There’s No Such Thing As Black on Black Crime

There’s No Such Thing As Black on Black Crime

In case you didn’t know

• There’s no such thing as Black on Black crime
• The “term” and ideology behind “Black on Black crime is inherently racist
• Most crime is proximal and directly related to poverty and not race
• Most violent crime across races is intraracial and there has never been a moniker of white or white crime
• Intraracial and proximal crime can and should be discussed as well as police brutality, they are not mutually exclusive

The data is clear:

• A Black person is more likely to be unarmed and killed by police than another by Black person.
• 99% of crime committed by black people is non-violent
• White people commit violent crime against other white people  at roughly the same rate as black violent crime against black people

There has always been outrage and activism regarding the violence that runs rampant in low income communities. However, much of this violence is directly related to the effects of systemic and systematic racist governmental policy, redlining, and the removal of wealth in Black neighborhoods deemed undesirable by racist leaders across every level of government. This point is one that is rarely if ever discussed. Ironically in most low income cities much of this activism has been (and still is) organized and led by those most marginalized and harmed by systemic racism and inequities; namely BIPOC (Black, indigenous, people of color, queer people and Black transwomen.

Crime overall is a societal failure and instead of our long-term practice of looking at crime as solely an individual and personal moral failing; our conversations would be more productive if they revolved around holding leaders and policy makers accountable to redistribute dollars and funding to resources and policies that dismantle the root causes of crime and build up and bring wealth to our communities; quality education, safe housing, mental and emotional health counselors, living wages and common sense gun regulation.

So next time you hear the term “Black on Black crime” by someone; call it out for it what is a racist lie, a racist stereotype, a racist myth because there’s no such thing as Black on Black crime.

Sources

1. “Black on Black” Crime: The Myth and the Reality

2. Stop using ‘black-on-black’ crime to deflect away from police brutality
3. What the ‘black-on-black crime’ fallacy misses about race and gun deaths
4. Do black Americans commit more crime?

About Calvin Eaton

Calvin Eaton Photo credit: Michele Ashlee

(he/his/him) Calvin Eaton is a disabled community educator, content creator, and social entrepreneur, whose area of expertise includes antiracism, equity, justice, instructional design, and program development. In 2016 Mr. Eaton founded 540WMain, Inc. a virtual non-profit organization and antiracist education brand that promotes justice for all. The organization encourages individuals to broaden their horizons and learn more about multidisciplinary issues and topics that impact the world. 

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