Black Men as Victims of Crime: "I had a bad feeling"

Black men are America's most likely crime victims. Even Latino men, who suffer high homicide rates, are considerably less likely than black men to be murdered. How unsafe are black men? Suffice to say they are safer in prison than on the streets of Los Angeles County.

This week HR begins an occasional series of interviews on the subject of black men as crime victims.

Name: Romeo Bryant

Age: 34

Means of support: None, since he was disabled by a shooting. Previously, he painted houses intermittently. He stays in Florence and Watts.

Chance that he will be murdered in a given year*: 15.9 in 10,000 (based on his age, race and gender).

Chance a Latino man his age will be: 2.1 in 10,000.

Chance a white man his age will be: 0.6 in 10,000.

Q. How many people close to you have you lost to homicide?

A. Two cousins. About 40 friends. My brother is paralyzed. He uses a wheelchair. He was hit in the head in an assault in 1986.

Q. How many times have you been shot at?

A. Twice.

Q. How many times have you been hit?

A. Once. On June 24, 2005, in Florence.

Q. Can you describe your experience?

A. I got off the bus. I had been working. I was walking. I had a bad feeling. This Mexican guy approached. He was in a black Acura. He hit me up. He said, "Hey, where you from?" I said, "Nowhere!" I had paint all over my clothes. I even had paint on my face....

He went around the block and came back. I was on the sidewalk. He was leaning out the driver's side window, about 8 or 10 feet away. He unloaded his gun. After the third shot, my leg felt hot. It went numb.

I didn't fall, but I stopped. I was looking down the barrel of a gun. The guy kept firing. It was dark--dusk-like. I could see the fire of the gun, and behind it, I could see his eyes. He was about 16 years old. He looked scared. A bullet went by my nose. There were bullets all around me. I just stood there. I felt like I had a shield. He shot 14 times. He was a bad shot. Then he said, "f--- n------," and burnt rubber, and took off.

I called my friend Earl. He lives nearby. He's a Mexican. He came out and made a tourniquet. He made it out of a belt, a towel and a T-shirt. The cops were there in 30 seconds, but the ambulance took forever. All the way to the hospital, the paramedics took my blood pressure, and it kept dropping: 65...53...48. After I woke up from surgery, I still had paint on my face."

Q. Can you describe your injury?

A. My leg. It still hurts. It's numb when I try to get up. They took skin grafts from my thigh.

Q. Did the police catch a suspect?

A. I think so. They wanted me to testify. I wouldn't.

Q. Are you afraid?

A. I don't feel safe. I won't even go to the store. But before I was shot I was really paranoid. Now, I don't know. I don't care so much.

Q. What would it take to make you safe?

A. I'd have to move into the mountains like that homeboy Gentle Ben. Way up into the mountains.

*The homicide risk calculations above are based on homicide figures from the Los Angeles County Health Department for male adults 30 to 34 in the year 2004. The figure for Bryant's risk is based on homicide death rates for black men in his 30-34 age group.

See also:  "Don't say the wrong thing" and "They asked me where I was from, as usual" and "I wake up in a cold sweat."

Comments

[Facts on File]

"Black men are America's most likely crime victims."

Hardly. How likely are black males to be raped in America? The majority of America's murder and assault victims are not black males.

Yes, black males are disproportionately murder victims but they are even MORE likely to be the murders - and the rapists, the muggers and the perpetrators of all violent crime. It's not the KKK, skinheads and Mark Fuhrman killing black males in America. It's mostly other black males.

Contrary to myth black males are also over represented as America's serial killers.

Attention should be focused on black male victims and on ALL victims regardless of race.

But a genuine, honest discussion of race and crime in America needs to focus of the black male as perpetrator of these crimes. Including interracial crime which is overwhelmingly committed by black males, especially when the victim is White.

This issue is clearly one of America's last taboos but it needs to be dealt with honestly and without the excuses.

[skuter]

Facts on file, your facts mean nothing to these victims and their families. If you are not going through it or living through it, keep ignorant comments to yourself. This newspaper is called the LA Times, not USA Today. All of these murders are occurring in the Los Angeles area. Its not about race;but ask yourself, how many of these victims are Caucasian?

[mia]

Skuter.....

I totally agree. What he was saying was irrelevant and sounded so racist. People like him is why people act the way they do now. So ignorant.

[keepin it real]

Justice department did a report on interracial rape. Black, white, and Latino women are raped most often by men of the same race.

Native American women are raped 82% of the time by white males. And Asian women are raped most often by strangers, while everyone else it is rape by an acquiantance. It seems that Native American women are the biggest victims in this Justice Department study, as the rape of Native American women is also 3-4 times higher than all other women.

This issue is the REAL taboo. And it needs to be dealt with honestly and without the media ignorance of it by white male media execs.

[for david ritcheson]

the point of this thread is to highlight the fact that black young men in los angeles die at disporportionate rates, regardless of perp. we are just looking at the numbers of los angeles, not the rest of the state or the west or the US. these are undeniable facts, that young men of color are more likely to die than anyone else. who kills them is secondary. but this is los angeles. as for black on white crime? show me real stats please before you accuse a group of people. and by the way, i just read an article on a mexican youth who killed himself because he couldnt deal with the fact that he had been the victim of a hate crime perpetrated by skin heads. they beat him unconscious, sodomized him with a porch umbrella pole, cut him up, poured bleach on him and left him for dead. he jumped to his death form a cruise ship just recently. luckily they caught who did this and one is serving life in prison the other 90 years. " Hate crimes against Latinos are on the rise according to two new studies by the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center" interesting ehhh? maybe if i lived around a bunch of white people they might be the perp, but here in los angeles it is a lot of men of color living in urban areas that are a t a high risk... these are the facts on file.

[colin]

I don't see how this post is racist at all. Maybe it was irrelevant (i don't think it was), but it wasn't racist if it was based on a statistic.

[LEFTY]

Its sad to hear that this the way of life for people in Los Angeles. Im Mexican/American, and i hate to find out about ignorant acts in behalf of our people. I was wild back in back in the days, but now kids are way to wild. My brothers grew up in Compton around the early 80's (Central & Alondra) They tell me stories of Mexican people getting harrase by Blacks on daily basis. The only way you wouldnt get jumped or beat up was if you belong to the local gang (CV 155 street) My brothers got their bikes stole from them, they would have to run home so they wouldnt get jumped. Now the tables have turned in some situations in difrent cities across L.A. County. We outnumbered Blacks, so now its a diffrent sitiuation. I would just like for people to know that the famous saying is so true. "What goes around comes around"

[Robert Calkin]

I don't believe this! You want to be black, yet live in a dangerous neighborhood, and NOT testify when you are assaulted and the perp has been caught? This is what perpetrates the traumas of your situation when you don't use "the white man"'s system to resolve the problem. Also, most of these crimes against black men (killings) are not committed by white people. They are committed by black and brown people, Disproportionate accusations of guilt, distortion of your situation and disrespect of law will only yield you more pain. Get out of the ghetto and move somewhere else people!!! It is a big WORLD!

[kim]

I am horrified by the posts left by "humans" on this sad sad subject. Lefty, you say you hate to hear about acts of ignorance by your people, yet at the end of your post you yourself show your ignorance.
And Robert Calkin, we don't "want" to be black, we are black, and that is not something to be ashamed of. What we do want is for people like you to stop judging us and judge your own. For example, you're right: most crimes against blacks are committed against blacks. But that is because white people, not all white people, specifically those who murdered, raped, pillaged, villified, and demonized us showed us exactly how to do it. And even though it wasn't that long ago, you have conveniently erased that from your memory.
Murder is wrong. And anyone who murders should receive the ultimate punishment. When I read this blog, which I do every day, I cry for my people, but I also cried for the young latina murdered at the taco stand. Because to me, she's not a latina. She's a young mother whose children will now grow up without her. Stop asking why Cheryl Green's murder was treated as a hate crime. We know why: Cheryl was murdered because she was black. Not because she was being robbed, not as an afterthought of a rape, not as payback for a gang murder, but simply and only because of the color of her cocoa brown skin. But I guess she deserved it, right Lefty, because back on Alondra and Central, someone harassed a hispanic.
Calkin, let me assure you of something: I am college-educated. I own a home. I have a wonderful job. None of my family are in gangs. I fear my son going to war. I fear social security won't be there when I need it. I fear my company will downsize before I'm ready to leave it. But most of all, I fear the ignorance and prejudice of you, Lefty, and the most misguided Facts on File. May God have mercy on your sick sick souls.

[ruben]

Bravo Kim, good for you, it's nice to see there are still some educated and open minded human beings in this world. I too am Mexican/American and when i read the homicide report daily i am sad to hear some of these stories I'm not thinking about race or sex, I'm feeling bad for the families and friends. I was born and raised in East L.A so I'm not going to say I don't see the racial divide, because i do, and it is growing bigger and bigger everyday and every murder and obviously these cops and politicians don't give a damn, so we have to fix on our own, but i do know one thing ignorant thinking and ignorant parents will not help the situation so we as adults need to step up and show these kids how to live with each other and stop killing each other, and we need to stop blaming everyone take responsibilty for your own self and kids. Latinos we need to unite, and not unite to defend ourselves from blacks, but to help each other get educated and succeed in life, i know it sounds corny man but if you hear it enough times you start believing.

[unico]

kim i couldnt've put it better. thank you. remember an eye for an eye, only leaves us blind

[AG]

Really!! Why does it matter if you are white,mexican, black or any other race. The point is you have no value for anyones life. Everyone is so quick to point the finger at the other race, everything has to end being a race motive. These "people" who are out there killing anyone that crosses them wrong looks at them to long or even if they straight out just don't care for the way the person looks. The person with the gun figures what the heck "I am bad" I will show him/her. What good is that doing for anyone you now have taken a life & ruined many lives. Where are the parents who should be showing them values in life. My mother left my sister & me when I was 10 my dad was into drugs, I was not out there blaming everyone for my problems. I am a mother of three & I am so scarred of what the world has to offer my children. WE ALL BLEED THE SAME!!!!

[Ralph Washington]

Hey Kim:

Nice diatribe, but you addressed NONE of the issues Calkin raised. WHY won't anyone testify? WHY are black people killing each other? WHY can't you move away from this madness? WHY are you so defensive? I am black and I got the HELL out of there. You should too...you sound very angry....

[kim]

Ralph,
I am not going to make this personal, but I do want to address a couple of things to you, directly. First, I am angry. I am angry that this report has to exist at all. I am angry that people have no respect for human life. I am angry that the only way we know what's going on in terms of crime and violence in the city of Los Angeles has been relegated to the web, instead of making the front page each and every day like each of these victims deserve.
I am angry that this weekend, some of these victims will be buried, and their mothers and other loved ones won't know another Christmas, Thanksgiving, or New Year's Day without them. And finally, I am angry that you speak of things which you don't know from an imaginary perch above your "fellow" black brothers and sisters and demand to know why I, Kim, won't get the hell out. Like you did. Ralph, I don't care where you think you live (which you presume is better than me and some of the victims). You, as a "black" man are the reason Jill posted this dispatch. No matter where you live, or the fact that you're friends with calkin, or whether you hold a tremendous amount of disdain for impoverished people, you are statistically at risk of being a victim of homicide. I would have hoped that as a "black" man, you would run to the nearest boys and girls club, challengers club, or some other volunteer organization and mentor a young child so your risk (as well as the risk of others) would be reduced. They have a good channel on cable. It's called the history channel. There's a good documentary about the kkk. You should watch it. Then maybe you can have some of your questions answered about WHY WHY WHY.
Thank you Ruben and Unico for reaffirming my faith in society. I was depressed before I posted to this blog yesterday, which is why I had to speak up. Thanks to Mia...i've seen your posts on this blog before. It's nice you're being vocal. Thanks to Skuter and David for being voices of reason. Thanks Jill for doing this, i know it's exhausting. And thanks FOF and Ralph for letting us all know we have a long way to go.

[Alina Michaels]

Kim:
I feel your pain. Anyone who has a black child who remains in this warzone is guilty of negligence as far as I am concerned. If I had a black boy I would move either to the country or ANOTHER country. You can be poor anywhere....It is all a bunch of lame excuses. I am sorry if you are taking this forum personally, but problems need to be solved not blaming everyone else. Stop the cycle of violence by not participating in it! It must be condemned--every aspect of it. Anyone who uses/owns guns is an anti-social animal as far as I am concerned. There is no place for them in civilized society...

[Facts are Facts]

I know my comments will make everyone upset, however, why is it that it's always the Black and Hispanics that are involved in homicides? When I browse through the news websites, and read of a homicide, it's always a black or a hispanic. Why?

Yes, most of the serial killers are caucasian, which is really strange, but overall homicides are committed by blacks and hispanics. What is the purpose? There are thousands of thousands of wonderful law abiding blacks and hispanics, people who live honest lives, however, the small percentage that do commit crimes, make it bad the the good people.

I don't know if it was the way they were raised, such as socio-economic reasons, peer pressure, etc. What can be done to change the mindset of these murders?

[buz algood]

It is too late for South LA. Abandon hope all ye who live there. The hate and sin that lives there is the problem, not the KKK.

[LEFTY]

I would like to reply to people who think its wrong for me to say "what goes around comes around" Theres much talk of Latinos attacking Blacks, they have press confrences etc.I dont want people to think that were just people who hate Blacks, for every action theres a reaction. I am not trying to justify the situations going around LA, but its hard not to reconize the harsh reality.I will always believe in the fact that if you do something negative to someone, it will came back to hunt you and you will pay ten times more. I work in public transportaion, and i see constatnt harrasement of my people who cant speak english by Black people. Im sorry if i offend you and anybody else for that matter, trust me I want a world free of BS like this. The situations going on LA beteween Latinos and Blacks is complicated. I llove Black people, but sometimes i find it difficult to understand there actions. The truth hurts, but i believe that Black have lost respect and meaning of being humble. They pick on Latinos, people who dont speak English. I believe if you feel the statement is racist or just not true, you have not been around public transportation like i have. People might think this a bias oppinion by a Latino, but i still think its true regardless. Latinos are not innocent either, we as a people need to learn how speak English and adapt to American culture. I believe we both have falults, and like i said "What Goes Around Will Definately Came back around.

[Chris]

This is what happens when you have 70% of black children born out of wedlock.

This is what happens when you have absentee fathers who don't take care of thier childern because the government will.

This is what happens when it's cool not to "snitch."

This is what happens when you don't cooperate with the police.

This is what happens when when blacks are killing other blacks, the police stop young blacks in the area, and it "racism."

This is what happens when you still blame the "white man."

This is what happens when black "leaders" crucify the police if they shoot a black criminal but remain silent on the countless blacks killed by other blacks.

This is what happens when you worship sports and not smarts.

These are just a few of the underlying causes for the disporportion of crime and murder commited by blacks. It is 2007 and this is Los Angeles. It is time to stop the complaints of racism and focus on some of the real issues. How many of these people have been killed because of racism? How many have been killed for the wrong answer to "where you from?" How many has this racist "white man" killed?

Many groups have faced racisim in this country. The Irish, the Italians, the Jews, the Chinese, etc... That is no excuse for what is going on all over this country in the black community.

[unico]

child abuse and negligence? some people are really really misguided. more and more i see how people just dont get what life is like in LA> running away from the problem is never the answer. besides, you think that me or my family exist in this world alone? no, we have family all over LA, friends all over. should we all just move? A BIG F'ing NO NO NO! we will stay and fight to make this a better place. i love LA. i am not going anywhere. i will teach my kids and guide them. they will be book and street smart.

[ruben]

Lefty and Facts are Facts
I hear what your saying man and i respect that, i would be pretty upset too if i seen one of my latino brothers getting harrased on a daily bases, but you got to see it from another perspective also. I grew up in East LA in housing projects and where i gre up they didnt even let blacks live there, through my whole childhood maybe 5 families lived there and all 5 where firebombed out of there house and constantly jumped by the gang members. I remember this as a little boy and I could never understand it. Now that I'm all grown up I'm still confused on how this hatred started, but I do know that this, "what goes around comes around" mentality or , "an eye for an eye" will not get us nowhere, we will just end up like the Jews and Palestinians or Protestants and Catholics, and we will both lose. We have to stop this now we need more intervention and prevention. All you people out there who criticize like the Facts are Facts post, it does'nt take a genius to figure it out that as crime and murder rate rise in a area so does lack of education and drop out rate. If you really want to help out get involved go into the "hood", i grew up there and i still go back when i can. It sounds corny but it does make an effect on a child when you do something or volunteer, and not just around Christmas and Thanksgiving I'm talking about right now, like summertime when the kids have nothing to do. I always tell people that sports and activities is what kept me out of gangs. Most of these kids have no idea whats even outside there hood they never been to a rich suburban community or any beachfront property all they know and see is hood. If you volunteer and get involved in parks and recreations I gaurantee you that you will talk and see some of these kids and realize they can all be saved from this lifestyle, but its our stupid politicians and ignorant people (like alot of these people who post here) who criticize and complain yet dont help, or just help when it's a good "photo oppurtunity". Blacks and Latinos are not going anywhere we are here for good and will continue to grow so we all need to step up now and help or shut the F#%!!

[Kat]

I know I may have no right to say anything to anyone. But honestly its not the color of the skin, the age, the height the area that people should be worrying themselves with. Its the fact that no matter what race these people are, they need to know that its NOT ok for them to take the lives of another human being regardless of the race.

I understand that there are racial issues between African Americans and whites, hispanics and African Americans, whites and hispanics. But its not the race issue that gets me, its the ignorance and arrogance of these people to take the life of another.

I read about these kids 15, 16 17 getting killed and it actually makes me sad. I have a little brother who is 15 and I can only imagine what these families go through when their children are violently taken from them.

Im sorry to everyone who feels they need to argue the race issue. Keeping the race issue in your mind is what causes the problem, waking up everyday being afraid of a certain group of people is what makes these people do the kinds of things they do.

I read on here not to long ago that a young african american man stepped off a bus and was shot because of the colors that he was wearing. This to me is SHOCKING, where I live the kids from 7th grade up cannot wear certain colors, certain combinations of clothing, shirts with writing, sweatshirts with writing, certain brands of clothing, hats, scarves, certain sneakers, certain articles of jewlrey, and I dont live in LA. Its not only LA that has the problems its EVERYWHERE. I stopped going to the public high school out here because of the gang wars that were happening, the stabbings, the beatings, the hostility that these people have towards each other.

I feel bad for people when they say they are afraid because it goes to show the level of decay in our society, no one should be afraid to go outside, walk down the street, wear their favorite color, walk a certain way, talk a certain way.

To me it doesnt matter the color of the skin its the person themselves, I can honestly say that while most people wont agree with me its the african americans, and the hispanics that get the s**t end of the stick from people, because we as a society have sterotyped them. he's black so he MUST be a thug, hes mexican so he MUST beat his wife. NO, most of the most successful people that I know that own companies or are in the Real Estate company or any area are african american and hispanics. And I congratulate them because they succeeded where society says they will fail.

If more people stood up for what they believe in, if more people stood up for each other, if more people were more understanding, if more people just STOPPED for a second and looked around, they would see that this world would be much better if we just learned to accept people for who they are, Im not saying 100 percent better but it would really start to help.

So those are my thoughts on the issues that seem to be making people mad. And you can love it or hate I cant do anything about it, thats how I feel.

[christine]

First of all I'd like to say that I do not think that it is appropriate to blame politicians and the police for the crimes that are commited in these neighborhoods. The fact is..Is that they are already doing everything that they can possibly do. As for the poiticians and the government they are providing housing for these people and food stamps and I am sure cash benefits, As for the police they have installed cameras in the public housing areas,when the police are investigating murder scenes I believe the people in the community where out there laughing....So you see its about HOW you can fix the problem where you live, It seems like the best thing to do is blame everyone else for whats happening around you. The way that I see it is these are just excusses because you choose not to get an education you choose to hang around with the wrong people you knew right from wrong and you choose to blame politician,government and police wake up and you FIX IT!!!!

[Akili]

It pains me everyday to read this blog and see another young black child fall victim to unnecessary violence. It also pains me that other racial groups have bought into stereotypes of the black man/black woman.

Ignorance knows no race. Not every black person blames the white man. Not every black person is a criminal. Not every black man is a dead beat dad and not every black woman is a single mother. But there is an issue in the black community that needs to be addressed and it is this "lost generation" we are dealing with. Children who were raised by children. Black children who buy into black stereotypes perpetuated by the media and other ignorant blacks. The problem is in the home. U

Until parents take responsibility for their children and raise them with values and morals instead of materialism and greed, this cycle of violence will continue. We also as a community need to take responsibilty for all of our children. Stop saying "They're not my child, they're not my problem." These children can be saved. What are you doing to make sure they don't become a statistic?

[warisnothealthy.com]

How to transform the psychology, ethos, belief systems, practices, attitudes, actions, words, worship, culture(s) of violence?

[wake up and smell the coffee!]

"Many groups have faced racisim in this country. The Irish, the Italians, the Jews, the Chinese, etc... That is no excuse for what is going on all over this country in the black community."

But the difference here is that the Irish and Italians and Jews are all "fully assimilated" and there ethnicity/cultural background holds no specific values or consequences. The Black community can never be white, no matter how hard one tries... Voices that blindly accept that racism is not a factor in this country in relation to political power and socio-economic status failed to pay close attention in their history class. Its been less than a century since we ended segregation and Jim Crow laws.. Remember when "colored" people could not enter the same bathroom or use the same drinking fountain as whites? And you can still honestly sit here and tell everyone that race doesnt matter? This country was founded on racism..
Once we accept that fact we can all move forward. There is no finger pointing here, just an acceptance of the reality of the Manifest destiny of the U.S.
How does this even relate to this post? Well when a homicide occurs in an affluent neighborhood where no one expects it to happen, it makes the ten o'clock news. When a homicide occurs in the "hood", it makes a blog list with hundreds of other victims... A LIFE IS A LIFE RIGHT?

[Clueless]

It's a shame that those that think they have the answers are too concerned with the rights of killers and bangers and yet only feign concern for the rights of schoolkids about to walk into the line of fire. It can happen any time, any where. When did victimhood become mandatory?

Why won't they...why won't you, why won't we...simply rid ourselves of the problem? Stop overthinking and act!

[Ched]

The problem is the gang culture & the availability of guns, these people all go for that way of life & innocent people are getting caught up in it.
Geting rid of your guns would be a start, f*@k teh constitution, it was made when U.S was still a wildrness & there was cowboys & indians, it won't solve every murder but would stop a hell of a lot. The gang cultures the problem, same over here but its blades that do the damage.

[Mark]

Ched, regarding confiscating the guns...... many places in the county and state do not have a gang problem. Why should law abiding gun owners have their rights trampled on because a few neighborhoods are out of control.

If you say F*** the constitution, I would first say to allow the police and sheriff's to do proactive aggressive patrolling to put the fear into the criminals.