Amber alert is named after Amber Hagerman, which unless you look it up, you could assume is any race and most importantly an abducted child in danger. Instead of creating separate alerts based on ethnicity, the efforts should be directed to ensuring missing children are the priority, not empty platitudes.
Other thread got deleted, but basically this appears to just be a reskin of Amber Alert. Advocates of the bill claim there are vague issues with current missing person’s procedure, but don’t cite any data supporting it. There also isn’t anything specific about how Ebony Alerts would be an improvement. It appears it would work *exactly* the way an Amber Alert does, aside from the word ~~Amber~~ Ebony.
I get that the authors if the bill probably had good intentions, but not only could you just tell the police to take missing black kids more seriously and send out the already existing Amber Alerts more frequently, but naming this unnecessary alert “Ebony Alert” just sounds racist.
I remember a few years ago in a certain southern California city a black autistic kid went missing. Because of previous situations where black autistic teenagers in the nation have simply been murdered by cops for acting like autistic teenagers the city went in full blown alert. They made sure every police officer, working or not, knew what the kid looked like. They sent out several Amber alerts, called local businesses and alerted the local news.
I think they were afraid of a cellphone camera capturing the wrong thing and tarnishing the city’s reputation.
I had never looked up why it was called Amber Alert until now. I just assumed it was a sort of alliteration to make it easy to recognize, with amber referring to the color of warning lights or something. “Ebony Alert” seems well intended, but probably a terrible idea in practice.
lokislair says
why cant we just use the amber alert?
Milchan says
Wow, a separate system that’s equal to the existing one to ensure the same attention and resources are spent!! How could this go wrong!? /s
scribblebear says
Amber alert is named after Amber Hagerman, which unless you look it up, you could assume is any race and most importantly an abducted child in danger. Instead of creating separate alerts based on ethnicity, the efforts should be directed to ensuring missing children are the priority, not empty platitudes.
Pathetian says
Other thread got deleted, but basically this appears to just be a reskin of Amber Alert. Advocates of the bill claim there are vague issues with current missing person’s procedure, but don’t cite any data supporting it. There also isn’t anything specific about how Ebony Alerts would be an improvement. It appears it would work *exactly* the way an Amber Alert does, aside from the word ~~Amber~~ Ebony.
Elevenst says
Ahh, the gool ol’ unity by division method.
restore_democracy says
Can we just hit the reset button on this mess of a society?
Obie527 says
I get that the authors if the bill probably had good intentions, but not only could you just tell the police to take missing black kids more seriously and send out the already existing Amber Alerts more frequently, but naming this unnecessary alert “Ebony Alert” just sounds racist.
Semujin says
We could set up an ivory alert for white people to compliment the ebony alert, and then have Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder promote them.
HaAnotherLlama says
State ran by idiots.
LoveArguingPolitics says
Why don’t they just use the amber alert for black kids too instead of creating…. Dare i say… Separate but equal alerts
Fishtank-Brain says
gotta love these celebrations of ignorance
5050Clown says
I remember a few years ago in a certain southern California city a black autistic kid went missing. Because of previous situations where black autistic teenagers in the nation have simply been murdered by cops for acting like autistic teenagers the city went in full blown alert. They made sure every police officer, working or not, knew what the kid looked like. They sent out several Amber alerts, called local businesses and alerted the local news.
I think they were afraid of a cellphone camera capturing the wrong thing and tarnishing the city’s reputation.
He was found without incident.
Several_Emphasis_434 says
What a gross idea.
RhodiumBoy says
LOL! If people are racist this will make it easier for the alert to be ignored by them.
HJJR31 says
I had never looked up why it was called Amber Alert until now. I just assumed it was a sort of alliteration to make it easy to recognize, with amber referring to the color of warning lights or something. “Ebony Alert” seems well intended, but probably a terrible idea in practice.