The Automatik

The March 12 story about an African-American female reporter being brutally attacked by the white family of a murder suspect has been all over the news.

I urge you to watch the video from the WLTX-TV link as it has the most accurate description of the events in question.

Photo courtesy WSPA-TV

The version I saw on our local news last night had clearly been edited to excise what I assumed to be racist name calling or swearing, and I missed the lead in which described the background of the situation.

On a purely visual level, however, it was immediately and blatantly obvious to me that this reporter was attacked because of her race. How anyone could feel that racism was not a part of this attack is upsetting to me, but unfortunately not surprising.

The reporter confirms that throughout her morning coverage of the murder investigation, the suspect’s family shouted racial slurs at her. It’s also important to note that the suspect is accused of killing his own grandfather.

Many of the various viewer comments not only deny the racist actions of the family, but think the reporter deserved what she got:

“Yeah! Fight back against the Paparazzi!”

“What’s the difference between trash, and those who report it? Nothing!”

“This is NOT about race.”

“It is a shame there were racial epithets thrown around. That unfortunately will take the lead over a story of a vulture preying on a grieving family, trying to invade their space, and rightfully got what she deserved.”

One of the Huffington Post commenters says:

“not being racist at all…i’m saying watch the complete unedited video from the beginning. it’s the reporter that rushes around her camera man and throws a punch. the reporter is attacking. doesn’t matter if she’s black or white…she rushes around her camerman and throws a punch…she is instigating…period.”

Buck Denton, on his blog, The Conservation Report, disagrees, saying, “. . . Furthermore, any reasonable person could conclude from the video evidence that she did not throw the first punch or antagonized the situation. . . . The situation could have become a homicide if not remedied by on lookers and the police.”

Unfortunately, the majority of the clips online do not show the beginning of the incident, but the WLTX-TV video clearly shows what happened. Again, the reporter is across the street from the family, on a public sidewalk, and it is the white family who instigates the attack, not the reporter. Any human being is certainly allowed—and instinctually predisposed—to defend oneself against an angry mob.

The WLTX-TV video also shows other white people nearby—a man crosses the camera near his car and looks like he might be on his cell phone—while a group of African-Americans observing the situation go over to help. Also notice how the one white person who walks over to the fracas—an older woman—consoles the white attacker, not Ms. Brown, the victim.

And inevitably, someone tries to accuse the African-American bystanders of “not bothering to get involved” even though one man is obviously placing himself between Ms. Brown and one of the attackers, and is actually interviewed after the attack, saying, “They should be sad because it’s a murder, but instead they’re sitting here wanting a fight.”

Thankfully, someone speaks up in the bystanders’ defense: “How about they were afraid they’d get arrested and get blamed for what happened?”

When you’re a person of color, in this case an African-American, you can’t win.

If you get attacked by white people, you must have started it.
If you get attacked by white people, it’s because you’re a scum-sucking reporter, so you deserved it.
And if you’re an African-American, you don’t “bother to get involved” because you don’t care about others.