Outgoing Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., posted a lengthy screed directed at "White people" Tuesday in the wake of Daniel Penny's acquittal in the death of Jordan Neely.
On
May 1, 2023, Penny confronted Neely, a 30-year-old homeless man with
schizophrenia who had an active arrest warrant at the time and a history
of violence, as he was shouting death threats on the subway. With the
assistance of other passengers, Penny restrained Neely with a chokehold,
but Neely later died.
Outraged that a jury found Penny not guilty
of criminally negligent homicide, Bowman took to X in his final days in
office to write a thread that began, "Dear White People."
"I
don’t know why I feel the need to keep talking to you," the "Squad"
member continued. "I don’t know why part of me still has hope for you
and for us. Some of you are too far gone. But maybe enough of you aren’t
and will join us in fighting to end white supremacy."
U.S.
Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) speaks during a rally at St. Mary's Park on
June 22, 2024 in the Bronx borough of New York City, three days before
New York's primary elections. (David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)
He
continued, "I just wanna call out the hypocrisy and evil of it all and
just continue to hope. I won’t rely completely on you because I know
what’s most important is to work with my community and other like minded
allies in the fight for justice."
After
listing high profile deaths and violence against Black people like
Rodney King, Eric Garner and George Floyd, that he had watched on video,
the lawmaker added Neely while claiming, "He was not a threat. He was
subdued. Still not a threat. Daniel Penny choked him for 6 minutes. And
killed him. We all watched it on camera, and he was still acquitted."
"I’ve
left out probably another hundred instances of this trauma in my life,"
Bowman wrote. "For comparison, I ask white people, how many times have
you seen a white man killed in cold blood on camera on your newsfeed?
How many times have you even heard about this?"
"The answer is never. You never have," he said, although some X users pointed out the irony of the statement with video of the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson dominating the news.
"And
whenever you feel discomfort from your whiteness, Black people are
harmed or killed. And there is never accountability or justice. This is
the evil of white supremacy. It spans across geography and political
parties and sickens us all," he continued.
"I
wish I didn’t have to live with all of this trauma deep in my bones. I
wish I could just be free to be me. I marvel at the beauty and greatness
of my people in spite of white supremacy. It’s extraordinary. That is
what I will continue to lean on."
"RIP
Jordan Neely. The justice system failed you. Kyle Ritenhouse and Daniel
Penny are free. You’re gone. We must still fight," he concluded. The Rittenhouse shooting only involved White men.
Jordan Neely, left, died after a confrontation on the subway with Daniel Penny, center, that ended with him in a chokehold.
Social media users expressed shock that a congressman would address any kind of message only to White people.
Independent
journalist Brad Polumbo reacted, "I can’t believe that this person, a
member of congress, just suggested that he doesn’t know why he needs to
continue to talk to an entire racial group. Tf?"
Author
Katherine Brodsky wrote, "Any post that starts with ‘dear white people’
is indicative of a malignant narcissist and racist. I'd never dream of
addressing people by their skin color as if there are some sort of
unified being."
"Can
we please stop making everything about race?" Sequoia Capital partner
Shaun Maguire asked, to which Elon Musk responded, "Yes, please. This is
gone on for too long. Enough."
"The
shameful thing is that this kind of stupid, resentful, and manipulative
rhetoric ever worked. Now he is getting delivered a ratio, but a few
years ago, there would be people in the comments apologizing for their
privilege. Never forget—and never repeat—that madness," the Manhattan
Institute's Christopher Rufo said.
Novelist
Kat Rosenfield wrote she was "grateful to be moving past the moment in
which we all had to pretend this wasn't a completely insane thing for an
elected official to say in public; there was a lot of social pressure
not to say so but in truth, I don't think anyone ever really liked it."
Fox News contributor Guy Benson said Bowman's post was "straight up racist."
"Thanks racist dude who lost his seat because he’s insane," Bonchie from RedState posted.
Rep.
Bowman pulled the fire alarm on Sept. 30, 2023, as Republicans began
voting on a stopgap bill to avert a government shutdown. (U.S. Capitol Police)
Jeremy
Hunt, of the Hudson Institute and Veterans on Duty, said, "Dear People
of NY16, Thank you for voting this delusional, race-baiting,
terrorist-sympathizing, fire alarm-pulling, congressman out of office."
Bowman
became the first member of "The Squad" to lose their primary over the
summer after a series of scandals and controversies, including being
censured for pulling a fire alarm in a House office building last year
during a vote over government funding and a profanity-laced rant against AIPAC.
