The Search for Thugs

What I mean is there are people of all color who are thugs. I grew up in NY as_hole, so I know. I have white friends who make the black thugs look like girl scouts, ok. I think all stereotypes have a basis in truth, but nothing is absolute.

If I didn't have vigilant parents and siblings and some good friends, I could have easily ended up in the "pen" as I was not a good boy. Good children don't turn into decent people by chance. It takes the whole community AND parental figures to do that.

Race does not make people act a certain way. The way that race is treated, however, does.

Most blacks in my area on the lower eastern shore of Maryland subscribe to this image. From the time I was three to nine years old, I was molested by black males and females who later debunked my personal tragedy and chalked it up to being a childhood prostitute. I have lost faith in my people for the stigma they placed on me in my community. Hopefully, Obama will be the key factor in making them responsible for their own behavior.

At first, I didn't understand where you were going with this article, then you really turned it around. Thanks for being objective and not projecting blame on others beside ourselves. I rarely agree with Sharpton, but according to your quote, he's actually making sense for a change. WAKE UP BLACK AMERICA!

KIRT....You got ripped off...Where the hell did you get educated?? Are you being blackmailed or are you a black male?? Go back to school...quit trying to sound smart! Your Not!!

Most of you people, black, white.......whatever are delussional.

It's not a color thing, as_holes.

If you have good PARENTS, rules, family, values and morals, you have a good chance at success.

As a white man about to marry a black woman, I'm disturbed by what I read. My woman is smart, funny, caring, loving and by far, the most amazing woman I've ever known, and I've known quite a few.

She grew up less than ideally, but had a grandmother who cared and MADE her do the right thing, i.e school, studying and being decent and now is on her way to a Masters in Social Work.............all the while having 4 kids, an abusive ex husband and alot of hatefull view like those expressed here.

You people could only hope to be 1/100000 as good as she is.

Amen to those with the mantra of inidivual character and personal choice as our reality. To those who toss numbers, and rationale for race hate, blame or redemption: Humans recognize difference in our species at an early age. Your current beilef means someone found you dumb enough and with such low self esteem that they were able to make you believe something you know to be true. The numbers "cited" are easily disputed if you use a source that has any balance, or one that is easily available and well known to the public. Slavery? Less than 10% of a population as owners is not an indictment on all. As stated previously, Black hatred came after the reality of the REsurrection. Black crime? Check your facts and understand the 2 million incarcerated in America are also in higher proportion for hispanics, and native americans. That ration is not an indicator of all the immoral and criminal behavior in society. The small percentages the racists (no matter the color) are forced to ignore the majorities and inflate some abherrant trend as the real proof. It is racism to use evidence as validation of proof. The rest of the world validates facts and evidence for proof. The second mehod is logical even to a stupid person. The first, needs a stupid person to buy into the logic.

Al Sharpton is not a leader representative of all blacks. Who is the white counterpart? There is no spokesperson for a diverse group of individuals.Again, black homicide for all causes is at a low since recorded in 1950, at less than 7000. Since a growing issue is suicide among white, with nearly 24,000 last year, please press the arguments to fit that sad fact. Unwed mothers, as a raw number are greatest in white racial distinctions. There are programs and projects moving to improve inner city issues and the numbers back them. The CDC, is a more credible source for all homicide trend than an out of context statement. With 2 million total people in jail, and the halk that are black is not testament their community or culture. It is personal choice, for the criminal, or thug. The thug, term was used in the 1930's in describing the underworld criminal killing each other for a share of profit. The race issue is pressed though unfounded. Note the partial statistics and frequencies that come from belief, not a blanced resource analysis. You know a former NFL player who was acquitted by a jury but lost the civil case for killing his wife? Hint- Buffalo Bills.
His name-Jim Dunaway-thug by association.

It is interesting also to note the race of the 4 suspects who have now been charged. Based on the statistical distribution of the united states at least 3 of the 4 of them should have been white, but that was not the case, in fact all of them were black. People like to point to the prison statistics and say that black people are disproportionatly represented in prisons and on death row. They like to cite the high costs of lawyers and state there is no justice. What if a far higher percentage of all crime is committed by a specific minority? If this is the case might not the justice system be working as intended?

One presents themshelves as they dress and act. Today most kids present themselves having the gangsta look. It is the sagging pants, etc. I understand the meaning of the pants being a prison thing. Individuals
have the free will to decide for themselves. The result is that they alone have to pay the consequences for
their decisions. You have to take advantages of the opportunities that come their way. Learning all you can.
this means going to school, paying attention while there, not just sitting on the back row disrupting the class.
I once read that a coach told Michael Jordan he wasn't good enough to play basket ball. He used that as motovation to become one of the greatest basketball of all time. I sometimes wonder about black leaders.
if they had your interests in mind they would encourage you to set goals, present youself in a better way.

By law we are all equal, but in reality--no one treats us as equals. I love rap music. I wear my pants low. I wouldn't dare show up to or or to a job interview dressed like that. I recognize the difference between being comfortable on my own time and being professional at work. I'm tired of my culture being vilified as in the negative of anything being AMPLIFIED. I am also tired of our kids being told that a thug or a Ho is the best we can be. I wish more people would follow the example of WIll Smith or Ice Cube... Ice Cube grew up as a gangster of thug and speaks of what happened on the streets. He's gotten past that. People both white and black have taken the 'gangsta' part out of context and glorified being dumb--being broke--being promiscuois and irresponsible. It's bad because we're so used to being down that many of us think that it's the way to be as a black person. the mindset was given to us by slavemasters long ago and we (both black and white) have seemed to perpetuate it.

Yes, you are truly ignorant if you think any of what you have written is true.

If blacks don't want to be characterized as criminals than they are going to have to work hard at eliminating the the grain of truth behind the stereotype. Thuggery wouldn't be the stereotype if gang-rappers were shunned instead of celebrated and if getting a college education was the norm within the black community.

The only ones who can really change this stereotype are those within the black community. Nobody else can do it for them.

A crime like killing over 600,00 Iraq citizens for the sake or WMD (or oil profi for your rich friends) that never existed? You are so lame!crime like murdering 600,000 qra