#CrimingWhileWhite Paints a Picture of Two Americas

In the wake of the Eric Garner ruling, in which a man selling loose cigarettes on Staten Island was choked to death by police, Twitter picked up a few outraged hashtags. But one that really took off was #CrimingWhileWhite, in which white people told stories of running afoul the long arm of the law, only to get off with stern warnings or reasonable punishments. The stories stood in stark contrast to recent stories of black lives lost in the wake of minor infractions or murky circumstances. “At 13 I stole a car with my friends & drove it 2wks before we got busted. Only one charged was black,” said Cecily Kellogg. “Was with a friend who offered weed to a cop at a concert.Cop just laughed and shook his head #crimingwhilewhite,” said Angel Wood-Mortson. It’s a fascinating portrait of a justice system still struggling with racial equality …