Monday, December 15, 2014

Man Wants to Keep his Sons Alive

Lawrence Otis Graham is an attorney with an investment banker wife and two sons.  They both went to Harvard.  After the Trayvon Martin shooting and the other recent killings of young unarmed black men, Lawrence decided he had better have "the talk" with his two sons to make sure they know the unwritten rules of American society, the rules that young black men need to follow if they want to reduce their chances of getting killed by jittery policemen, security guards or just plain average white citizens.

Graham was interviewed on Nightline recently to share about the precautions an aware black male feels obligated to take to avoid profiling.  He's not over the top; it's just matter of fact advice.  Click on this link to hear his explanation of what he felt he needed to tell his boys about dress and behavior.  It only take two minutes and sixteen seconds.  His goal is simple.  He says, "I just want to keep them alive."     

Lawrence Otis Graham (center) and his family



                                 The Graham Family

2 comments:

Paul Myers said...

Sad to see that this type of thing still exists in what should be an "enlightened" society.

Steve Natoli said...

So true, Paul. We have come far but it seems we still have so far to go. Sigh.