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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums7-year-old girl killed after white man pulls alongside black family's car and opens fire
The family of five was leaving a Walmart parking lot Sunday morning in the Houston area when a man driving a red pickup truck pulled up to the side of their car and started shooting, reported KHOU-TV.
Jazmine Barnes was killed instantly, and her mother LaPorsha Washington was shot in the arm. Another girl was injured by shattered glass, and two sisters were unharmed.
The 30-year-old Washington was expected to recover from her wound.
Authorities described the suspect as a bearded white man in his 40s, and he remains at large.
[link:https://www.rawstory.com/2018/12/7-year-old-girl-killed-white-man-pulls-alongside-black-familys-car-opens-fire/|
Poor little mite. And the people that have sought to heighten tensions to the point that someone thinks this OK will never take responsibility for how their rhetoric leads to violence....
LittleGirl
(8,277 posts)That poor family. RIP little girl.
olegramps
(8,200 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)DU loves to jump to conclusions- one thing you cam count on here.
mercuryblues
(14,521 posts)The police described him as a white male, in his 40's, with a beard in a red pickup truck.
https://www.khou.com/article/news/crime/we-will-find-you-deputies-looking-for-man-who-shot-killed-7-year-old-in-ne-harris-co/285-625412626
pintobean
(18,101 posts)where they said that the suspect was a KKK racist, motivated by hatred.
cwydro
(51,308 posts)And wearing a MAGA hat, no doubt.
Can you imagine how many threads there would be right now if theyd arrested a white man?
People just hate when their narrative is destroyed. I hate hypocrisy.
olegramps
(8,200 posts)pintobean
(18,101 posts)Stuart G
(38,403 posts)iluvtennis
(19,822 posts)Hope the Walmart cameras have his ass on tape
Mr. Quackers
(443 posts)in a lot of ways.
Fucking sick fucking fuck.
MagickMuffin
(15,924 posts)Texas has nothing to do with any of this.
Do you know how many people move here because Texas is a great state???
Perhaps this killer moved here from California or New York or any other place on this planet.
Texas is just Texas. The people living here make it as you say brutal.
atreides1
(16,064 posts)MagickMuffin
(15,924 posts)with the exception of the republicon party, but hey they are everywhere just like racists they embrace!!!
cwydro
(51,308 posts)I hate region bashing.
Mr. Quackers
(443 posts)I've never lived everywhere where each cop seemed like it was his personal ambition to jam you up.
Brutal.
Don't get me started on the lack of health care for the poor and uninsured.
I've lived in blue states where, if you were brought in the ER unable to walk, had one paralyzed arm, medical hardware hanging out of your body, a fresh trach hole, and gangrene, they would admit you and give you medical treatment.
Not so in Houston.
Brutal.
Lonestarblue
(9,958 posts)Far too many people like to claim that the US is a Christian nation, but it is not. I have seen nothing in the Bible that proclaims white people to be superior to everyone else on the planet or that urges hatred and ill treatment of people of color or those who are different from white people. The closest excuse is that the curse of Ham means that black people are inferior servants to white people (a claim disputed by Biblical scholars). Indeed, the whole doctrine of Christianity is based on a Jewish man, most likely with the same brown features as others in the Middle East, not the blue-eyed blonde many Christians like to follow.
Racism is getting worse here and around the world. We need to somehow change the story, which will not happen until Trump is out of office. Even then, racism may just go underground again. Perhaps we need a course in schools on the origins and purposes of racial bias and how damaging it is to a free society.
ck4829
(35,035 posts)MikeIsInProcess
(23 posts)Lets not pretend that Christianity has meaningful standards. It was ambiguous enough to be compatible with 1930s Germany, an overwhelmingly Christian (and educated and culturally literate) nation. It was ambiguous enough to be compatible with the Confederacy, and was compatible enough with the THREE major denominations that split over slavery and formed Southern conferences (one of which still exists today). It was ambiguous enough to be compatible with Martin Luther and his horrific statements on Jews (and on reason itself, by the way). The KKK and other groups still feel that Christianity is perfectly compatible. Theres a reason they burn *crosses*.
There was Christianity in abundance on both sides of the Mason Dixon line. The ambiguous religion was apparently helpless to resolve our great dispute regarding that peculiar institution, and in the end the problem was eliminated (as minimally as possible) by superior firepower, with many Christians not forgiving such outrage even to this day. The institution was formerly killed, the underlying prejudices remained.
(And to be clear, on the issue of slavery I wouldnt say that the Bible was particularly ambiguous: it speaks in strong affirmation of the institution, a point that Confederates thundered from their pulpits about as often as there were listeners gathered.)
It seems to be some form of idealism that there are meaningful standards involved here.
Christianity is as Christianity does.
Im happy to argue that this is not a Christian nation, but racism isnt the reasoning Id use.
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)My family is pretty much devout Christian, although not the evangelical type (moderate or rightwing) and they are nice people, but Christianity has been at the forefront of history's worse atrocities.
MikeIsInProcess
(23 posts)it has also been at the forefront of various successes. Both the abolitionist and pro-slavery movements had a lot of Christian support.
Its ambiguous, which causes it to be, for the most part, a reflection of the people who believe it. Theyre able to find/emphasize whatever message they like.
When we were slave-owners, we found slavery in Holy Writ. Now that were not, effectively we can no longer find this message (though honest people will acknowledge that the verses remain). Strange how that works.
Its a reflection of ourselves, good and bad.
If there were a god, he should be able to pop over and resolve all this ambiguity. Its certainly a less bloody plan than permitting disputes to be addressed by 750,000 dead (in the case of the Civil War).
But here we are.
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)DBoon
(22,337 posts)since when has this ever mattered?
mickswalkabout41
(145 posts)If this is going to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, either we have to pretend that Jesus was just as selfish as we are, or we've got to acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and serve the needy without condition and then admit that we just don't want to do it.
― Stephen Colbert
What is wrong with people? Never mind, I know the answer.
maddiemom
(5,106 posts)and the Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle) is biracial? It has always puzzled me.
pazzyanne
(6,543 posts)I have wondered the same thing.
Bettie
(16,058 posts)now that you mentioned it!
Igel
(35,270 posts)There's a fairly clear pattern to "black," "biracial", and derogatory terms like "passing".. Look at how easily the person slips from culture to culture, how people want to identify with the person (and the person wants others to identify with him/her), and how the person self-identifies. Note that there's a difference between when the person is minority/majority biracial and minority/minority biracial. It's complicated by application of the one-drop rule, which is still very present on both right and left for slightly different reasons. The media use the terms a bit differently from, say, how undergrads that are black-Asian or Asian-white use it--for some it's virtually a pretension, "Look at me, I have two cultures, unlike you, with (n)one."
Also look early in Obama's campaign, where things like O'Bama weren't unusual. Early on, his biracial/multicultural background was highlighted, but that faded as he became more and more "authentically African-American".
The data are there, but it's sort of a nuisance to remember it all and to step out of one's own skin, so to speak, to stop imposing one's own judgments on it and see how a range of people actually use the words and in what contexts. It's a social thing, so there are a lot of contrasts to account for all the data. It could be a short monograph. The first step is IDing the oppositions, the contrasts, and see how they pattern.
obamanut2012
(26,041 posts)They call her at best "black," but usually the same racist slurs used against Obama and Mobama. Or wear racist brooches in front of the Duchess like Princess Michael of Kent did.
tblue37
(65,212 posts)are noticeably black, while hers, except for her mother, are white. Also, his skin is darker than hers.
Furthermore, he identifies as black.
And of course the right wingers harped nonstop on his being black.
exboyfil
(17,862 posts)Go to the Fox News report and read the comments.
yardwork
(61,533 posts)These acts of murder - and the comments from people who agree with murder - show us what our country is. We need to face it.
Thank you for mentioning the comments. This is who we are.
Initech
(100,028 posts)Bernardo de La Paz
(48,936 posts)Stuart G
(38,403 posts)getagrip_already
(14,603 posts)How many Red pickup trucks, with trump and racists bumper stickers and confederate flags, can there be in TX? (hint, a LOT).
With any luck, he was in the walmart at some point and they have good video and maybe a charge/debit card to match it to.
smirkymonkey
(63,221 posts)What kind of coward open fires on a car full of children? It's just sick!
Kurt V.
(5,624 posts)Chemisse
(30,802 posts)amuse bouche
(3,657 posts)Blue_true
(31,261 posts)And if I bump into someone, I apologize.
Rory McRory Fitzrory
(23 posts)Luckily for me, I've already puked.
groundloop
(11,513 posts)This is pure fucking evil, made more mainstream by hatred being spewed by the asshole currently occupying the White House.
Larrybanal
(227 posts)he will never even mention this..it is his base and will not be challenged
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)When Molly Tibbetts was raped and murdered by a illegal immigrant, Trump was all over that, even as her family was preaching fairness and inclusion. But several weeks later when a white man raped and murdered a former NCAA golfer in the very same state, not a peep from Trump. The man is pure garbage, a maggot of a human being (I apologize to maggots for putting them down).
ck4829
(35,035 posts)ananda
(28,831 posts)A strong tongue lashing and a visit to the psychiatrist?
A couple of months in jail?
...
SCantiGOP
(13,862 posts)or the death penalty.
AllyCat
(16,135 posts)Guns and racists. Another bad and deadly mix.
My heart weeps for her and her family.
democrank
(11,084 posts)So heartbreaking.......
ck4829
(35,035 posts)dalton99a
(81,384 posts)Last edited Mon Dec 31, 2018, 03:02 PM - Edit history (1)
Betcha he has a red hat to match
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/article/Gunman-at-large-after-killing-8-year-old-leaving-13498358.php
IronLionZion
(45,380 posts)Obama killed off the oil jobs in Texas so the white guy is the real victim here. He needs to be coddled and pandered to.
pintobean
(18,101 posts)The suspect is described as a white male in his 40s with a beard. The vehicle was described as a red pickup truck. No information was available on a license plate, or make and model of the truck.
The shooter is described as armed and dangerous, and for now, anonymous.
"Someone who does something like that will eventually talk about it, and we need anyone with information to come forward," said HCSO Major Jesse Razo. "I urge whoever did this, turn yourself in, because we will find you."
https://abc13.com/girl-7-fatally-shot-in-car-as-her-mother-left-walmart/4990333/
I say we wait for the facts, like the police are doing, before we declare a motive.
The really sad thing is, kids often get shot when adults decide to settle things with guns. Race is very rarely the motive.
ProfessorPlum
(11,253 posts)Race is the motive in 100% of racial hate crimes. Until you know what this incident was, you shouldn't comment on the likelihood of anything.
dalton99a
(81,384 posts)we would have known that by now.
This sounds more like a MAGA crime
pintobean
(18,101 posts)ProfessorPlum
(11,253 posts)the point is that statistics can't really be applied to a single instance. If you had 150 shootings, you'd be justified in using percentages to guess what kind of instances they were. With a single specific shooting, percentages are useless. The event will be whatever it happens to be, regardless of whether it is a rare thing or a common thing.
And that we should wait to find out what kind of an event it was before we start predicting anything.
pintobean
(18,101 posts)in it's entirety, not just the line you took issue with.
ProfessorPlum
(11,253 posts)I don't think we actually have much of a disagreement, just that statistics about shootings are a true, but possibly irrelevant, thing to talk about with regard to this particular incident.
Like you, I am glad this wasn't a racial hate crime, and I feel terrible for the family.
Blue_true
(31,261 posts)Why do you assume the someone in the vehicle with the Black family had a gun. You say wait, but you make some pretty reaching assumptions.
I think that is may be possible that adults had words inside the store, but in no way does that justify shooting at people.
pintobean
(18,101 posts)I have no idea how you get that.
LanternWaste
(37,748 posts)pintobean
(18,101 posts)And, it doesn't appear to be the motive in this case.
Contrary to previous reports from the authorities that the gunman was a white man, the man who was arrested and charged Eric Black Jr. is black, a spokesman for the sheriffs office said Sunday. The sheriffs office also said that there could be other suspects. Investigators do not believe that Jazmine or her family were targeted, and that they were possibly shot as a result of mistaken identity, the sheriffs office said.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/06/us/jazmine-barnes-arrest.html
Link to tweet
cwydro
(51,308 posts)Hmm?
GusBob
(7,286 posts)Good idea
PatSeg
(47,238 posts)The racism is bad enough, but he took it out on the most vulnerable people he could find. The surviving children will live with PTSD the rest of their lives. Hopefully this man will be found and brought to justice, though nothing will ever undo the pain and loss his hatred and ignorance has caused.
uponit7771
(90,301 posts)... called racially motivated if it is.
Maybe they could call it a war on women and children shopping and riding in cars!
cwydro
(51,308 posts)DU will now lose interest in this young girl receiving justice. Same old story.
polmaven
(9,463 posts)yodermon
(6,143 posts)WTF MEDIA
dalton99a
(81,384 posts)pazzyanne
(6,543 posts)This type of thing is NEVER OKAY!
eleny
(46,166 posts)IronLionZion
(45,380 posts)especially when using guns to murder people. The media has established that enough times. Don't forget that white people never have a political agenda, especially while posting on a political discussion board.
eleny
(46,166 posts)LuckyCharms
(17,410 posts)I certainly could be wrong...but he will be caught soon I think.
WePurrsevere
(24,259 posts)between the ages of 6 & 15?
My heart goes out to all of the loved ones of Jasmine but especially the ones who were in the car and will have to deal with this trauma and murder the rest of their lives.
I hope they find the murderer quickly and that justice is done.
RIP little one.
MoonRiver
(36,926 posts)R.I.P. little one...
pdsimdars
(6,007 posts)Maybe the others would get the message that we don't support their hate.
HipChick
(25,485 posts)and killing 7yr old white girl....
Ilsa
(61,688 posts)Locking up every black man in the US, and executing the ones that drive the same kind of vehicle.
canetoad
(17,133 posts)As this violence happened at 7am.... I'm up and about very early in the morning to walk the dogs. When I run into other folk at that time, I quickly get a feel for whether they are fellow early risers, or they are on their way home from an all-nighter of drugs and/or drinks.
Meowmee
(5,164 posts)Rip😿
raccoon
(31,105 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)I have no doubt.
dalton99a
(81,384 posts)Houston mom says man 'intentionally' killed 7-year-old daughter while leaving Walmart
Updated 2 hrs 42 mins ago
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- LaPorsha Washington, mother of Jazmine Barnes, is revealing new details about the alleged attack that killed her daughter on Sunday morning.
Jazmine, 7, and her mother were shot as they were going to Joe V's to get coffee Sunday morning. Washington's three other daughters were in the car too. They had just passed Walmart when a car pulled up.
Washington told ABC13 about her daughter's final moments.
"As I turned around and looked back at the street, I heard shots start firing and they came through my window, broke my glass, and hit me in my arm. They sped off in front of us and the truck slowed down and continued to fire as he was in front of us. It was not fair. It was not fair. He intentionally killed my child for no reason. He didn't even know her, he didn't know who she was."
After the shooting was over, one of her other daughters made the devastating discovery.
"She said, 'Momma, Jazmine's not moving. She's not talking.' I turned around and my 7-year-old was shot in the head."
The Harris County Sheriff's Office is asking all residents in the area around Wallisville Road near the E. Sam Houston Parkway to check their surveillance videos to help find clues that may lead to Jazmine's killer.
"My baby comes and asks me, 'Where's my sister? Is she coming back?' She's only six-years-old," said Washington.
The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help with the expenses the family may need.
The motive for the attack is still unknown as detectives are trying to determine whether the shooting was targeted or random.
Anyone with information is asked to call 713-274-9100 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS. You can also make an anonymous tip online at www.Crime-Stoppers.org.
oberliner
(58,724 posts)Investigators identified Black as a suspect based on a tip.
Subsequent investigation revealed evidence that corroborated the tip, and Black was taken into custody in East Harris County without incident.
Black then admitted to taking part in the shooting. Investigators are continuing to pursue evidence that could possibly lead to other suspects being charged in this case.
https://local.nixle.com/alert/7029206/
GusBob
(7,286 posts)If this is true, the question is WTF?
And the reckoning is: dont jump to conclusions
oberliner
(58,724 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)Someone is shooting at you and you can see the color of their eyes? No way.
Well likely hear no more about the despicable shooting of this little girl - not here on DU anyway.
GusBob
(7,286 posts)That the testimony of witnesses can be flawed. Cops judges and lawyers will tell you this.
Perhaps that is the case here, and that sort of thing should be remembered and discussed
cwydro
(51,308 posts)In the video, you can see how dark it was at the time.
Add in being shot at, and theres just no way anyone would have a valid description.
GusBob
(7,286 posts)But it was not the shooter who they described but some other guy?
oberliner
(58,724 posts)uncle ray
(3,155 posts)cwydro
(51,308 posts)They said several times they were not ruling anything out.
Remember Susan Smith. They put her description of the perpetrators out there too.
Maru Kitteh
(28,313 posts)Smith made her assailants up out of thin air. These traumatized victims of crime gave an honest description of what they believed they saw and we all know how incredibly unreliable the descriptions of traumatized people can be. Experts are saying this description is probably the first person they saw after the event.
Your comparison to Susan Smith is heavily flawed. Beyond dead children and the existence of police renderings, the circumstances bear almost no similarities.
Joe941
(2,848 posts)I wish these stories would leave race out of it unless it is clearly a hate crime - and in that case they should just flat out say a race related hate crime. Instead the story tip toes around the issue making suggestions. It just stokes bad race relations which is not cool.
Bonx
(2,051 posts)hexola
(4,835 posts)Family of man wrongfully accused by activist Shaun King in Jazmine Barnes' shooting speaks out
https://abc13.com/family-of-wrongfully-accused-man-receiving-violent-threats/5032056/
As a white man with blue eyes, he resembles the sketch the Harris County Sheriff's Office released last week. Even his niece was afraid it was him.
"I'm not going to lie, I teared up," said Cantrell.