Stand Your Ground Law - The Jail Free Card If You Are Not Black

Women who are being beaten up: stand your ground, just don't expect the law in Florida to back you up behind the stand-your-ground law if you are black, and don't expect Stevie Wonder to understand.

So it is a sleepy Sunday afternoon, when the social media networks are set on fire with the breaking news that George Zimmerman was found, 'not guilty', under the stand-your-ground law which allows someone to use deadly self-defence if they believe their life is in danger. 

The only one consequently then who has the potential weight of guilt of being dangerous, would then be the person who could no longer speak to defend himself: Travyon Martin, as he was silenced by his stiff, lifeless jaw in his deceased buried 17-year-old body.

Zimmerman claimed he acted out of self-defence. The funeral director added that there were no signs of a fight or scuffle with no knuckle bruising or any such evidence on his body. The law defended this deviant claim as Zimmerman left the safety of his SUV to hunt down a young black male who he, he had earlier reported to the police as saying, "This guy looks like he is up to no good. He is on drugs or something," even after the police dispatch was to not follow Martin.

 Zimmerman used the words, "Fucking punks. These assholes, they always get away." Zimmerman pursued to followed an unarmed young boy who committed no crime, except purchasing a bag of skittles and a soft drink as he walked back to his gated community at the Retreat at Twin Lakes. Zimmerman had become a self-appointed guardian of the community for "punks" like this.

So the law feels it right protect Zimmerman, the same way the Holocaust protected blue-eyed Germans. Why shouldn't we believe that the law is put in place to protect us black and ethnic minorities even though we are grossly under-represented in the UK and US political justice system? Racism still occurs in many subtle forms and one of them is oppression of justice through this so-called law of justice. 

I'll go even further to say the political system is darn right racist. 

The Department of Justice information showed that African-Americans jail time is almost 60 percent longer than white sentences. Also individuals who are black are 30% more likely to go to jail than their white counterparts after the same crime is committed. It is a modern-day, legal slavery, because the law which was set up to protect us, creates this invisible division based upon the visibility of your pigment. 

Talking about slavery and the law, there are women who experience the modern day version of slavery in their own homes under the control of their oppressor: their partner. The stand-your-ground law is surely in place for women like this who are oppressed to the point of rage, when they finally are triggered off and shoot bullet holes into the wall instead of in their husband, like in the case of Marissa Alexander.

Surely the stand-your-ground law is for such a case?

She got 20 years in prison.

It makes no sense? I forgot to mention she was black.

Make sense now?

In this case the state attorney who oversaw the case, Angela Corey stated, "Just because no one was harmed in the incident doesn't make the shooting any less a punishable crime". Yet Corey who was special persecutor in the Zimmerman's case somehow allowed the stand-your-ground law to be justifiably used in this unjustifiable circumstance which end up in the death of a young boy. She didn't have much to say about that.

Anyone with two cents for a brain could see that this is not justice, for a black woman being beaten by her husband. The law should stand like an older brother ready to fight overweight bullies, not to join in with the bullying, and then make it a fight about race: that just adds stinging salt to the wound. And then maybe some diet un top of it to make it infected and for the pain to last longer.

Basic legal law in the UK has the understanding that 'loss of control' can be immediate or delayed in cases of continuous abuse of a violent partner over a period of time, as based upon the Kiranjit Ahluwalia case, who killed her husband but her sentence was changed from murder to manslaughter, receiving 3 years and 4 months, the exact amount of time she had already served.

But for women who experience domestic violence in Florida, don't even think about the law defending you, especially if you are black. 

For young boys who walk the streets of Florida in search for a sweets and get shot, don't even think for the law to defend you either, especially if you are black. 

If you on the other hand are not to keen on black people and want to search the streets for a back person to shoot and kill, then please use the stand-your-ground law. Of course it is understandable, they are black and definitely dangerous and need to be wiped out. 

I think this is called the black Holocaust. 

You can probably see I am not the biggest fan of how the stand-your-ground law is being misused in the USA but similarly, I also think to abolish it would cause even less justice to be served. 

Stevie Wonder recently stated that he will not perform in Florida or any state that upholds the stand-your-ground law. I commend the thought behind the action, but I truly believe this allows self-defence to not be taken into account in special circumstances such as the Alexander and Ahluwalia case. 

What we should be fighting for as ethnic minorities, is in this timeless speech which would have been spoken 50 years ago next month by Martin Luther King: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character", may I add, with the justice of a fair stand-your-ground law.

Stevie Wonder that is what we should be fighting for, don't you think?

So Thoughts What Are You Thinking????

So it is estimated that we have between 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts per day (with statistics from the National Science Foundation), depending upon your level of creativity, personal and professional problem solving skills, your career and whether you tend to be a thinker. That averages out to approximately a thought every 2.5 seconds if you take the average person from this statistic who thinks 36,000 thoughts per day.

The question is, what do our thoughts look like right now? Boris Johnson's hair? A supermodel? The Apprentice boardroom? Your gloomy shadow? We have to identify where we are at mentally to order to correctly assess ourselves and make a change if necessary. Also, how are our thoughts affecting us as a whole person? Is there a pattern of negative thought which leads to more negative consequences in your life? Like a building a elaborate mansion in the middle of a busy motorway road?

There are serious mental conditions that can lead to racing thoughts, anxiety, consistent pessimism and depressive thoughts, which are sometimes difficult to control. From research on this issue, people have said helpful ways to combat this is often the 'Stop Technique' which is saying to yourself, "STOP", out loud until the persistent thoughts stops completely. Another technique that is used is to have reaffirming and positive quotes around you to reaffirm good thinking patterns.

I have a personal opinion, that we all need type of this intervention in all of our thinking patterns to some extent regardless of the severity of the impact of our thoughts on our daily lives. The reason I believe this strongly is I have recognised an overall positive change in my life since I have been very cautious regarding which thoughts I let enter into myself, to move the furniture around and set up home. So we should all be halting negative thoughts and reaffirming good thoughts to some extent.

I challenge many thoughts which come into my head in a very practical and logical way like, "Ok negative thought interesting you think that, why? What evidence do you have to prove that? What contrary evidence is there?" I don't let my negative thoughts get away with much, they have to be on trial, whilst the positive ones can run free in my head and they can have as much fun as they want. If the negative thought have fought hard to be there, and has given good evidence to win the case then I only let it stick around to propel me forward to become better next time, and only draw upon its nastiness only when necessary and when I have a plan of action to not let this justified negative thought win again.

It is about being honest with yourself but humans do have a tendency to dwell in the pit of despair of negative thoughts instead of celebrating achievements along the way. It is estimated that 70-80% of our thoughts on a daily basis are negative. So that is completely unfair to the good and uplifting thoughts that want to carry us through the day to make us think about a better future for ourselves.

Recently, I have had a few people comment on my confidence and how I can help them improve there's, so that got me thinking about the main things that I can attribute a healthy confidence. One thing that stood out most upon reflection is the way I speak to myself. I give myself permission to say very nice things to myself often. I know I am British and I am not supposed to say this and instead I should put myself down constantly, but really I know doing this definitely does not improve confidence. So I celebrate who I am on a daily basis and strengthen my positive thoughts by reading inspirational stories, books and quotes about the human experience. I apply them in my life where I can and I live with a smile and a very loud laugh whenever I can manage it.

Some days are hard regardless. That I do understand, but still don't let negative thoughts win your whole mind like it is a shrewd lawyer that tricked you into signing a life sentence. It is lying, tear up that contract and write yourself into who you want to be. Know that crying only happens for a short while so you can appreciate joy so much more. There is always something positive that comes out of the most negative situations. So focus on that, starting with being positive at least 50% of the time, maybe going unto to 70-80%. Now that would be a nice, peaceful mansion to live in.

“Always focus on the front windshield and not the review mirror.” 
― Colin Powell

“Our way of thinking creates good or bad outcomes.” 
― Stephen Richards

“Reality is a projection of your thoughts or the things you habitually think about.” 
― Stephen Richards

“Sometimes we focus so much on what we don't have that we fail to see, appreciate, and use what we do have!” 
― Jeff Dixon

Here are some of my genuine thoughts I tell myself on some days:

References
http://www.nsf.gov
http://verysmartgirls.com/mental-clarity-and-calmness/choose-your-thoughts-well/
http://www.anxietyguru.net/how-to-stop-racing-thoughts/
http://www.sentientdevelopments.com/2007/03/managing-your-50000-daily-thoughts.html
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/focus

Wimbledon Models Wanted: Only Gorgeous Ones Need Apply

Has to be comfortable wearing short white skirts, flashing her pants and be able to hold a racket for a desired period of time.

Every year we have record number of applications; we only choose the pretty ones.

The dress code for Wimbledon is predominately white, like the audience, with sweat shirts, sweat pants, T-shirts, jeans and cut-offs expressly forbidden. I had to Google what cut-offs were. Apparently they are short jeans that show your bum most of the time. Ok so no cut-offs; I am sure there is some health and safety reason for that. Brightly coloured pants and nude coloured shorts (ahem Venus Williams), are ok. Dresses that look more like tops, so you can actually see the pants, are not compulsory but wearing anything else is quite frowned upon. For example, Anne White wore a white body suit because it kept her legs warm as she foolishly thought it was appropriate and in keeping with the rules of the Wimbledon dress code. It was. She was asked politely not to wear it to the next match as it was distracting to the other opponent. Ok so, flashing knicker-type shorts at your opponent is not distracting at all then? Right.

Seriously, does this sound like 21st century living where women can vote, work, run FTSE 100 companies and be the last two in the finals of The Apprentice? I am surprised they even let these women use a racket, instead of standing around modelling it. To be fair it does seems most of these female players are happy to conform to these invisible rules, be it for sponsorship or for publicity. Some even thrive off it, (ahem Venus Williams). In all truth, that is part of the beauty of being a female with liberation: having choice. I am all for female empowerment as long as it does not leave you feeling empty like the seats in Wimbledon. I am all for the women in Wimbledon dressing however they like within the rules of the Wimbledon dress code. I am all for personal decisions of women deciding what they feel comfortable wearing. So, why wasn't Anne White allowed to wear her white bodysuit again, with it being deemed as inappropriate for Wimbledon?

I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that I will not get the answer to this question anytime soon. There is too much politics, money and ulterior motives involved in the media regarding sport, and women in general. It would be a bit like asking why are the majority of the audience and players at Wimbledon white? Alongside published authors, partners of law firms and CEO's of Fortune 500 companies? See, it is pointless me even asking. You won't get an answer anytime soon except maybe a shrug of the shoulders, a bemused look and then everyone continuing their life as it was before.  

The only thing I am sure of, is as individuals, we have to fight for what we believe we deserve whilst large institutions who have no interest in change for our benefit, will sit back and watch, or possibly try resist our efforts. Alongside our individual power, we also have collective power which is what I like so much about the Writers Of Colour initiative to get marginalised groups of ethnic minorities published into British newspapers, something which is not as common as you would expect.

Similar to this idea of collective power amongst ethnic minorities, Serena and Venus Williams' dad, Richard Williams, has set up his own tennis academy after discussing at length the difficulties his daughters' experienced, being from an ethnic minority to becoming professional players at Wimbledon. Mr Williams says now about the system, “It’s not that they dislike you. They just don’t want another Venus or Serena showing up.” Which I believe is quite a representative comment across the board of white-dominated professional sectors. 

It sometimes seems that being a black, female makes you go straight to the bottom of their list also. Almost as if it is not bad enough you have the struggles of being from a black or mixed heritage, now you also have the struggles of being female in a male-dominated society. It is like double whammy attack: can you get up from that! This is why I have admiration for Serena and Venus Williams to rise in this particularly difficult sector, regardless of the colour of their pants. They are icons of beautiful, strong, successful black women.

It is not always a race issue. People always think it is just a race issue. Oh no, as a woman, it is often also a beauty issue. The Wimbledon champion, Marion Baroli, showed her strength, determination and grit as a person under great pressure to succeed, and rise to the challenge to smack that tennis ball in her opponents face until she almost ran off in tears of defeat. Regardless, Baroli held in together, mind singular with focus on the task of winning at hand to become victorious, a champion! Hooray! Champagne! Glass ready to toast...  but oh no, wait, she is not beautiful enough to be champion.

She is rewarded instead with hate tweets by misogynists and a very ignorant reporter saying, "I just wonder if her dad, ...did say to her when she was 12, 13, 14 maybe, 'listen, you are never going to be, you know, a looker. You are never going to be somebody like a Sharapova, you're never going to be 5 feet 11, you're never going to be somebody with long legs, so you have to compensate for that. You are going to have to be the most dogged, determined fighter that anyone has ever seen on the tennis court if you are going to make it,' and she kind of is."

John Inverdale, is this supposed to be a compliment? Is she supposed to be on the court from intensely training since her youth, sweating her determination, practicing towards her ambitions, for you, the man who says things into a microphone, to base your comments on her looks like she is strutting across a catwalk for your approval, and is not an elite athlete who has just won one of the most prestigious titles in her field?

Many viewers have complained several times on the sexist remarks of John Inverdale, that have still gone unnoticed until now, that is probably because their complaints were going to other misogynists. There the misogynist sits in his little cardboard box of an office, saying, "These women are making a big drama out of nothing: they are probably on that time of month." 

This no disrespect to any extent to the truly, strong and brave men who stand up for what is right, to indirectly defend their mothers, daughters, sisters and wives in the process. Although, it still seems there are far too many men who are happy for thoughtless words to just slip out of their mouths like vomit from too much egotistical wine, blurring their vision of the male species being superior to the female species, allowing them to use sexism like ill-fitting condoms to protect their masculinity.

I am grateful for organisations like @EverydaySexism on Twitter who highlight the gravity of the problem, and @IShapeBeauty who try to recreate positive change and action in women. I am grateful for women centres and courses across the UK who take action to put esteem into women to fight sexism on every level, by imparting knowledge, encouragement and empowerment to each woman to be stronger in the lack of current societal change, and places like the Women's Refuge and Women's Aid, who are there to pick up the pieces of a broken society, which naturally lead to more extreme examples where is ok to degrade, humiliate and manipulate a woman's mind to submission or into a pretty skirt. 

References
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2001/07/athletes_in_skirts.html
http://www.diversityinc.com/diversity-facts/wheres-the-diversity-in-fortune-500-ceos/
http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2012/10/16/study-workplaces-increasingly-segregated-dominated-by-white-me/
http://www.venusserenatennisacademy.org/index.htm
http://www.theroot.com/buzz/richard-williams-blacks-still-not-welcome-tennis
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/04/sports/tennis/04rhoden.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&ref=todayspaper&adxnnlx=1283612483-dPeMXtMamNhaXeV9YWSDGA&
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2013/jul/09/john-inverdale-marion-bartoli-bbc
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/tennis/wimbledon/10164511/Wimbledon-2013-BBC-apologise-for-John-Inverdales-Bartoli-not-a-looker-comment.html