PORTLAND, Maine — One of Portland’s top criminologists said Thursday area residents should be careful not to use Wednesday morning’s triple shooting to justify racial stereotyping.
In the incident, which took place around 1 a.m. Wednesday near 105 India St., three white men were shot while two men police described as “black or Asian” were seen running from the scene in a westerly direction down Congress Street. Of the victims, Matthew Blanchard, 24, died from his wounds at the scene, while 20-year-old John Howard and 24-year-old Joshua Hersom were taken to the hospital for surgery and are expected to recover.
Police Chief Michael Sauschuck told reporters the two men witnesses reported running from the location could be suspects or simply additional witnesses and investigators are trying to find them.
Dr. James Messerschmidt, chairman of the University of Southern Maine’s criminology department, said Thursday that Portland residents should be careful not to leap to the conclusion that the two men being sought by police are guilty of crime.
“It’s easy to automatically point the finger,” Messerschmidt said. “It could have been two black kids just out running — maybe they heard shots and just wanted to get away. People immediately assume … that they’re suspects.”
“If two white people had been seen running near the scene, they wouldn’t immediately be seen as suspects, and the media wouldn’t report that ‘two white people had been running from the scene,’” he continued.
Messerschmidt said signs that witnesses “unjustifiably” associate blacks with crime can be seen in the news frequently, noting the case of Florida teen Trayvon Martin, who was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and was unarmed when he was shot by neighborhood watch coordinator George Zimmerman in February.
“A black kid with a hoodie on is seen as a criminal and a white kid with a hoodie on is seen as a hipster,” Messerschmidt said.
A more justifiable assumption to make about the crime, he said, would be that masculinity played a role in the shooting. Police say witnesses reported hearing an argument transpire between the victims and unknown other individuals before gunfire was heard.
Messerschmidt said males often grow up believing they must resort to violence to resolve problems or protect their honor, although he said he has no direct knowledge of the Wednesday morning shooting specifically.
“That’s the way most killings begin, is through an argument,” he said. “What happens, if it’s between males in particular, is an escalation of what I call ‘masculinity challenges.’”
crimiminologist warn people not to sterotype because of race.
Kiss my b utt.. If there is a certain race causing trouble, I’ll say so… Lets hide the truth like the wimps you are
well….how about we start here…most of the prison population in the state of Maine is male and white.
http://bangor-launch.newspackstaging.com/2012/01/17/news/state/prison-sees-more-minorities-than-the-rest-of-maine/
In the whitest state in the country, no surprise there.
exactly.
What is the percentage now compaired with 10 years ago?
you want the answer go find it….right now, as it still stands, white men in the state of Maine still commit the most crimes, as proven by the 2010 census. 87% of the prison population is white. As Maine finally starts having other races mixed in with our lilly white bottoms, you will find that other races will start making up a little more of the population in the prison. Considering Maine’s demographics, I feel pretty safe in saying that the prison population will always have a majority of white males.
I’m sure I’ll be alerted on for the use of “lilly white bottoms”.
What’s your point? So do you think the shooters are white because the prison population in Maine is mostly white? Your the racist
my point is, reversal. Some on here think we should racial profile. I do not. I think it’s wrong. I’m pointing out that if we went with racial profiling, white males would most certainly be singled out, at least in this state. So, you can calm down now and stop jumping to conclusions about people you don’t know.
I wanted to add the definition of racial profiling as well
“government activity directed at a suspect or group of suspects based solely on race”
gone
“87% of the prison population is white.”
Given that Maine’s general population is 95.4% white, that shows non-whites commit more crimes than whites on a percentage basis.
African Americans make up about 12% of the U.S. population but account for about 60% of all prison inmates. Statistics can be used for both sides of the debate.
http://www.sentencingproject.org/template/page.cfm?id=122
”
These trends have been intensified by the disproportionate impact of the “war on drugs,” in which two-thirds of all persons in prison for drug offenses are people of color.”
”
Sentencing policies brought about by the “war on drugs” resulted in a dramatic growth in incarceration for drug offenses. At the Federal level, prisoners incarcerated on a drug charge comprise half of the prison population, while the number of drug offenders in state prisons has increased thirteen-fold since 1980. Most of these people are not high-level actors in the drug trade, and most have no prior criminal record for a violent offense. ”
“If there is a certain race causing trouble”? Like they’re all doing it collectively or something as a concerted effort? Like they’re committing crime BECAUSE they’re black? Come on, that’s disgustingly offensive and obviously baseless.
” just out running”? at 1am? maybe they were training for the Olympics!
I remember when Lewiston was a fun place to go…….
Hrmmm… What does Lewiston have to do with this?
A Unverstiy professor who cannot acknowledge facts about race and crime should not be teaching. I want my money back!
I would think that ANYONE — red, yellow, black or white that was out “running” away from the scene of a triple shooting at 1 o’clock in the morning would be considered someone that should be talked to.
You didn’t think carefully about what Mr. Messerschmidt said, did you? Your hypothetical would be unfair to the blacks because it would be “racial stereotyping” as to them. Instead of looking at them as criminals, you should think of them as joggers, just a couple of black kids “out running.” Not the red, yellow, and white guys, though. They’re probably implicated in the shooting and running from the crime scene.
Until you correct your attitude and conform your thinking to the 21st Century, you can forget about being a criminologist.
You didn’t read my comment very carefully did you? I said “I would think”…I don’t care what race, gender or anything else someone is — at 1:00 in the morning I would just think it odd that someone ANYONE would be out “jogging”. I’m not saying that these two guys or anyone else on the street that night did this — but they certainly should be questioned.
I was being sarcastic. Sorry. My comment was a reply to yours because I thought your comment was sensible and a good place to emphasize the stupidity of Messerschmidt’s. He’s the guy who’s doing the stereotyping.
Sorry…I guess I didn’t think carefully about what you were saying — I’m not the best person to pick up on sarcasism within words on type…again sorry for the reply.
More silliness from academia and the BDN.
“To stop racism quit talking about race”, (Morgan Freeman quote) quit making race and issue. People are just people. Why feel the need to put ourselves into a group it makes for stereotyping. I haven’t filled out the “race box” in a very long time because I don’t classify myself by color or anything else. I am a person.
We allow ourselves to be thrown into groups by race. We create groups simple based on race, which is really wrong. The day we look at one another as a neighbor, friend or just what we all are PEOPLE and not by race is a day I will never see because no one ever really has an honest talk about race.
Its the hoodie..not the skin under it !
“If two white people had been seen running near the scene, they wouldn’t immediately be seen as suspects, and the media wouldn’t report that ‘two white people had been running from the scene,’” he continued.”
“Messerschmidt said signs that witnesses “unjustifiably” associate blacks with crime can be seen in the news frequently, noting the case of Florida teen Trayvon Martin, who was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and was unarmed when he was shot by neighborhood watch coordinator George Zimmerman in February.”
“A black kid with a hoodie on is seen as a criminal and a white kid with a hoodie on is seen as a hipster,” Messerschmidt said.”
It is exactly becasue of this type of thinking that racism still live on in this country!
racism has always existed and always will—sad but true