James Bond, 007, has a “license to kill.” Under the expanded self-defense laws in 22 states known as “stand your ground,” lawmakers have effectively issued a license to kill to anyone walking the streets.

I have many problems with “stand your ground” laws. A number of studies show that violence has risen in the states that have them. (In Florida, gun deaths were once on the decline, but rocketed by 200 in the first two years after its legislature passed its “stand your ground” law in 2005).

“Stand your ground” laws automatically presume the victim ”“ often killed ”“ is guilty, and the perpetrator innocent. For instance, George Zimmerman was not arrested immediately because Florida’s law required police to have “specific evidence” to refute his claim of self-defense.

Police officers are given a variety of weapons, from batons and Mace to Tasers and firearms. Officers are expected to exercise judgment before escalating to a firearm. But “stand your ground” cases usually involve only the most violent weapon ”“ a gun ”“ used by a person with fewer restraints than a police officer.

Too often, these laws “justify” the killing of children ”“ too frequently minority children. George Zimmerman, a white Hispanic, shot a black, unarmed teenager after confronting him for walking where he had a right to walk. Michael Dunn, a white Florida man, shot into a car with four unarmed, black teenagers because their music was too loud. He killed 18-year-old Jordan Davis. Dunn went home, walked his dog and ordered a pizza.

In a post-Valentine’s Day shooting in Little Rock, Ark., Willie Noble, black, killed 15-year-old Adrian Broadway because she and six other black teens in a car, in a prank, covered his car with eggs, mayonnaise, leaves, and toilet paper. He did not call police. He said he wanted to scare them. Among Nobel’s charges are first-degree murder and committing a terrorist act. His initial bail was set at $1 million dollars.

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In all these shootings, as well as a Florida father who was killed after texting in a movie theater, the shooter confronted the victim. That’s a problem. In Noble’s case, his car had already been pranked, and he waited with his gun for the teenagers to return. “Stand your ground” laws encourage needless, reckless confrontations. Children who did nothing more than go for a walk to buy candy, play music or take part in a prank, are now dead.

It’s even worse. Many of our laws rob our children of their future, as surely as “stand your ground” allows irresponsible, disgruntled adults to rob some children of their lives. Too many children get pushed from school to prison ”“ and minority children get the worst of it.

The American Bar Association said on Feb. 7 that there is a “school-to-prison pipeline” where “Students of color, particularly boys, are suspended and expelled at alarming rates, and zero-tolerance school discipline policies fail the communities they serve.”

A study released by the Journal of Crime and Delinquency in January found that one in three youths (white, black and Hispanic), has been arrested by age 23. The arrests range from misdemeanor school disputes to underage drinking to violent crimes.

The consequences to their communities and those jailed are huge.

If married, the offender’s family is also effectively jailed. The families often lose their breadwinner, throwing the wife and children onto welfare. On release, these arrests records throw roadblocks in the way of employment, adopting, voting, access to housing, admission to schools ”“ in short, participating in society after the offender’s debt has been paid.

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We jail people, especially our young and minorities, at a higher rate than any country in the world, including Russia, China and other autocratic nations. Over 2.4 million Americans are in jail, or 0.7 percent of the population. We jail more than 700 out of every 100,000 citizens. By contrast, the Netherlands jails 163 out of every 100,000. While we’re building jails, the Netherlands is scheduled to close 19 prisons due to falling crime rates.

Lower crime rates in the Netherlands are due, in part, to the decriminalizing of many drug offences. We need to take a hard look at our drug laws. Whites use drugs at a higher rate than blacks, but blacks are 10 times more likely to be jailed for the same crime.

The Center for Constitutional Rights publicized a New York City report revealing that, of over a half-million citizens “stopped and frisked,” 80 percent were blacks and Hispanics ”“ 25 percent and 28 percent of the total population, respectively. Another study, by the University of California, Berkeley found that for-profit prisons seek to jail young minorities because their medical costs are lower than older inmates, who tend to be white. Private prisons specialize in jailing non-white youth because they bring a bigger profit.

The tragic and abhorrent violence against our children ”“ Trayvon Martin and so many others ”“ represents the ultimate barrier to opportunity. We need to change our laws. We need to focus on protecting our children, so that they can survive and thrive.

And parents need to teach tolerance at home and be there for their kids.

— Donna Brazile is a senior Democratic strategist, a political commentator and contributor to CNN and ABC News, and a contributing columnist to Ms. Magazine and O, the Oprah Magazine.



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