In her column at Essence magazine, relationship expert and contributor to The Root Demetria L. Lucas criticizes shoppers who recently rioted in order to purchase Nike's newly released $180 Air Jordan 11 Retro Concords. She says, "We have got to do better."
The Associated Press reported at least four people were arrested in a mob scene at a suburban mall in Atlanta. Police had to smash the windows of a car to get two toddlers out after a woman left them there to go buy the shoes; she was taken into custody when she returned. Twenty police cars also responded after a crowd broke down a door to enter the mall before it opened.
A YouTube clip depicting a similar scene had gone viral by Christmas Day. It showed hundreds of teens and young adults — all Black — pouring into a mall in the early morning hours, trampling other shoppers and ripping the glass doors from the hinges.
ABCNews.com reported that within hours, hundreds of pairs of the shoes were on sale on eBay, some for more than $500. Many of the pairs already had dozens of bidders.
I really hope every man and woman camping out for shoes and waiting in the cold for shoes is standing in line to vote come November. Acting a fool and getting arrested for shoes? My people, my people … As one of the women I follow on Twitter put it, “Martin Luther King did not write ‘Letter From A Birmingham Jail’ for this.” We must do better.
Read Demetria L. Lucas' entire column at Essence magazine.