Alive and Well He Is

Hey ya’ll. It seems like it has been a long time since I last wrote a post in the blog, but in actuality Jill and I only switched places because she wanted to rant about Josh Duggar (and rightly so). I’m gonna be completely honest here for a minute, sometimes writing my blog post for the week can be the most stressful thing about my week. Not because I don’t enjoy it, but simply because I either have too much or too little to write about. Because this blog is important to my sisters and me, I want to be sure that I am passionately and authentically writing. Anyway, that’s enough of my prolonged introduction in avoidance to me actually having to writeJ.

So, for those of you don’t know me or maybe those of you who don’t know me as well as some, within the last month I have embarked on a new adventure to Memphis, TN. That’s right, the keeper of Graceland, Beale Street, the award winning Memphis Zoo, and the unforgettable historic moment when Martin Luther King got shot at the Lorraine Motel are all components that make up this unique big little city. A city full of diversity, history and culture is what I will be calling home for at least the next couple years.

“Why Memphis?” You ask. Well, I am a 2015 Teach for America corps member and Memphis is where I got placed to teach. Teach for America is a nonprofit organization that advocates for educational equity for all children in the United States. Many of us are not aware of the conditions that many children in poverty face, that essentially dictate the way they are going to lead a majority of their lives.  Memphis in particular only holds a 4% high school graduate rate and only 26% of its residents hold a bachelor’s degree.

The fact of the matter is, is that in our country a quality education is a privilege and not a right. The fact of the matter is , is that money dictates whether or not you are able to send your children to a school with a variety of resources, including teachers, that will prepare them for college, verses you having to send your children to a school that barely has enough money to support children with special needs. And the awfully sad, harsh fact to face is that the distribution of wealth in our country is what continues to support what we thought ended, racial segregation.

The average household income for a white family is around $54,000/year, while the average household income for a black family is around $32,000/ year. The black poverty rate is no longer declining and has taken a gradual incline to 28% and there are a higher percentage of black children living in poverty (45%) in contrast to 12% that of white children (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/08/28/these-seven-charts-show-the-black-white-economic-gap-hasnt-budged-in-50-years/).

But wait, I thought that racial segregation ended so many years ago after blacks received the right to vote and could attend the same schools as white children? The truth is, is that although our law and constitution state that all men are created equally; the distribution of wealth is prohibiting this from being. Because more black families live in poverty, their children have to attend the less resourceful schools, consisting of primarily African American children. Because it is more common for white families to live above the poverty line, their children attend the more resourceful schools, consisting of primarily white children. So when we say racial segregation ended with the death of Jim Crow, this is simply an illusion. Racial segregation started with Jim Crow and continues because of the way our system is designed for the privileged white male to succeed and anything but to be forced to self-destruct.

Now, I say self- destruct because our system makes it appear as if the individual is to blame. However, it’s a vicious cycle within our system because a person living in poverty is not going to have the resources to receive a decent education and a lot of times does not have the supervision to enforce the importance of education because they are too busy worrying about how to put their next meal on the table. Because of this, the individual may not graduate high school and most definitely will struggle going to college. How is she/he supposed to get a decent paying job to support him or herself without a high school diploma? He/she decides to partake in some illegal activity that will allow them to make more of an income than flipping burgers at McDonalds would.

Eventually, the system strikes again and puts that poor individual exactly where they are supposed to be, behind bars. Here, they are no longer a menace to society (excluding the fact that some people would complain about our tax dollars). Here, they no longer have to worry about how to put their next meal on the table because it will be provided for them. Here, it is one less “criminal” our privileged children have to worry about. Here, it is one less vote the government has to count because as a convicted felon one’s right to vote is taken away. And here, most importantly, their voice is silenced. Because they no longer have a right to vote, they no longer have the least bit of say in directing the control of the very system that fucked them in the first place. Not to mention, their slightest intent of creating a life after prison is road blocked as well because who in their right mind would ever hire a convicted felon? Therefore, many times even after getting out of prison, the individual ends right back in there because they cannot find work after the fact which forces them to partake in other risky, illegal shit.

The Jim Crow Laws can be defined as the practice or policy of segregating or discriminating against blacks, as in public places, public vehicles or employment. system. . When we analyze the system designed for the success of the white man and the demise of the black man, it seems as if Jim Crow never fled our country, he simply put on a mask to guise the evident discrimination that was occurring and replaced it with what we call the criminal justice system.

Five Kids and Counting

I admit at the outset of this blog that I am not a fan of “19 Kids and Counting.”  Even before the most recent scandal involving Josh Duggar, I silently implored the public would stop encouraging, promoting and condoning what I perceived to be a grotesque exploitation of the family for financial gain.  It is unfortunate it took a serious situation like Josh Duggar’s sexual exploitation of five children (four of whom were his sisters) to stop the show from being aired.  It is even more unimaginable to me that large factions of the public are defending someone who is an unequivocal sexual predator and that TLC has not yet canceled the show outright.  I understand, to some degree, the general resistance to labeling someone who does not openly engage in sexually deviant acts a predator.  However, the reality is that all predators understand the importance of camouflage and very few predators show us what lies beneath an often unthreatening exterior.

Sexual predators camouflage themselves amongst the general population by being likeable and clean cut.  They train themselves to say the right things.  They prey on victims who are young, crazy, insecure and not credible.  They find a way to minimize their conduct and convince others of the same.  As a society, we are somewhat complicit in the sense that most people do not want to accept there are sexual deviants walking among us.  It is much easier for the human psyche to believe a predator cannot hide in plain sight.  Predators who are caught are not the ones who should scare us.  Rather, we should be fearful of those predators who are never caught or if they are caught, their conduct is minimized to such an extent they are not labeled for what they really are, like Josh Duggar.  

Jim Bob Duggar engaged in text book minimization during his defense of his son to Fox News correspondent Megyn Kelly.  Jim Bob stated “Again this was not rape or anything like that, it was touching someone over the clothes.  There were a couple times he touched someone under the clothes, for a few seconds.  Each time he told us crying. It was the third time that we decided we needed help.”  These three sentences clearly and effectively serve to minimize the seriousness of Josh Duggar’s criminal conduct.  For example, Jim Bob first tells us that it was not rape.  Technically, this is accurate as the conduct is more properly characterized in legal parlance as abusive sexual contact or sexual assault.  However, the fact Josh did not commit a more serious crime does not somehow negate the fact that a different crime was committed.  It is a difference in degree only.  Outside the context of a sex crime, the illogical nature of this statement becomes apparent.  For example, if a victim was beaten severely, it would make little sense to defend the acts of the perpetrator on the grounds that at least it was not murder.    

Similarly, Jim Bob goes on to state the touching lasted for just a few seconds suggesting that a short crime is less serious than a longer one.  Again, applied outside the context of sex crimes, the logical fallacy of this statement is readily apparent.  For example, if a person committed armed robbery, it is not persuasive to argue that the robbery wasn’t as serious because it “only lasted a few seconds.”  The reality is that a robbery victim is harmed by the intrusion and invasion, regardless of the amount of time the robbery actually lasts.  No one can legitimately claim that a short robbery is somehow less serious than a long robbery.  

Next, Jim Bob appears to suggest that remorse begets reformation by indicating his son cried about his actions.  Once again, while this may be a nice sound bite, it is simply unsupported by the evidence.  In most sentencing hearings I have participated in, the defendant apologizes, laments, cries and begs for forgiveness.  However, once released from incarceration, many defendants go on to commit similar or worse crimes.  The recidivism rate is well-documented within the justice system.  Tears and apologies simply do not equate to reformation.  

Finally, Jim Bob goes on to state that it took three separate occasions for the Duggars to decide they needed help.  This is incredulous.  If a child reported a teacher touched him or her inappropriately, no one would argue that perhaps the family should wait to see if happens a second time, much less a third time.  If a child was punched by another student, the argument would not be made that action should not be taken until the child is hurt two more times.  

In the same interview, Michelle claimed the girls were victimized more by the media blitz than what happened 12 years ago.  She pointed out that the inappropriate touching occurred while the girls were asleep.  Michelle clearly doesn’t understand the ramifications of non-consensual sexual contact.  Having sex with someone who is incapable of providing consent does not mitigate against the seriousness of the conduct.  Rather, it is actually worse because the perpetrator intentionally, willfully and knowingly took advantage of the person’s incapacitated state.  Michelle clearly doesn’t understand that her and her husband’s failure to protect their children from harm is a much worse betrayal than a media story.  

The Duggars’ current strategy, most likely in the hopes of getting their cash cow back on TLC, is to blame the media for re-victimizing their daughters.  Twelve years ago, Michelle and Jim Bob chose to place their children in harm’s way by not accepting the seriousness of Josh’s criminal abuse of their daughters.  Michelle and Jim Bob continued to place their children in harm’s way by forcing their children to grow up in the public eye in exchange for financial gain.  Today, Michelle and Jim Bob continue to place their children in harm’s way by minimizing Josh’s conduct. The only people who have re-victimized their daughters are Jim Bob and Michelle.  Perhaps they are the real predators here.