After reading an article entitled Listening to Killers (https://www.apa.org/monitor/2016/02/killers) by Rebecca Clay (Monitor on Psychology, Feb. 2016), a student wrote this reflection about addressing violent crime and the violence of racism. His words deepened my understanding – so much so that I wanted to share his insights with a wider audience.
A Reflection on Listening to Killers by James Liverman
The article discussed young people committing murder. It talked of their environment as a cause of their moral depravity, as well as parental abandonment. It didn’t specifically state this fact, but I believe a lot of those killers are Black and Brown people. The author says, “The general public tends to view murderers as absolutely evil persons or people so damaged; they can’t possibly live among us. But most killers are untreated traumatized children who are controlling the actions of the scary adults they have become.”
I believe that society is also the cause and the reason these young people kill.
They come from descendants that were held in captivity and forced to witness some of the most horrific punishment – punishment that you or I can’t even begin to imagine. Punishment only limited by the imagination of the slave owners trying to instill in a people the cost of running away or thinking of being a human being.
In addition, “breeding” occurred where the children or offspring were taken at birth and sold. The father went from one stall to the next to impregnate a female or “wench” as they were called. The family unit wasn’t allowed to exist by SOCIETY. Those parental bonds were taken away by the society of the time. Fast forward to today and it is called “parental abandonment.”
This thinking – the slavery, the punishment, the breeding – occurred less than one hundred and fifty years ago, and then, hundreds of thousands of uneducated people (people who weren’t allowed to be educated) were released in a land to fend for themselves: “The Emancipation Proclamation”.
So, the trauma happened, I believe when they were born in America’s society as Black and Brown people. The existing system or society was not designed for them. So, the systemic or institutional racism became a weapon of war against them, hence the warzones they were born into. Police departments around the country are more than able to stem the violence in all neighborhoods assigned to that precinct, one would imagine, so how are the ghettos or warzones, as the article states, allowed to fester?
I believe that the Black and Brown people inherited trauma; their aggression is normalized on television every night: kill or be killed. Their parents’ vocabulary, the same as any parents’ vocabulary of love and staying safe, may be less than a thousand words while society’s vocabulary is two-hundred thousand by their teen years. They never leave the “warzone”, so life has no value to them.
Dr. Garbarino’s work is amazing; he has dedicated his life to studying how America’s oppression can rear such seemingly dehumanized individuals. He relates this to their disappearing family upbringing. More importantly, he relates it to the experience of growing up in a warzone “with high community violence, gangs, chronic threats and stress.” This environment consists of living to be 21 and getting paid by vehicles other than a welfare system that’s built on the principle that this is their “right of passage”. Could he himself be suffering from “institutional racism”, though?
He then answers whether these murderers can be rehabilitated or cured for lack of a better word. After being incarcerated in “cages” for more than 10, 15, 20 years or so, they live in Rome and do as the Romans do. Some take advantage of the wisdom that comes from the older prisoners who have matured in a “cage”. What’s the parole board like in a society that’s the cause of your incarceration? Is it the systemic racism washed from that parole board that allows the victim’s family to spew their hatred for you, and use that as a determining factor in whether you are released or denied parole or release?
These are just my thoughts on the matter. I’m not a psychologist; however, I believe sentencing juveniles to life terms and changing the laws so that they could be sentenced that way is unconstitutional and criminal. If they were given the resources to become educated and teachable, a lot of people who are given time away from a “traumatic” or “unhealthy” background, would be capable of becoming a functioning member of American society.
I enjoyed this reading this article . I am almost 92 years old and it opened my eyes to understand why people of color not all but some dislike us because of the way we get ahead, how much we earn . They have the idea that a lot of things come easy for us like it was handed to us and don’t realize we also suffered to get ahead and learn. Now I understand what they suffered too.
Systemic racism is an interesting and sad topic because a lot of people haven’t experienced it, including myself. But it is always important to learn and educate ourselves so we can try to understand those who have been through those times. I do believe that society is the cause and reason that young people die because a lot of people don’t do anything for a change, and while others don’t seem to understand about what’s going on it’ll just keep happening until we put an end to it. Hopefully more people understand how important this is so we can all fight for a change and equality.
These next few sentences you read may be many scattered thoughts I have tried to organize because there is so much to be said about the topic.
Portrayal of the media between white murderers versus black ones are the first clear sign that..something was off. White people usually get nice little family photos when displaying the murderer. Mug shots and gritty looking Facebook photos(ones that appear to be hard to find prior to the popularization caused by this photo being blasted on the news) are used for the latter. People who commit the exact same crimes get different sentences. The lesser sentence going to the white skinned one. It is so difficult to talk about this topic without feeling like Im sounding racist because I have to keep mentioning race however these are real things. I personally believe a good portion of the time this is why people are scared to even talk about the issue. Race issues have always been a problem within this country and they did not go away 1000 years ago. The wounds are relatively fresh in this nations history.
I think the common thought is that because of lack of digital photos, a lot of people tend to see slavery happening as far back as the supposed Adam and Eve story. Slavery may have ended in 1865(not a long time in the grand scheme of human existence) however the racism and segregation that followed did not end. The infamous day Rosa Parks was arrested for not getting out of her seat for a white man was a mere 65 years ago. That same woman was alive in 2005. Everyone knows her name, and everyone knows her story but tend to forget how recent it was just because it wasn’t in the 2000s, and I understand that logic. People raised within the years of segregation were raised by people who grew up with far worse living conditions. Terrible ones. If you’re constantly being scolded, punished physically, and overall mistreated in so many ways, it shouldn’t be a surprise there would be a divide. With his divide comes teaching your children your ways. Mind you, this segregation doesn’t stop. Anywhere African Americans went, they were reminded that they weren’t wanted. Just the mere fact that people are actively fighting(past and present) to stop certain freedoms is evidence that this divide still exists, its a blatant disrespect and id imagine very hurtful to individuals.
Policing is always enforced much stronger in areas of poverty. They catch drug users, civilians with firearms, and… lemonade stands where little girls are trying to make $10 for the entire day. This occurs in any area in the country you go to, rich, poor, majority white, majority black, so why is law enforcement so focused of the crimes one specific demographic is up to. More importantly, why is it only one demographic that’s getting murdered on camera with close to no repercussions for the murderer(police officer). The divide is very apparent. Personal opinion but im almost convinced every person who denies any of this is happening in the world is lying and they know it, but it could also be possible they lived that sheltered of a life where they see like through rose colored glasses.
Absolutely random thought while reading this: drug use, day time drinking, cheating the system(government or otherwise), playing outdoors in a large group are seen so differently based on race. Cocaine, cocktails for brunch, paying less in taxes when you should be paying more, and congregating at the park to do nothing are all seen as normal, in some cases upscale. However change the race and we have drug addicts, alcoholics, people who steal from the country on welfare, and thugs in the park. The list goes on.
Systematic racism is a everyday occurrence all over the world. I agree with your statement that society can be a reason for these young people to kill. Depending on where you were born you can be susceptible to different life experiences – some may feel that they need to kill as a young person in order to survive. I don’t think it is okay to kill anybody but I do feel that certain factors drive people to do such acts.
Systematic Racism, one of the topics I am always down to read about , learn and share a comment. Its extremely hard for me to understand why people in this country, this state specially, have to behave the way the do, I have multiple visits to the city, Bronx , Brooklyn , Queens and I could not stop thinking about the fact that gangs has taken over those places. The main reasons, I would say is the neighborhood where they grow up, the parents the have and the social issues having in their territories. Do they do it as an act of showing they can be tough, I do not know. I come from Peru, A country with so much diversity, Europeans, Africans , got to Peru in the early 1940s, 1950s, running a way from the second world war, some others trying to look for a better life back then. In Peru it is normal to discriminate people who do not belong to the Capital, something I really hate but thats how it works, Young people in Peru whos parents come from Europe are usually taught that they are superior in every way than native Peruvians, and I am very confident that this issue occur all over the world and as a brown mixed latino I had to experience myself, the way people look at us and treat us in some specific towns and areas just by the look of our skin or eye color is extremely sad. However thats a problem that comes from generation to generation, and unless the laws changes radically, this will never stop.
I needed to read this article. Thank you. I have read articles, seen movies, spoken to people about this topic, and have seen it for my own eyes at my work. I’m aware it exists and why, but I do need reminding because I sometimes forget. I get taken up with my own life and forget what some people are going through on a daily basis. It saddens me because we can’t help what society we were born into and its sad when its not all fair and equal.
This article really sheds light in what many African Americans have to deal with over centuries. I was surprised to see the author relate living life to war zone. I think that would be an accurate depiction of what it may be like for those people trying to make it in America. This systemic racism has created a hostile environment to live in which is totally not right and white Americans should recognize the traumas the rest of America has had to face maybe there would be less prejudice and more constructive learning to help everyone benefit from each other rather than kill one another.