MSNBC Host: Societal Disrespect Causes Young Black Men to ‘Wear Pants in an Anti-Social Way’

“People who feel worthless in society because they cannot find meaningful jobs, or any jobs, and have interactions with police that are filled with disrespect, those people are much more likely to look at the law as illegitimate,” Touré said on The Cycle Friday.

“Those people just may be wearing their pants in an anti-social way because they feel rejected by society and see no value in following its rules. We don’t value black boys in this society if they can’t rhyme or play sports, and then we wonder why they reject the society that presumes them guilty and worthless.”

“The crack epidemic, and a rise in the number of police, and smarter deployment of those cops, especially hot spot policing,” are contributing factors to what Touré calls “a years-long nationwide historic drop in the murder rate” and Chicago’s “incredible progress in steadily reducing their homicide rate.”

{snip}

But Touré criticized the “counterproductive and potentially criminogenic” deployment of police “that leave communities feeling attacked and disrespected,” leading black men to disregard the law.

{snip}