Revelers vs. Rioters

Posted by Melissa McEwan at Tuesday, January 13, 2015
[Content Note: Racism.]

Last night, Ohio State won the 2015 college football championship, and, as typically happens after a big ballsports game, fans poured out into the streets and celebrated by wrecking shit and starting fires. There were some reports of "celebratory gunfire." Around 1am, police in riot gear used tear gas to disperse the largely white crowds.

Here are some headlines about this event this morning:

From Reuters:

screen cap of an article teaser with an image of people on the street engulfed in tear gas with a headline reading: 'Police use pepper spray, tear-gas on unruly Ohio football fans'

"Unruly fans." "Crowds celebrating."


From NBC:

screen cap of lede from NBC News article reading: 'Police in riot gear used tear gas to break up crowds of revelers in Columbus early Tuesday after Ohio State's national title win over the Oregon Ducks.'

"Crowds of revelers."


From the New York Daily News:

screen cap of headline and subhead from the NYDN reading: 'National chumps: Police fire tear gas at celebrating Ohio State fans on Columbus campus (VIDEO). Campus and Columbus police used tear gas, pepper spray to disperse the unruly crowd early Tuesday morning after Ohio State stunned Oregon to win the national championship.'

"Celebrating fans." "Unruly crowd."


From Time:

screen cap of headline at Time reading: 'Police Use Tear Gas on Rowdy Ohio State Fans'

"Rowdy fans."


From the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

screen cap of headline from the CPD reading: 'Police use tear gas, pepper spray on revelers at Ohio State University'

"Revelers."


From the Columbus Dispatch:

screen cap of a headline from the Dispatch reading: 'Tear gas disperses revelers around campus after Ohio State win'

"Revelers."


I could go on—and on and on and on—but you get the point. Black people who protest the extrajudicial killing of black people in the streets by police are all rioters, if one person damages property or sets a fire. A mostly white crowd celebrating their sports team winning a big game are all revelers, no matter how many people damage property or set fires.

Black people organizing for justice are dangerous provocateurs who will incite a race war. White people acting like fools for sports are just dumb kids blowing off steam.

We all know this double-standard exists. But here it is, the morning after white reveling rioting, in black and white.

[H/T to Mikki Kendall.]
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