Seven Dirty Words Heard This Week

The comedian, George Carlin, once made a list of the seven dirty words you couldn’t say on television. The words Carlin listed were said to be inappropriate and offensive. This week, I’m reminded of Carlin’s list as I make note of the seven dirty things I’ve heard on social media this week. Carlin would be proud.

1.   “thug”

“ ...there’s no excuse for the kind of violence that we saw yesterday...When individuals get crowbars and start prying open doors to loot, they’re not protesting, they’re not making a statement -- they’re stealing. When they burn down a building, they’re committing arson. And they’re destroying and undermining businesses and opportunities in their own communities that rob jobs and opportunity from people in that area. My understanding is, is you’ve got some of the same organizers now going back into these communities to try to clean up in the aftermath of a handful of criminals and thugs who tore up the place.”

In a joint press conference with Prime Minister Abe of Japan, Obama was asked to comment on the events in Baltimore. Tongues -- and typewriters -- began flapping when President Obama threw out the word “thugs” to describe the protesters in Baltimore. “Thug” has even been called the new “N---” word.

But wait! Was he describing the protesters? In fact, no, he wasn’t. The word was used to describe a handful of looters, arsonists and thieves who used a community’s moment of weakness to benefit themselves personally.

According to Merriam Webster, a well-known authority when it comes to the meaning of certain words, a thug is a “... brutal ruffian or assassin. A thief.” Throughout history, pillagers and plunderers of all races and ethnicities have been described as thugs. Mobsters, English footballers -- the Vikings (the kind from Norway, not the football team from Minnesota. Although, maybe them too.)

It wasn't until the rapper Tupac, a self-proclaimed criminal, used the word in one of his songs (maybe it rhymed with hug?) that the world began to attribute a different meaning to the word. Suddenly, “thug life” was cool.

There are many words that have taken on new meanings over the years. “Assassin” is actually an Arabic word meaning “hashish eater”. Warriors would  would dope themselves up with hashish before heading off into battle.

The word “nice” took 700 years to flip-flop into the positive meaning it has today. In the 14th century, “nice” was the Latin word for “foolish or ignorant”. The Middle Ages is responsible for moving the word to a more neutral meaning. Just goes to show a little PR make any word work however we want it to.

Bottom line:  Thugs steal and loot. They are brutal ruffians -- no matter what race and color they are.

2.  “Shhhhh. Just close your eyes. It will all be over soon.”  

“I’m extremely grateful for the opportunities and experiences I got from the Rockets and know they acted in what they thought was their best interest (to) avoid any more controversy. I didn’t mean to advocate violence toward animals; just let my emotions get the best of me in a jab at the Mavs that was not very well thought out.”

Houston Rockets social media manager, Chad Shanks, was trying to be clever. However, his little joke and visual aid went down faster than horseshoes in the Trinity River. Given the fact that Texas is ready to pass an open-carry law (see below), local cartoonists are drawing blasphemous pictures of the prophet Mohammed, and the public, in general, has seen more than their fair share of shooting in cities like Baltimore and Ferguson, Shanks’ little joke may really was not very well thought out.

3.  “Gave those who wished to destroy space to do that”

“It’s a very delicate balancing act because while we tried to make sure that they were protected from the cars and the other things that were going on, we also gave those who wished to destroy space to do that as well.”

Mayor Stephanie Rawling-Blake, the mayor of Baltimore, was trying to be politically correct. Rawling-Blake made the number one mistake lots of politicians, even seasoned ones, make.  She thought she could do it herself.  

The situation became even more dicey when, a few days later, Mayor Rawling-Blake denied ever saying those words. That’s when she should have consulted her Social Media manager. He or she would have reminded her, “The Internet is forever.”

4.  “Hate speech is not protected under the Constitution.”

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

That would be a direct quote from the Constitution of the United States.  And former lawyer and CNN news anchor Chris Cuomo should have it memorized by now.

His fingers were probably on autopilot when he tweeted, “...hate speech is excluded from protection. don’t just say you love the constitution… read it.”

The fabulous thing about our country is our freedom to say what we want. The right for free-thinking people to open their mouths and voice their opinions is given to all -- even those who don’t have anything nice to say. It says so in the Constitution. Read it, Cuomo.

5.  “Operation Jade Helm 15”

Initially, I had no idea what Jade Helm 15 was. It sounds like a fancy name for an armored super-hero. Apparently, I’m not too far off the mark. The government has a secret operation under way. Which is why EVERYONE knows about it. The Commander-in-Chief, the one who uses the word “thug” is planning to impose martial law on the United States of America. All of us. Mrs. Obama is rather fond of how she decorated the Lincoln room and is loathe to have someone change it around.

6.  “Greg Abbott...Chuck Norris...Infowars...”

….And Texas is number one on Obama’s list. The US military is shutting down the state’s Wal-Marts to use as detention centers. I can’t blame them. They sell guns, which would allow the public to arm themselves?

Luckily, our fearless leader, Governor Gregg Abbott is on the case. With the help of Walker, Texas Ranger (aka Chuck Norris), the Texas Guard has been deployed to look out for us.

7.  “Texas Open Carry”

Guns!  Enough Said!

Sexual Violence as a Weapon of War

"Sexual violence in conflict needs to be treated as the war crime that it is; it can no longer be treated as an unfortunate collateral damage of war."  — UN Special Representative, Ms. Zainab Hawa Bangura

Most victims of modern armed conflict are innocent civilians.  Women are particularly susceptible to harm in the form of devastating sexual violence, which results in severe physical, psychological and emotional consequences. Rape, trafficking, mutilation and degradation are strategically used as weapons of war.

Sexual violence has been a part of armed conflict since the beginning of time. Colonization of foreign lands almost always involved plundering, pillaging and the raiding of settlements and villages with the capture of female prisoners as “comfort women”. Shouldn’t these acts merely be considered the ‘spoils of war’ or ‘convenient sexual gratification’? No. They should not.

Acts of violence against women are weapons. Rape is common worldwide, but becomes more sinister and brutal during wartime. The act of rape and sexual degradation is about power and control and is often used during ethnic conflicts to gain control, break down communities and redraw ethnic boundaries.

Gita Sahgal, of Amnesty International explains, “Women are seen as the reproducers and carers of the community. Therefore if one group wants to control another they often do it by impregnating women of the other community because they see it as a way of destroying the opposing community.”

Communities affected by conflict hold onto traditional norms of women being virgins before marriage. Women belong only to their husbands. Extramarital sex and adultery are taboo. Subjugating these women to violent and repeated sexual acts is about more than physical gratification. Women that have been raped or abused during wartime are shunned by their communities, treated as dirty and unclean and turned out by husbands and family members, effectively breaking down the community.

Women are impregnated to carry ‘ethnically superior’ children or tortured and mutilated to prevent further reproduction. Girls are traded between soldiers or trafficked across borders. The perpetrators are often armed militia that have been formed locally. The victims may know their abusers. The facilitators may also be other women.

Effects of wartime rape include sexually transmitted diseases, ‘war babies’, shame in communities, and future health and psychological issues. The use of sexual violence as a weapon has been widespread in armed conflicts for many centuries with no recourse.

In 1993, the International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda (ICTY and ICTR) recognized rape and sexual violence as a Crime Against Humanity, and in 2001, Bosnian Serb soldiers Dragoljub Kunarac, Radomir Kovac and Zoran Vukovic were found guilty for the rape, enslavement, torture and ‘abuse of women’ at a ‘rape’camp’ in Foca, a small Bosnian village.

The case stands as a landmark victory, but it is not a win. Out of 50,000 rapes which occurred during the Bosnian conflict, only 12 have been prosecuted. For every incident that gets disclosed, many more go unreported. There are many reasons for this which lie in our own thoughts and feelings about sexual assault and sexual violence.

Rape culture is a concept used to define attitudes towards rape and sexual assault. Sexual violence is trivialized. Other behaviors include blaming the victim or even denying the incident ever happened. In Foca, the rape victims were taunted with cries of, “You liked it.” and “You don’t belong here. Go away.” when they went to commemorate the site of their nightmare.

Once a conflict ends, many states are unprepared or unwilling to apprehend and prosecute perpetrators of sexual violence. Victims share community space with the very people who were torturing them. Barriers for survivors to report the crime are significant. As human beings, we have an obligation to the victims of these crimes to erase the stigma of sexual assault and provide solutions.

Women are punished and shunned because they have tainted the ‘family honor’ Providing a safe place for these women to go is paramount. Shame is common amongst sexual assault victims. The stigma attached to rape is a strong one, and the psychological effects run deep. Victims need access to counseling services, an understanding person to speak with who will not judge or condemn them.

We must begin a dialogue about this issue. The stigma should be moved from the victims onto the perpetrators. The spotlight falls on the victim, not the person (or people) who committed the act in the first place. It is not acceptable to chalk certain behaviors up to ‘They’re just boys”, or “It’s war. Things happen.” For too long, women have been placed on a lower rung of importance. Our obligation is to give a voice to those who are afraid to speak for themselves. 

  map from womenstat.com

map from failedstates.com

Begin the fight to empower women in all countries. Studies have shown that states with a lower degree of importance placed on women’s rights show a greater risk of safety for those very women.

We must not look the other way or stay silent. Be aware. Be compassionate. Be educated.

For more information on sexual violence contact the following organizations:

-Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN)
  Web: http://www.rainn.org

-Outreach Program on the Rwanda Genocide
  Web: http://www.un.org/en/preventgenocide/rwanda

-Physicians for Human Rights
  Web: http://physiciansforhumanrights.org/issues/rape-in-war/

References

Goetz, Ms. Anne Marie (2008), ’Introduction’ at Wilton Park Conference, Women Targeted or Affected by Armed Conflict: What Role for Military Peacekeepers?’

Mertus, J. (2001). Judgment of Trial Chamber II in the Kunarac, Kovac and Vukovic Case. Retrieved from http://www.asil.org/insights/volume/6/issue/6/judgment-trial-chamber-ii-kunarac-kovac-and-vukovic-case

Women's Human Rights. (2000). Retrieved from http://www.hrw.org/legacy/wr2k/Wrd.htm#TopOfPage

Women's Stat Projects-Maps. Retrieved from http://womanstats.org/newmapspage.html

World Report on Violence and Health. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/violence/global_campaign/en/chap6.pdf

Nowhere to Go: A Story of America's Homeless Youth

Photo: Tampa HCHU  

                                                                                                                         

Two young men sit on the steps of the Denton County courthouse. Their disheveled appearance and dreadlocks cause a few people to stare before walking on. One of these young men, Danny*, leans his head down as he strums on the guitar he holds in his lap. When he looks up, his eyes are clear and with a tiny glint of mischievousness, he lifts his chin in a nonchalant greeting.

“Hey there,” he says. “Been working on a new song.  You want to hear?”

The ease in his voice suggests he and his friends are just hanging out on the steps, watching the world go by without a care in the world. This observation couldn’t be farther from the truth.  Danny and his friends are just a few of Denton’s homeless youth, a group of kids with a dim future and no place to go.

“I grew up around here,” he tells me. “Not too far from here. Things got a little tough at home, and I decided to crash with some friends. That lasted for a little while until I had no place to go.  This is where I ended up.”

Danny’s day is pretty much the same. Sometimes, if it’s not too cold, he and the group he hangs with sleep outside.  There are shelters here in the city, but resources are limited. They can get a meal at the Salvation Army. Residents on the Square are used to seeing them around. I bought Danny a slice of pizza, and we sat down to chat.

“I’d like to go to school, maybe get a job, but I’m not sure what I want to do,” he told me. “This life, you just sort of fall into it.  In the beginning, it’s sort of cool. No rules, no one to bother you. You can do what you want. But this life? It’s hard. Where am I going to eat today? How will I get clean? No one means to end up homeless. It just….happens.”

Across America, the number of homeless youth is on the rise. In 2013, the Department of Housing and Urban Development called for communities to conduct a youth-inclusive count that would include unaccompanied homeless youth, up to 24-years-old. According to Part 1 of HUD's 2014 Annual Homeless Assessment Report, 194,302 youth and children were homeless on a single night in 2014.  This figure is down 1% from the previous year.  However, given the difficulty of counting homeless youth, that estimate is likely low. (HUD report, 2013)

Homeless does not only describe people who live out on the street with no roof over their head.  The homeless population includes men, women and children who do not have a permanent residence. Because of circumstances, they end up living with friends or relatives. They lack the monetary resources to obtain and keep some form of permanent housing.

Counting America’s displaced youth is a particular problem. The youth population has a tendency to move around more than their older counterparts. They are less likely to reach out for help or disclose their situation.  They will try harder to blend in with peers that are settled.

“Unsheltered youth tend to avoid contact with adults, camps in discreet locations, move frequently and bypass available services,” according to a 2012 Texas Interagency Council for the Homeless report. “This makes homeless youth extremely difficult to identify.”

“I don’t really like for people to know I’m living on the street. I’ve been called lazy. People have told me to get a job. It’s not that I don’t want to. But how do you work when you have no place to live?” said Danny.

Because of their age, kids like Danny have trouble even getting a start. Many have left home at an early age without proper identification. These youth become displaced because of unsafe home environments. Kids that have been passed around the foster system find it easier to go it alone. An increasing number of LGBT kids find themselves on the street as they run away from discrimination and abuse.

Infographic: Behance.net

A new documentary, The Homestrech, follows three teens living on the streets in Chicago. The gap between adolescence and adulthood is examined as these teens attempt to graduate from high school while moving through emergency shelters and transitional homes on the way to graduation. The film, which explores the larger issues of poverty, race, juvenile justice, immigration, foster care, and LGBTQ rights, premiered on Independent Lens on Monday, April 13, 2015, at 10:00 p.m. Eastern on PBS.

Homeless shelter in Denton,Tx

There is work to be done here. So how can we help? Journey to Dream is a faith-based organization in Lewisville that equips and empowers teens to overcome adversity.  The nonprofit organization focuses on helping teens avoid destructive behaviors and building healthy values.

Danny scoffs a little bit. “I don’t want to be ending up in any church either,” he says. “It’s not that I don’t believe in God, but I need it to be mine. I’m afraid if I go in there, I won’t be able to be me.”

The Texas Interagency Council for the Homeless is a state agency that tracks and records the number of displaced citizens in Texas. Their annual report includes a breakdown of costs and causes of homelessness along with a list of initiatives to help people become self-sufficient and put a roof over their head.

Danny finishes his pizza and looks outside to where his friends are laughing on the courthouse steps. “I’m not going to be out here forever. I know I’ll have somewhere to go. We all have each other right now, but we won’t be here forever.”