White America Created a Monster

It’s been said that we shouldn’t speak ill of the dead, perhaps because the deceased no longer have a chance to defend themselves. According to philosopher Matthew Beard, of The Ethics Centre, the saying actually stems from centuries’ old beliefs in the afterlife. “In Aristotle’s time, degrading the legacy of a deceased person was thought to devalue the life that person had lived, and, in doing so, degrade the quality of their afterlife,” as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, the oldest and one of Australia’s most influential papers, founded in 1831.

I never agreed with this sentiment and the recent death of O.J. Simpson is a good example of why. After his acquittal, I was hoping that somewhere along a golf course, a storm would brew. In an instant, a bolt of lightning would hit the ground, travel up his metal golf club and strike him dead. Even if he had rubber gloves that fit, I was hoping for an electrocution. Like God’s version of an outdated death penalty. But no.

As the media reports of Simpson’s death continued, a flood of bad emotions and memories was stirred up leaving a dismal feeling that lingered for days. Worse yet, Netflix was streaming a five-part documentary, “30 for 30: O.J. Made in America,” which I, of course, had to watch (and based this article). It starts off with promise, red flags begin to surface that lead to horror, tension and anger overflow, but there is redemption.

A Step Back in Time

One bad memory involved a phone conversation with a hair client I’ll call Andy. His car was stolen from a gas station when he went inside leaving his keys in the ignition. His briefcase and all his work papers were also stolen as they laid on the seat. The perpetrator was not caught but Andy was certain a black guy did it. He said Nicole Brown got exactly what she deserved for marrying a black man. He went on to say that all black men beat women. I totally argued both statements. He began insulting me for the neighborhood I lived in, which was majority black. We both hung up on each other.

Years later, Andy showed up at my house on a motorcycle. He had entered a 12-step program and apologized for what he said years earlier. He has since passed away but that awful conversation, post-verdict, is etched in my mind. The experience was minor compared to the raw painful emotion that unfolded in the courtroom, as well as across the country, as Simpson was found not guilty.

Worthy Trial Notes

Lead prosecutor, Marcia Clark, was interviewed in the documentary and warned fellow prosecutor, Christopher Darden, not to have Simpson try on the glove. Darden said if he didn’t, the defense team would, courtesy of F. Lee Bailey.

Defense attorney, Johnnie L. Cochran Jr., objected that Clark was wearing a tiny gold angel pin on her lapel, similar to those worn by Nicole Brown’s family. Clark said it was “A show of support for the victim’s family. The jury could not see the detail and wouldn’t know what it signifies.” Judge Lance Ito ordered her to not wear it in court again, according to The Washington Post.

An honorable mention is Ron Shipp, a retired police officer for Los Angeles, and friend to Simpson and Nicole. He volunteered to testify for the prosecution after seeing the “horrific” photos of the slain victims. Upon the witness stand, he was ripped to shreds because of a past problem with alcohol. Shipp taught domestic violence classes, so Nicole confided in him. 911 calls were played for the jury as Simpson was shouting while breaking into her house and the terror could be heard in Nicole’s voice.

The prosecution felt they ended up with a “bad lot of jurors” because a six-month commitment would have been a financial hardship for professionals. “The socioeconomic scale was low and the jurors were not as open to DNA or other scientific evidence.” The jury got to visit Simpson’s house, which initially had many pictures of white people. The defense team took them down and replaced with pictures of black people from Cochran’s office “to try to make him blacker.” Simpson didn’t even know the people in the pictures.

A few jurors were interviewed and it was a 90% decision the verdict was payback for Rodney King. According to civil rights activist, Danny Bakewell, the celebrating afterward was 400 years of payback for injustice to blacks. “Now you know how it feels,” he said. It only took 3 ½ hours to reach the verdict after 267 days of jury duty and jurors wanted to go home. Unfortunately, no black women on the jury were sympathetic toward Nicole. They harbored resentment that a famous athlete didn’t marry within his community, however, “the antagonism was toward Nicole, not Simpson.”

Reflections

The black community is very forgiving toward each other. During an interview when asked why he wasn’t participating in civil rights activism, Simpson stated, “I’m not black, I’m O.J.” During the infamous Bronco chase, one of his friends said if O.J. was black, he would have been on the ground, handcuffed and thrown in jail. However, he was exalted to ‘celebrity,’ transcending race and color. Authorities watching the chase on TV said it “was not a somber event, it was an L.A. party.”

The Hertz rental commercials featured cheering white people catapulted Simpson onto a pedestal. All the white adulation only enabled Simpson to a sense of entitlement. I knew of blatant racists who glorified certain black celebrities and they were the first ones to move out of a neighborhood when blacks moved in.

The disturbing documentary showed gruesome photos of the murder scene. It was common knowledge that Nicole was nearly decapitated. But think about what is involved with that.  According to the autopsy report, both sets of jugular veins and both carotid arteries on each side; her trachea, epiglottis, thyroid membrane, pharynx, larynx, tendons, ligaments, and muscles were all severed. The attack was so severe, the knife cut into one of her vertebrae. Meanwhile, their kids were sleeping upstairs. Especially haunting was the massive amount of blood that just flowed out of Nicole’s body down the stairs and sidewalk. Her life source would later be washed away like it was just a mess that needed to be cleaned up.

Ron Goldman tragically was in the wrong place at the wrong time. One jugular vein was cut with stab wounds to the chest, abdomen, and thigh. He had dreams and plans to open a restaurant. Goldman’s family found a floor plan, a menu, and names of people for artwork he planned for the wall. Such a devastating loss of life took place on June 12, 1994. Interestingly, in 2008, Simpson was sentenced to 33 years in prison on a burglary charge, which equaled the $33 million awarded in the civil case that the Brown and Goldman families never received.

A Tribute

A final memory of the violent attack involved a mysterious plant that grew in our yard that fateful summer. It had a thick burgundy center stem with tropical leaves and was about 6’ tall. Neither my mom nor I knew what it was but decided to let it grow. One day I came home from work and found the mysterious plant had been hacked to the ground. I was upset and exclaimed to my mom, “WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PLANT?! IT LOOKS LIKE O.J. SIMPSON WAS HERE!” She said a neighbor told her it was a weed, so she cut it down. It was sad.

To my joyous surprise, the following year the plant grew back and was allowed to reach its full potential. Another neighbor identified it as Pokeweed. The robins love the berries it grows and it’s good for wildlife only. I named the plant “Nicole.” To this day, it’s here. I think of Nicole Brown when I see it emerge every year.