(un)armed Black womyn....

A few white womyn have gathered around my truck when one of them ask about the #SayHerName side of my truck. Before I can explain, another womon pipes up and says these are the names of unarmed Black womyn murdered by police - and their ages.

I'm very pleased she knows who these womyn are but I'm concerned with the emphasis on "unarmed". I ask her why she said "unarmed" and she looks at me with little comprehension so I ask "Does it really matter whether any of these womyn were armed or not?"

The womyn around me shift uncomfortably as they consider this question. I can tell they think it makes a difference but I wait until they put that discomfort into words. They want to conclude that a police is justified shooting and killing an armed womon but not an unarmed womon. And I want to challenge that conclusion.

So I tell them I disagree: whether these womyn were armed or not, is not really relevant for many reasons: 1) cops perceive Black and brown people as "armed", whether they are or not, whether they're holding a cell phone, a spatula, a book; and 2) white people can be armed and do not end up being shot by police but are more likely to be disarmed by police while Black people are more likely to be murdered by police. Even white people who shoot cops.

Even though I can tell this is difficult for these womyn to digest, they are thinking and I hope they will be able to see clearly although I'm worried they are now re-reading the list and wondering if any of these womyn had guns....grrrrrrr