Imagine this… It is 2010 and an 18 year old black male is walking to his grandmother’s home to spend the night. This young man is an honors student who plays the viola and he has no criminal record. Before he is able to reach his destination, he is ambushed by three Caucasian CASUALLY dressed police officers who assume he is a drug dealer because of his brown skin and his flowing locks. He is viciously attacked by officers and left severely swollen in his face with parts of his locks pulled out. Unfortunately what you are imagining is not some sick fiction story created in a writer’s mind, this is the non-fiction story of Jordan Miles.

Jordan Miles on January 12, 2010                                                            Police Officers Who Attacked Jordan Miles

Four years later and I have cried for the past 30 minutes, thinking about the confusion and the fright that Jordan must have felt that night. The thought of three grown men beating one teenage boy for no apparent reason is utterly revolting. Ladies and Gentleman, this is indeed Emmett Till all over again, however it wasn’t Jordan’s time to go yet. Jordan is alive and well and his legal team has reached a settlement today in which Jordan will be awarded $119,000 in damages. I am overwhelmed with joy that Jordan is not only still on this earth to testify, but he also will receive some form of reparation. Nevertheless, there is no amount of money that can erase the abominable act that those three police officers so maliciously executed.

   Jordan Miles During the Trial

The other troubling thoughts that danced around in my mind while crying my eyes out for Jordan Miles, is the fact that my fellow Black Americans CONTINUE to beat each other down physically, emotionally, verbally, etc. when we clearly have enough HATE directed towards us as is.

   LET’S BRING THIS BACK!!!

“There can be no black-white unity until there is first some black unity…. We cannot think of uniting with others, until after we have first united among ourselves. We cannot think of being acceptable to others until we have first proven acceptable to ourselves.” -Malcolm X

The World is Ours Blogger,

Leah C. Powell