Riots Over Air Jordan Sneakers In Texas: A Despicable Display Of Civil Unrest By A Community Hungry For Material Prosperity

By now many have already viewed the disturbing cell phone video clips posted on Youtube and other Social Media Websites, that captures a mob which primarily consisted of young Black and Hispanic consumers who camped outside of a Texas Town East Mall, waiting for the midnight release of Micheal Jordan’s Cool Grey Jordan 11’s basketball shoes. Scenes like this are typical around major holidays with shoppers going the extra mile to purchase highly desired products that make fashion statements, and are advertised as the latest hip products often glorified by an ever growing status seeking pop culture. I guess it’s alright to stand outside in the cold for hours if your personal image is of grave importance, but what ultimately happened this night in Texas is embarrassing, and depicts a very sad commentary about how young people of color in America have placed their priorities on materialism, wealth, and personal image. The cost of these latest Jordan sneakers is $180.00. It probably wouldn’t matter to the adults and young people who bared chilly temperatures, an agitated mob, Police dogs and pepper spray, that the product they desired was manufactured in places abroad like Pakistan, Indonesia, and Vietnam for less then .67 cents a pair. It probably doesn’t matter that Corporations like Nike and other manufactures of apparel continuously place exaggerated markup and over pricing on retail items that cost them literally pennies in production, and in essence is absolute robbery when considering the consumer’s expense for this merchandise. It probably doesn’t matter to these people that the kind of marketing strategies companies utilize are targeted toward certain ethnic groups and a primary source of economic oppression designed to impact the poor. It probably doesn’t mater that while many Corporations obtain more and more wealth, it’s done off of the backs of ignorant, impoverished minorities, and a people who’s spending power has in fact made the dominate and ruling 1% in America filthy rich. It probably doesn’t matter that this Western civilization has created an epic market place in which many people of color remain enslaved to. Perhaps our people are so disconnected with finance that they are completely unaware of the growing economic debt in this country, that many have predicted will force our Nation to the brink of complete economic insolvency in the immediate future. Moreover, it’s challenging to to see the level of anxiety that colored people display over complete bullshit when there are far greater and pressing disparities that directly impact the social, educational, and economic viability of our young people, community, and daily living. Measuring the manner in which the local media captured the incident, many of those shopping for high end products appeared to be unable to even spell or properly articulate the word Jordan. This could not be any more painfully obvious than the interview of a young African American female who attempted to describe the insanity of mothers standing in line with infant children. “What if the baby catches Ammonia”, is what she said. Her words were only eclipsed by the mob that broke down the main entrance of the shoe store and set off a complete mobilization of local Police, who promptly dispersed hundreds of shoppers that had stood in line for hours, and were hoping to purchase one of only 30 pairs of sneakers that the store’s inventory consisted of anyway. The desire of material luxury by status seeking people who more than likely can’t afford to purchase them continues to plague the Black community, and remains one of our continued states of Mental Enslavement. A very sad commentary indeed.

The People’s Champion
I’m David Adams

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