Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Oscar Grant: Unarmed and Murdered on the New Year 2009

Please I warn all who view this video, it is quite disturbing! I have never seen nothing remotely close to this in my life. We are currently studying the crisis of Europe's Dark Ages and have evaluated how individuals, churches, serf and others responded to things such as the "Black Death." But this Crisis in Oakland is very different I would say. How should the citizens react to such act of violence from one who has authority? Could you compare the Black Death to the Murder or Oscar Grant? What reaction do you think would come from the people of Oakland? Please, respond after watching Video (1).

Below: Video 1

42 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that this situation should have been delt with differently than it was because the victom seemed to have not been putting up any resistance so there was no reason that the victom should have been shot. The citizens should not take this act of violence.
-Brandice Reid

Anonymous said...

The video is just too scary to beleive. How can anyone should shoot for no reason, and that too a policeman? Police are there to help protect us, but nowadays they seem to get you for every little thing, which makes us feel scared about policeman today. You can't just shoot, especially if that person was unarmed like this man. He was obeying everything they told him to. And it was stupidity of the police man who shot him to makeup up for his reason for shooting, by saying he ment to pull something else out, i mean who will beleive that, you can tell what it is in your hand. I agree with the whole riot, i would have done the same. I just hope things like this(violence)stop, and someone does something about it fast, before it's too late.

Anonymous said...

This is an extrenely touching video. It terifies me to see that in our country, where justice is esteemed above all others, the lowest example is displayed in this video. This is a disgrace to America, and I find no fault in those who protest against this horrid crime. The worst part is that it was by a police officer, our so called "friends". That does not seem like the case here. I believe that events like this happen everyday and that this just goes to show that prejudice and racism is still living in America.

Anonymous said...

Ra-Sha R.:}
I think the situation could have been handled much better. I think the cop exibited to much force because the guy was already down on his stomach.

Anonymous said...

The officer in this clip was wrong. I believe there are other ways to calm people instead of killing them. The man had a girlfriend and child. Also if the officer doesn't think he did anything wrong why would he try to flee. He knew what he did was wrong and id probably regretting it. There are maNY PEOPLE WHO DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE GOVERNMENT AND THIS HELP THEIR SIDE EVEN MORE SO. People who don't believe in the government have mabny reasons not to and this is one.

Anonymous said...

I think that the acts displayed in the video was totally and completely wrong. Especially for the fact that it was a police officer doing the shooting. I believe it to be a racial matter. I want you to tell me how you can mistake a gun for a tazer. Its such irony because they're the ones that are suposed to protect. It just goes to show how unjust the world can be.

Anonymous said...

I think that this situation was unecessary. The officer took matters in his own hand and it cused an unarmed man his life. Now the community wants to show their input on what he did and people seem to think that it is wrong. Well I don't they should express themselves. That cop had no right to what he did and should be fairly punished for his crime. I wonder why he did because that is ny real question.

- Amber Holmes

Anonymous said...

Alexis Strozier
I think that the police officer who commented the crime lost his mind.There was no reason for him to kill that man. He presented no threat to anyone. I do agree with the people rioting however, I do not agree with them destroying their own neighborhood because they didnt commit the crime.

Anonymous said...

Nia Walker
I really think this incident in Oakland was uncalled for. The cop had no right to pull a gun out if the victim had no weapon. Now the cop is given a death threat. If he'd never had pulled for his tazer then he wouldn't be in the situation in the first place. He killed an innocent man that had a family at home. It's ridiculus! This is another example of police brutality...another Rodney King issue. We're constantly talking about change...well how about we come together and change the vilolence in the world. Why can't everyone just get along?! That's a question I doubt will ever be answered. It just goes to show how even though we think we've taken a step further...we always fall back two steps because of the racial and sexist crime. Something needs to done and when it's done, there should be no turning back!

Anonymous said...

Toraje Heyward T.J

I believe that the the shooting of oscar grant wasnt a mere coincidence. I believe that that cop had enough reaction time to realize that the weapon in his hand wasnt a taser but indeed a gun. But even if it was a taser, why did the cop think that he needed a weapon anyways? Oscar grant was unarmed and handcuffed to the floor, so he posed no threat to society or police. I believe that this incident was a wrongful injustice.

Anonymous said...

-Jamal Covington-
I strongly believe that the situation could have been dealt with in a better way. He obviously wasn't resisting arrest so why shoot him?! He claims he was reaching for his tazer but a tazer and a gun don't even shoot the same way. The police officer that shot the man tried to flee Oakland but was captured in Las Vegas. I strongly believe he should be strongly procecuted for killing a defenseless man!

Anonymous said...

shian williams
i belive that these police men lost there mind. I understand that they should have arrested him for disturbing the peace but they didn't have to SHOT him!!!!! He was cooperating and they just shoot him. i belive that its senseless and that this is to show how the higher people act when everythings going smoothly.when the people say and heard this inncedent they thought that the police was thinking they gods or something so the people showed them that they weren't. this is just how people respond when something goes wrong.

Anonymous said...

well even though this situation didnt play out right.this could hAVE BEEN DONE WITH DIFFERNTY
THE COP DIDNT HAVE TO SHOOT THE VICTIM BEACAUSE IT WASNT WORTH IT . AND THE CITZEN COULD OF HANDLE IT BETTER DAMANGEN PEOPLE
WHO DIDNT HAVE ANTHING TO DO WITH THE SHOOTING . DESTROYINGTHE COP GOT WHAT HE DESRVED BECAUSE HE DID SOMETHING WRONG AND SHOULD BE GIVEN AND ISSEPT BECAUSE HIS BAGE

Anonymous said...

Um this situation is terrible.I think that the officer who shot Oscar Grant should be put in jail for LIFE!!!!!!!Since he shot that man for no reason he doesnt deserve to have his freedom.I think the people in L.A had a right to be angry and they had a right to rebel against this action!!!!
-Kiara Taylor(is the best)

Anonymous said...

I dont see why the officer would shoot him. The man was not resisting arrest or anything. He was completly obediant. There was no reason to. The officer was either being rasist or just didnt think the man should live, obviously. People should not do this it is just wrong.
-Aaliyah Paige

Anonymous said...

i just want to say. that i am soo disapionted,and just keep asking myself why.what was the injustice that this man had done, that he got shot. Throughout this whole video there was no evidence of him risisting. I hope the reason why he was shot was not because he was black,cause thats just wrong and immature. I was hoping america was passed this faze with the election of our first african amereican president. I GUESS I THOUGHT WRONG.

Anonymous said...

-oscar grant was INN0CENT !

-they should'e handled the situation much better.

-i think that the cop should lose his position because he sets an example for all cops around the world, and now other[G00D) cops are going to be judged by this [and other negative situations AS SUCH), and may not be taken seriously anymore.

-this is an outraqe !

[ -A$H CA$H AKA pEANUT AKA
A$HLEYy Ni-C0LE DiX0N <3 )

Anonymous said...

Thsis situation was simply an abuse of power. I believe this 'police officer' killed Oscar Grant just because he had the power to. There was no reason for him to shoot him. This just shows that America needs improvement.
-Kelli Clemons

Anonymous said...

The Black Death and this situation cannot even compete with each other. Even though the palgue killed a massive amount of people and Grant was the only casualty in this situation, this was just down right misuse of authority. How can you mistake a gun for a taser? And even if you did grab the taser, what reaon did the officer have to tase him in the first place?Oscar rant had a 3 year old daughter and now her dad is gone. This makes you think if the people are truly being protected at all by the law? Are all cops trained to commit such acts? you ask , how do the ppl respond? I dont have an answer to that question.

-Jasmine Derrick

Anonymous said...

I feel that this was a complete mis use of authority. He handled the cituation already by stopping the fight. There was three officers over one man, what would he do? There is not a way to shine light on this occurence positively, but to say that he killed a man with potential to do great things with his life. If he didn't know where his equipment was on his belt then he shouldn't have been out there. The family has a law suit against the department of protection, the man who did this should be punished severly not killed though. I dont beleive in the eye for an eye theory but i do beleive in a exchange of some sort. If you are killed by the people of whom protect you. Who can you call on, what can you do? - Darius Green/

Anonymous said...

The whole thing was wrong. The cops had no reason to actually pull out his tazer(gun) in the first place. The man was doing what he was told and he was unarmed. The cop just abused his power. He probably knew he was going to arrest some people on new years, but didnt really get to arrest anyone. So he became more aggressive with his arrest. The police nowadays cannot be trusted because they use the law as an excuse to kill. There was no reason for the cop to put his knee on the mans neck. That probably caused him pain in which made his movements slow. So that he would not be able to do the things the cops said fast enough. Thats no excuse for the gun being pulled out of his belt. The others were saved because they were cuffed. If the man had been cuffed earlier he would still be alive today. The officers used the man who was uncuffed as an excuse to kill.

Anonymous said...

I think this is terrible. People this days. It seems like the world should be getting better not worse. And what is with these policeman these days. Its like they want to be god or something. All I am saying is the world is going in a crap hole and if it doesn't change it will contiue to get worse. Signing off
-Keyturah Allison

Anonymous said...

Joanne Tercy
I think this is all racism. A white cop shot a young black boy, and said he meants to pull out something else just to cover up for something he did. It was wrong and unfair, and I think this officer besides resigning, to admit that he shot the man and get over it. Resigning from his job made it worst because thats just telling everybody that he shot the man. He should NEVER become a police officer again. It was a sad tragedy and I hope this officer looks back at what he did, and realizes that it was wrong.

Anonymous said...

Floyd Askew

I dont think the cop should have shot the man. Ok yea the man got into a fight on the bus but the cops were sent to arrest him not kill him. The victim or the man didnt really try to resist, run away, or fight them. They should not have killed the male.

Anonymous said...

The citizens of Oakland should not have taken the form of action that they did. They should have done something more peaceful, and try to fight the government on this. Not just go on a huge riot. I agree, however, it was a horrible thing how that cop shot Oscar Grant. Especially here in the United States, things like that shouldn't happen.

Anonymous said...

(A'Leyah Finley) I definitely think that the situation could've been handled differently. I don't care what he did or said to those cops, because nothing should've warranted him being shot while he was unarmed. If what he said was that offensive, then the officers shouldn't have been on the force in the first. Not to mention that theory on 'accidently' pulling out a gun instead of a taser is just a bunch of BS. Even if he accidently pulled out the wrong weapon, he should've realized that before he took of the safety, cocked it, and shot him. But people seem to forget it's been happening for a while now.

Antwione said...

This was a terrible way to enter the new year with this unjust killing. He was fighting on the tram that was clarified already. He was alson un armed and not resisting the arrest. The officer is chraged with murder that wasn't even needed. And I the officer he looks like he did nothing wrong and that he's going to get off clean. He has another thing coming when the judge order him twenty-five to life and he is greeted on the inside with the people he was arresting. Antwione Williams

Unknown said...

Kendrell Stanford

I think don't think that the police should have handled it that way. They are supposed to be law enforcement. Our parents tax money is being wasted if the police are being trained to shoot people for no apparent reason. If they man was not resisting arrest, which he obviously wasn't, what was the point of shooting him? I believe that President Obama should take this matter into consideration, because he wouldn't feel so good if one of his daughters was shot and kill for no reason

Anonymous said...

The situation was blown out of proportion by the officer and this should serve as another example of how those who hold authority of America abuse that privelage. Even though I don't usually support violence, I think the people of Oakland should riot. Over the years, officers and politicians alike do nothing to improve the situation. In fact, its escalated, and its staying the same and the citizens of Oakland need to take drastic measures.- Josh Roye

Anonymous said...

Brittany Simmons I think that this certain situation is wrong. The situation should have been dealt differently then it was suppose to. The victim wasn't putting any type of resistance, so the cop didn't have any reason to shhot him. I also don't believe how the police officer said he meant to take out a taser.How do you confuse a taser with a gun?

Anonymous said...

a prime example of why i hate crooked 12's. this man should not have been shot, he was unarmed, he wasn't resisting arrest, my computer was on mute but i don't think that he was threatening any of the police officers. just goes to show that you can't trust a guy in a badge

Anonymous said...

If he did not fight on the train he would not be dead right now.

Anonymous said...

This situation now puts people in a panic mode because after seeing an innocent man being killed by a police officer, people will stop trusting the them. I also think that the officer that shot Oscar Grant should be charged for murder. No one is above the law, and that includes police officers. And one more thing, how could they actually believe he was reaching his tazer. Oscar Grant wasn't resisting in the video, but I don't know what happened so that's all I have to say.
~R.I.P Oscar Grant~
Adrian Scott

Anonymous said...

Enrico Green
This conflict has caused a disruption in todays society. A black man has left this world. MAny say well that isnt anything special but it is a police officer , one who is supposed to serve and protect killed this man and it just isnt right no matter if you are a law official you still have to follow them to we are all equal. The police officer didnt have to shoot and kill this man. The saying is We are akk innocent till proven guilty and this was dismissed in this case a man unarmed, faced down following orders was shot and killed this isnt right no matter what the police officer's excuses were.

Anonymous said...

Nyende Vaughn

The people in Oakland did not act in an examplary way but they reacted the only way they knew how: riot. Theres not much you can do when the suppoed cure is the cause. It can be compared to the Black Death becasue the people of Europe also did not know what to do so they did just what the people in Oakland did when they could not ge any answers, they rioted against the peolple in athority. In this case it was the lords and the poeple in the Clergy. They lost faith in both people.The people in Oakland wanted something done about the sitiation but the thing is if they do want something done they have to do something to get there attention but they did not have to riot.

Anonymous said...

~Taylor Keepler
First of all, the situation should have been dealt with alot differently. It seemed to be that the victim was not resisting, and even if the police officer was "reaching for his taser", there was no reason for it. Citizens should react a little like the way they have been reacting. Authorities are supposed to protect us, not make the situations worse for the community. The Black Death is sort of like the murder of Oscar Grant because it was not chosen by him, but that's the only way. The reaction I think would come from the people of Oakland would be the reaction the city had. I think I would be outraged too if the police( who are supposed to protect) killed innocent people. Well, he may have not been innocent (maybe he was), but he was a victim, and it was still unfair.

Anonymous said...

Liteal Burns.

Words can't explain the disgust I have for anyone heartless enough to commit such an action. This is not racism because he was white and he kilt a black person. This shows a disgrace for the human race in general. point, blank, period. && i bet that officer didn't stop and think that maybe..just maybe this officer had a family. It's sad to see such unjustices..especially when their's not much you can do. 25 million dollars or 25 trillion dollars..there is no price on life..and a $amount won't bring this man back.

Moira Charles said...

This really makes me feel mad because this is is unfair for a police to shot a human for no reason. I was alwalys taught to call the police for a promblem that needs their assistance; but who do we turn to when the police is the problem. I think the government gives the police to much power, that they overuse it. When anything like that happens they say that individal was assulting a police. Who is the police? Is the police not human just like everyone else?

Anonymous said...

If I was living in Oakland I would have started a riot that has never been showed to America.The citizens should cause a commotion just like they did when kennedy was asssainated.Yes because these innocent people died for no reason in particular. They were just minding their own business when POW! their dead.They did the same actions i suggested which was act a fool.I would jump on police cars and set the town on fire
! I might even go to jail.Hey all the greats went their like Martin Luther King and Malcolm X!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Chelsy Ashley wrote the last comment.

Anonymous said...

I really think the whole situation was in simple words, messed up. The cop should be put in jail, The IA should do a better job of checking out dirty cops, especially in places were there are a lot of cop murders. This could help lower the killings and save innocent lives
Anabel Liyen Cartelle

Anonymous said...

All i gotta say is....the police officer should be dead. I believe in that eye for an eye thing. If he had the balls to shoot an innocent/unarmed African American young male then he should be prepared to die the same way, face down on concrete, with handcuffs on and someone's foot in his back...betta yet Oscar Grant's fiancee's foot should be in his back and she should have the right to pull the trigger. There problem solved right?!....Not exactly...this whole situation just ties into gang violence...once I shoot yo man you come back to shoot mine and the retaliation never stops....We just need to have the Civil Rights acts all over again. Life is just not fair man!
Nia Walker (Once Again)