Kids of color, flash mobs, and scared white folks

Deja vu all over again. A couple months back there were "flash mobs" of urban youth terrorizing people on the streets of downtown Philadelphia. Mainly these kids of color had used facebook, myspace and other social media and texting to gather and get wild. Most of the kids were drunk (not literally) with the freedom of doing as they pleased and running wild, willy-nilly, crazy, or whatever you want to call it. Some got carried away and got violent. They broke windows, pushed pedestrians to the ground and got in fights with each other. They ran through Macy's and did damage to the merchandise. They repeated the game on South Street as well. Police presence and the presence of Mayor Nutter seemed to quell the disturbances. Or perhaps the school district looking into violence at the schools helped lessen agitation. And the police probably were aggressive in finding the social media trail that led to the organizers.

For the last 2 or 3 weekends there has been a similar blow-up of teen activity in Kansas City. Teens descended on The Plaza outdoor dining and shopping area last Saturday night and ran wild in the streets. People have called it a riot, a wilding, a Phily flash mob, hooligans, and of course, black kids out of control. These kids come from different high schools and gathered via notice on social media and through texting. They took to the streets, some got violent, several pedestrians were pushed to the ground or otherwise roughed up, and the police responded with pepper spray. Many comments in KC have revolved around the fact that "our beloved Plaza" has been denigrated by these "urban" kids who are violent and, and, and, well....they are black!!!

Today, however, takes the cake. Yael A. - an editorial writer for the local paper, the KC Star, actually patted himself on the back for daring to state openly that the youth involved are, in fact, black! He then goes on to state authoritatively that the reason these kids chose The Plaza:

That's where the crowd of mostly white adults hangs out.
And the youth know their presence will be disturbing to people who aren't used to seeing so many black kids in one place.

This was written by an educated professional. It speaks volumes about the state of race relations in Kansas City. Apparently he couldn't stop there and continued, stating:

There will be plenty of adults working feverishly this week to determine what actions should be taken this week should another large, out-of-control gang of youth show up on the Plaza.

Part of their duty ought to be looking at why black youth would want to be there.

A GANG of youth - not a crowd or a gathering. The word "gang" has a lot of implications. If only they could break out into song and dance like the Sharks or the Jets!

But, seriously, to suggest that adults should ask "why black youth would want to be there"????

The Plaza is the premier spot in KC to spend money and to hang out. Given that P&L has a dress code and a lot of animosity toward "urban youth," The Plaza is a place to be. I'll gladly concede that these kids did not come to The Plaza just to hang out. They were there to rumble, or see what would happen if they all came there at once, or to make their presence known. When you have 1000 kids join up in one place, you know there is going to be some craziness. Please, Yael, don't try to be a white hero and bravely say "these kids are black." SO WHAT???

It's as stupid as saying that the terrorists hit the twin towers because they are jealous of our capitalist society. Really? Seriously? These kids could not care less that this is where white people hang out except that they might be able to get a rise out of them AND they know that their numbers will be too much for the police to arrest them all. I guess if they come back next week and the swat team is mobilized we'll teach them a lesson - black kids keep out!

Philadelphia had about 4 instances of this type of activity in two different central city locations. Since, then the schools have made a public effort to address violence in some of the schools that may have been fueling this behavior. The police sought out the organizers on social media and seemed to either squelch it or put the fear in them - nothing since.

Get a grip Kansas City. You act like the aliens have invaded and you are being threatened with ray guns. These are kids, some of whom are KC residents. They are acting out - and not because they know this is where "white people" hang out. Really, Yael? And, yes. even black kids may want to go to The Plaza because it is a place to be that may in fact be different from their own neighborhood where there are few stores, no movie theaters, few restaurants, and not much to see or do. I hope sanity prevails in KC and Yael realizes he temporarily lost his mind.