We need to talk. Do you know the reality of violence? Or are do you think it will all go down like in the movies?
Why did this beating happen?
Many will try to tell you that the reason this kid got his ass kicked was the shoes. There are claims that he either stole the shoes, or was at least the recipient of stolen goods. Apparently that means it is acceptable to beat him down like this. Maybe it’s acceptable in some cultures, but not in any culture that I would claim to be part of.
If you haven’t read Rory Miller’s Facing Violence, you should. I’m going to use the terminology he uses in his book to explain what I see.
In reality, the person who beat him down wasn’t really interested in the shoes. You can tell that he wants them, but I don’t think that’s his primary motivation. I think his primary motivation is to hurt the person he beat up. I think he enjoyed beating the guy up and would have enjoyed it whether or not there were shoes involved. I think that rather than a resource predator (thief) he is a process predator.
Let’s look at the critical part of the video. For the first 25 seconds of the video the victim is surrounded and the pack get themselves psychologically ready for the action. Then the attacker moves in and starts the interview process. He invades the victim’s space and sees that the victim will not stand up for himself. Had the victim pulled out a weapon and killed the attacker on the spot, he would have been justified. He was outnumbered and isolated against the gang.
Instead of running away, which probably wouldn’t have worked, he went toe to toe with the attacker. Except he didn’t fight. He engaged in a sort of pushing/bumping thing that Miller calls the “Monkey Dance.” Miller describes a sort of ritual “combat” that men get involved in. Think of it as the human version of two rams butting heads for dominance. The problem with this approach was that the attacker was not interested in monkey dancing. He was setting the victim up for a one sided beat down.
The critical moment happens at 37 seconds. The attacker is in the process of intimidating the victim by pointing out that he is alone and vastly outnumbered. Then he pushes in and forces contact. Here’s the really cynical part. He then accuses the victim of touching him even though the contact was initiated by the attacker.
“Get the fuck off me nigger.”
“Nigger don’t touch me I didn’t touch you all right”
Watch the reaction of the victim. He’s turning left and right trying to stay out of the attacker’s face, and when he gets told not to touch, he keeps his hands down at waist level. This is the attacker using the victim’s social programming to make him defenseless.
He has no defense when the punch comes. And that’s the way the attacker planned it. The victim lived through the assault only because the attacker didn’t kill him. The victim had no choice in the matter. His fate rested entirely in the hands of his attacker.
Make up your mind now. If this happens to you, get clear of the gang no matter what you have to do. Don’t let them surround you no matter what. If they don’t clear away from you after the first order to back away, draw your gun and start shooting. Otherwise you will live or die based upon the attacker or attackers preferred outcome.
========================================================================
Do you RSS? Don't know what an RSS Feed is?
Save time and read all the latest blog news first.
Great analysis, Sean. I've ordered Miller's book. You might also want to check out Gavin DeBecker's "The Gift of Fear." He's pretty anti-gun, but there are some good insights in there as well.
ReplyDeleteLinked back to this, your exploration of the steps in the escalation deserved a link.
ReplyDeleteHe got knocked the f*** out! There are definitely self defense lessons to be learned but the primary lesson here is to not be a thief, especially in the hood. And also, respect the afro.
ReplyDeleteWithout knowing the whole story, it's hard to say that this was an attack and not simply a one sided fist fight. I hate to see someone beaten into semi consciousness like that, but it's somewhat encouraging to see a fist fight instead of a shooting over something like a pair of shoes. Part of the scourge of violence in hoods is that people are unwilling to settle their problems with a good old ass whoopin and instead go straight to the gun.
I looked at the video and thought, that kid was not prepared to accept the consequences of his actions if he did in fact steal the shoes. If he is a thief, then he now has a solid reminder of what happens when you steal.
That's just my take.
Well done, and exactly right... He IS lucky to walk away.
ReplyDeleteDoes the book talk about social programming making people into victims?
ReplyDelete