misspriss.org

i got to long beach yesterday just a little while after police had shot a homeless man. there were cops and yellow police tape everywhere in front of the aquarium.
throngs of people were in front of bubba gump’s, both gawking and waiting to be seated for dinner. i sat for a while and watched the action. i could have gone to my car, gotten my camera, and documented the spectacle. but i decided not to.
as much as i was like, “woah! excitement! police tape – i’ve never seen police tape before!” i stopped and thought about what i was doing. a person died. the press telegram reported that the man charged a marine patrol officer. there are a lot of mentally ill homeless people that don’t get the help they need. i’m not saying all homeless are mentally ill. but i have seen quite a few. and it saddens me. there’s no place for them to get the help they need. there are no shelters that are prepared to help the way they need, because they need more than just a bed or food.
and rather than stopping the man by firing at his knee or leg or somewhere less deadly, a cop shot this man. he died on the way to the hospital.
the gravity of the situation hit me when i saw an abandoned bike and shopping cart sitting on the grass. sometimes we see this stuff on the news and forget that was a person – somebody’s son or brother – that was hurt.
i’m not going anywhere with this. just dumping out my thoughts. and sadness.