Yes, Gay Black Men Can Be Killers, Too

Yes, Gay Black Men Can Be Killers, Too August 27, 2015

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When Dylann Roof murdered people in Charleston because of his racism, people said that — as David French wrote in National Review — “his actions were deemed inseparable not just from America’s gun culture but also from its racist past. Flags had to come down, statues had to be toppled, and even Confederate bones had to be exhumed.” 

Then, Vester Lee Flanagan, a gay black man, killed two reporters on live television.  All evidence points to the fact that he was just as racist as Roof, and — in fact — went on his killing spree at least in part as retaliation against the Charleston murders.  He wanted a race riot.  

David writes:

“Former colleagues report a long history of unhinged behavior on Flanagan’s part. The anecdotes stretch back for years. As the Daily Beast reported, he “kept getting fired, kept threatening co-workers, and kept claiming he was the real victim” of racism and homophobia. But rather than hurting his career, one former colleague said that his race and sexual orientation gave him new chances: “The fact that he kept his job was because he was an African-American gay man. That’s pretty hard to say no to.”

So is the proper response to yesterday’s shooting an extended meditation on blackness, gayness, affirmative action, and black or gay rage? Should there now be a cultural hunt for symbols or expressions of that rage or a quest to batter history into submission until it tells only the stories we want to tell? After all, police reportedly confiscated a “gay pride flag” from his home. Yet for the Left, yesterday’s brutal murders are all about guns. They present yet another opportunity to “shame” lawmakers into passing legislation that limits Americans’ constitutional rights — legislation that would have done nothing to prevent Flanagan from killing his victims.

Of course, David goes on to write, “Roof’s murders weren’t about guns or “whiteness.” Flanagan’s murders aren’t about guns or “blackness.” They’re about evil, and no demographic — no matter its history — is immune to evil.”

Read all of his excellent piece here.

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