Who Should Be Called A Martyr?

DELRAY BEACH, FL – The definition of “Martyr” is defined as a person who suffers death for a cause or belief. Over the past couple of years we’ve heard the term “martyr” being used when a black person is killed by the police. Was that the proper word to use after some of those killings?

It seems no matter what the circumstances might be, the leaders in the black community have jumped on the bandwagon of making “martyr’s” out of the black men who have been killed by the police. They claim that the killing of black males is endemic in most police departments. Is that a fair and justifiable statement?

Let’s look at the record. In 2019, a total of 28 unarmed people were killed by the police (FBI statistics). Out of that total, 19 were white and 9 were black. With the more than millions of contacts between the police and the public, the killing ratio was around 0.001% of all killings by the police against blacks. So do the words endemic or genocide aptly apply to the deaths of blacks by the police?

Over the past couple of years we’ve had some famous law enforcement cases that have generated the the word “martyr” being used by some “racial arsonists” when one of these killings have occurred.

In February, 2012, a 17 year old black teenager, Trayvon Martin, was shot and killed by a local security watch officer during a violent altercation in a housing complex. During the confrontation a fight broke out, the Community Watch Officer, George Zimmerman, was taken down with Trayvon Martin on top of him in a “ground and pound” position, when Zimmerman, fearing for his life, took out his legal gun and shot Trayvon Martin and killed him. Martin was no angel as he had run-ins in school for marijuana possession, and he was accused of being a school yard bully and, in addition, was accused of defacing school property. George Zimmerman was found not guilty by a jury.

The next situation occurred in August, 2014, in Ferguson, Missouri, when Michael Brown, a young black person, had an encounter with police officer, Darren Wilson. The confrontation between Brown and officer Wilson resulted in the death of Michael Brown after he physically assaulted officer Wilson. Brown had a police record and right before his confrontation with officer Wilson, he had robbed some items from a convenience store. The false chant of “Hands up don’t shoot” originated by a group called “Black Lives Matter” after this incident. That was a false narrative as found by President Obama’s Justice Department.

The next racial incident occurred in Baltimore, Maryland in April, 2015, when known drug dealer, Freddie Gray, was arrested for carrying a knife. After he was arrested, he was put in a police van, and while being transported to the police station, he suffered a spinal injury which caused his death. The police officers who were charged with his death were acquitted of all charges. As a result of this acquittal, the City of Baltimore sustained much damage when agitators rioted in the name of Freddie Gray’s death. By the way, Freddie Gray had a long rap sheet. He was no angel.

Just recently, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, George Floyd, another
black male with an extensive police record, was killed by police after being arrested for passing a $20 bill. One of the arresting officers, in subduing Floyd, used his knee on his neck to keep him down which resulted in the death of Floyd. The police officer was arrested and charged with murder for his actions. His actions were condemned by most everyone as being excessive. Floyd’s death triggered an outcry from the community and looting and fire bombing occurred. Over 500 buildings were burned or looted. Floyd was portrayed as a martyr by some of the racial agitators who claimed that the police were “systemic racists”.

The latest incident, which occurred in Atlanta, Georgia this June, that caused an uproar over a police and a black man confrontation, was the killing of Rashard Brooks. A routine DUI stop by the police after being called by Wendy’s restaurant about a man passed out, blocking the take-out lane, escalated into a violent confrontation between Brooks and the police after they determined he was drunk, and tried to handcuff him. Brooks resisted and fought with the policemen, and during the melee, Brooks took one of the officers stun guns and attempted to flee with one of the officers in pursuit. As Brooks was fleeing he turned around and dislodged the stun gun at the pursuing policeman. The police man then shot Brooks and killed him. In order to keep calm in the community, the District Attorney, almost immediately charged the shooting officer with murder without an investigation as to what really happened. It has been learned that Rashad Brooks also had an extensive police record and spent years in prison. He also was no angel.

By having a police record, doesn’t mean that a person, black or white, should be killed, but when those who were killed were prone to violence on previous numerous occasions, should they be canonized as a “martyr” for the purpose of promoting a racial grievance agenda?

To use these victims as being “martyr’s”, lowers the bar on championing the black cause. The real martyrs of the black community should be upstanding candidates and leaders such as: Booker T. Washington, George W. Carver, Martin Luther King, and contemporary black citizens like Thomas Sowell, Shelby Steele, Walter Williams, and Larry Elder etc. They are the true “martyr’s” of the black cause without the baggage of having a record of committing crimes against society. It should be noted that a policeman is 18.5 times more likely to be killed by a black male than an unarmed black male is killed by a police officer. That isn’t endemic racism or genocide of black males by the police.