Renisha McBride was in a car accident at 2:30 am last Saturday. Having been in a horrible accident myself this year, I know how frantic one can become after such an event. Like any normal young lady, she was desperate for help. She would have used  her cell phone but the battery was dead. So off she went in search of a good Samaritan. Renisha found a house about four blocks away from the scene of the accident. I can imagine her in tears and her voice shaking. A male (likely white)  opens the door in anger and demands that she leaves only to shoot her in the back of the head as she goes. Yes, he shot Renisha in the BACK of the head as she was LEAVING.  Of course, this scenario is my imagination based on news reports but probably not far off from reality. If that doesn’t make you scream this will; the cops originally said that her body was dumped up yonder but the young woman actually died on her killer’s porch. The killer was arrested, released, and now they want to arrest him again.  And for the record, we don’t know for sure that her killer was a white or other nonblack man but demographics suggest it’s likely he is.

The chilling racial elements are staring us right in the eyes:

A black damsel in distress was so frightening to the stereotypical cowardly white male.

The predominantly black section of Detroit is so bad that any of its “citizens” are viewed with suspicion

We can be rightfully outraged over this but her senseless death by a nonblack man pales in comparison to the number senseless deaths of black women by black men.  Remind the GAT-DL of that fact when they attempt to use this case to “prove” their useless and desperate points.

So yes, I am outraged and I demand justice for Renisha. The difference is I’m equally outraged any time a black woman is victimized without justice. Are you?

OK, THIS IS UNNERVING BUT CAN WE TAKE ANYTHING AWAY FROM THIS?

We can learn a few life-saving lessons from this horrible tragedy. The first is that we must always be prepared. In other words, make sure that your cell phone is charged at ALL times. If you are a black woman, you can’t assume that blacks or whites will help you. This HAS to be said but going to the home of an unknown white or nonblack family can be just as dangerous as the worst inner city slum area. CHARGE UP THOSE PHONES or HAVE TWO IF YOU MUST. Finally, always let a trusted friend or family member know where you are.

So are black women safe anywhere? What are your safety tips?

*UPDATE*

There are a few vague developments that have been released disputing the claim that Renisha was shot in the back of the head, the hours long gap between the accident and the shooting, arrests or lack thereof as well as her purpose for being in Dearborn Heights.  Stay tuned…