On Wednesday, a Facebook live video went viral after showing a victim being abused both physically and verbally in a Chicago apartment. The video also catches voices of the assailants making racial comments about white people and the often heard phrase F*ck Trump. Four suspects have been arrested and charged with a hate crime, felony kidnapping, aggravated unlawful restraint and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. Fortunately the teen looks to fully recover from the traumatic incident.
The teen was tied up for four or five hours, Cmdr. Kevin Duffin of the Chicago Police Department told reporters. The victim will recover from his injuries and is at home with his parents, police said.
While most people who have viewed the video would agree that this is a despicable, malicious and evil act CNN host Don Lemon doesn’t feel that way here is what he said:
“I don’t think it’s evil,” Lemon replied. “I don’t think it’s evil. I think these are young people and I think they have bad home training. I say, who is raising these young people? I have no idea who’s raising these young people. Because no one I know on Earth who is 17 years old or 70 years old would ever think of treating another person like that. It is inhumane. And you wonder, at 18 years old, where is your parent? Where’s your guardian?”
Clearly this logic holds no water, absurdly in Mr. Lemons world, if say these suspects had committed rape or murder instead of torture and assault, it’s “bad home training”. Mr. Lemon at what point does a malicious act become evil? This was a premeditated attack on someone who has mental deficiencies, it was a choice made with intent to do evil and while parents obviously play a huge role in shaping a child and young adult’s views of the world; no parent can mediate every thought that goes through their child’s mind. Certainly, someone who is 18 years old knows the difference between right and wrong especially in something as significant as this.
So what would make Mr. Lemon say that this wasn’t an evil act? Perhaps it’s because this doesn’t fit the narrative that Mr. Lemon and the left rally behind in movements such as black lives matter. Without a doubt if the situation was a white on black crime Mr. Lemon would be trumpeting this as a heinous act. Mr. Lemon, let’s call evil what it is, no matter what form it takes, what race or religion or creed it comes from. We reach a dangerous place when we are willing to make exceptions of monstrous acts because it doesn’t fit with a certain narrative or agenda.