hell of wrongdoing.Even if Martin attacked, it was because he was being stalked and confronted by a paranoid armed vigilante, and had every right to - guess what - stand his ground.

And even beyond that, the fact that police initially just took Zimmerman at his word and looked at the dead 17-year-old lying on the grass and automatically decided, yep, self-defense, is a complete fuckin' farce.

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aeka

This exactly.

From:

joysweeper

...Ow.

From:

greenmask

No words, only feelings

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silverzeo

I am aware of what happen to Trayvon Martin and that "one man" neighborhood watch, and I do hope the guy DOES go on trial for his actions, but this comic seems awkward... like Mile is going to be shot or something in the same situation... would work better if he was at the store, only to have a guy call him out to be suspicious looking, only to chase him down a alley, only to see Spidey swinging by, commenting that kid could be up to any good while Ult Spid beats up a mugger hassling an old lady...

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