Gregory and Travis McMichael Were Not Standing Their Ground; Pay Attention Alabama
Ahmaud Arbery, a black 25-year-old male living in Georgia, was shot and killed after being chased down by Gregory and Travis McMichael, a vigilante father and son duo, who believed they could take the law into their own hands. They may get away with killing Arbery under existing stand your ground laws in Georgia.
Before we get into that, I’d like to talk about what happened to me just over a month ago. I walked out to my car to run a few errands, I opened my door to get in, and immediately saw something that made my stomach sink.
My car was not how I left it the night before. The center console was open, the glove box was open, and when I checked my trunk it was not completely shut. I was pissed. I knew what had happened. I knew just a few hours before that someone had walked on to the private property and violated my space and stolen from me.
Luckily, all I lost was one box of .45 ammo, leftover from a trip to a friend’s house, which was used for some much needed time away to relax and enjoy my 2nd Amendment rights with good people.
The knee jerk reactions that you get when you are pissed and feel helpless in that situation took over. A lot of thoughts went through my head. Nothing that can be typed out here. I wanted that person to pay. I wanted them to understand that it was not right what they did. I wanted to know why they did it. I did not want them to die.
I understand that people are flawed and I understand possessions are not something to put my life at risk for. So two weeks later at around 1 or 2 AM when I walked downstairs and saw a car parked in front of the house and the driver behaving in a suspicious way, I called 911 instead of confronting them.
This is what the McMichaels in Brunswick, GA should have done. They should have left it at that. Instead, they did not stand their ground. They left it, pursued Ahmaud Arbery, and put their lives and Arbery’s at risk over what they believed to be someone who was breaking and entering into homes.
According to the police report via CNN, Gregory, the father, is reported as saying, “Travis, the guy is running down the street, let’s go.”
The article goes on to say that, according to the police report, “The two grabbed a shotgun and a pistol and followed Arbery in their truck. Travis McMichael, the driver, followed Arbery and then attempted to cut him off. Arbery turned around and began running in the opposite direction. They chased Arbery to a nearby intersection, where they caught up to him.”
Gregory McMichael then says, “Stop, stop, we want to talk to you” and then Travis exits the vehicle armed with a shotgun.
From there the situation escalates and Arbery and Travis McMichael are seen struggling and fighting each other. Shots are fired and eventually Arbery stumbles to the ground.
Huntsville City Council Member and Council President Devyn Keith shared the video of the shooting on Twitter saying, “The father rode in the bed of the truck like they were on a hunt. I’m sick. I’m pissed but for the first time I’m not shocked. This is normal. It’s shouldn’t be but I expect to hear a few stories of this nature a few times every year. Think of the ones with no videotapes”
Warning. The video below is graphic and shows Arbery being shot during a struggle.
Keith is right. This is not normal. This should not be normal. Two white males left their safe haven, grabbed their firearms, chased down a black man, and escalated a situation more than it needed to be.
They did not stand their ground and Alabama lawmakers should take a hard look at laws in this state so that we can stop this vigilante, wild west attitude that exists in this country right now. This should never happen in America, it should never happen in Georgia, and we need to make sure it does not happen in Alabama.
Stop this. Please.
Brent Wilson was born and raised in Huntsville, Alabama and is the Owner and Chief Editor of BamaPolitics.com.
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