C.B. Hanif for WAOD:
(Continuing interview with Vanessa Lee, a former teacher of key state witness Avion Lawson in the Dunbar Village gang-rape trial.):
Do you think the victims being Haitian was a factor?
“I don’t think so because if I’m correct, when Haitians started really coming in here…most of them came to the projects. Most of these little gang groups, who is that, aren’t they Haitian too? That’s a Haitian name, ‘Poindexter’…
“Even today, Haitian kids have learned to blend in a lot better than their parents when their parents came…
“I don’t think being Haitian has anything to do with it.
“But there’s also a turf thing, you know like an initiation kind of thing. So they had to learn to conform to the ways of the projects. And maybe they went against that went against the grain.
“And I’m not saying she was wrong for that. But she was on a battle she could not win. She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways. (But) if you’re going to be in Dunbar Village you gotta do it the Dunbar Village way or you gotta leave.”
24 comments ↓
Everything out of this woman’s mouth confirms her hatred for other black women or perhaps certain black women. She should not be doing any type of advocacy work, therapy or anything that requires common sense and compassion.
So basically, its alll the victims’ fault? Because they were Haitian and not black like the perpetrators?
This woman is a prime example of self hatred because you have to hate yourself to advocate this kind of nonsense. And this kind of self hatred comes from years of indoctrination that black man is #1, black woman is negative infinity.
NO wonder he did what he did. Look at who “taught” him.
This woman sounds so incredibly ignorant! It is beyond me how she is teaching anyone!
I think some effort to revoke this woman’s teaching certificate is in order. I wouldn’t let somebody with that much ignorance near a classroom.
She was NEVER a teacher. She just obtained a Bachelor’s degree… HOW SHE COULD HAVE TAUGHT ANYONE IS BEYOND ME.
Since she taught Avion… can she be charged her too? I wouldn’t be surprised if it came out that she was [removed by blog administrator- while Ms. Lee has no problem engaging in innuendo and rumor mongering to defame the Dunbar Village victim, if we don't have any proof of Ms Lee committing crimes, lets not be LIKE HER. OKAY!]
SNIP
She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways. (But) if you’re going to be in Dunbar Village you gotta do it the Dunbar Village way or you gotta leave.”
SNIP
OK. WTH is she talking about?? Is she suggesting that the victim was punished for coming in with her “little ways”? What exactly is the “Dunbar Village way”? A “turf thing”? Is she in a gang?
She is making the case for one big class action lawsuit against the local housing authority with THIS foolishness.
OMG… just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse, they do!
Lee is off her rocker, although I see she gets it from her mama…
“She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways.”
WHAT??!! This individual is as depraved as the beasts who committed this crime against humanity. This is some “Radio Rwanda”-type talk. Talk that tries to “justify” war crimes and genocide.
Peace, blessings and solidarity.
“And I’m not saying she was wrong for that. But she was on a battle she could not win. She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways. (But) if you’re going to be in Dunbar Village you gotta do it the Dunbar Village way or you gotta leave.”
The victim left her country and the only life she’s known to struggle for a better life here in the US for her son. This is the welcome they receive? Just what exactly were her “little ways”?
Isn’t this similar to what we all go through everyday? That if we don’t conform to what the “black community” thinks we should conform to we’re considered uppity and need to be knocked down a few levels.
I am appalled by the comments of this woman, if you can even call her such. I find her statements both vile and disgusting.
But I am glad that the owners of this blog decided to publish her words for all to see. Abraham Lincoln once said, “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” Vanessa Lee proves that point quite well.
But she was on a battle she could not win. She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways. (But) if you’re going to be in Dunbar Village you gotta do it the Dunbar Village way or you gotta leave.”
She asked for it.
Ok.
BSG I know where you were going & I wouldn’t surprised after this comment.
Next campaign, removal of this lady from any public employment involving supervising children.
I’m one of those “little ways” folks, and like trying2understanurside said you are uppity and need to be knocked down a few levels…
but to be victimized, raped, brutalized like that?
What is that saying to the victims?
Its their fault for being themselves or wanting a better life???
Do you think the victims being Haitian was a factor?
“I don’t think so because if I’m correct, when Haitians started really coming in here…most of them came to the projects. Most of these little gang groups, who is that, aren’t they Haitian too? That’s a Haitian name, ‘Poindexter’…
“Even today, Haitian kids have learned to blend in a lot better than their parents when their parents came…
“I don’t think being Haitian has anything to do with it.
“But there’s also a turf thing, you know like an initiation kind of thing. So they had to learn to conform to the ways of the projects. And maybe they went against that went against the grain.
“And I’m not saying she was wrong for that. But she was on a battle she could not win. She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways. (But) if you’re going to be in Dunbar Village you gotta do it the Dunbar Village way or you gotta leave.”
My reply:
This woman is mentally and emotionally disturbed, and ignorant, to top it off!
Poindexter as a Haitian name???? Huh?
Talk about the acting black police: Haitian kids have to blend in to the local acting black culture; getting “initiated” like they are members of a gang….So I guess the treatment they received fit into that.
I’m mad she said Poindexter is a Haitian name.
I’d like to know what her definition of “little ways” is, I have a morbid curiousity. She educated but it doesn’t seem to have taken very well.
Lee is clearly not an educated woman and feeds into the value system of the youth as opposed to TEACHING a value system that respects humanity. Unfortunatley she is representative of a lot of adults who have turned the asylum over to the inmates (no pun intended).
Her “little ways” was having a job, little though the salary, taking care of her son, saving her money, trying to move out to something better later.
She probably didn’t let her son hang out with the other teen terrorists in the neighborhood, took him to work with her while she delivered those phone books, made sure he went to school, did his homework, did household chores, etc.
So yes, this was indeed a “hate crime.” While maybe not legally because they’re Haitian, but because they were trying to do better, not acting a fool, “who do they think they are? They think they’re better than us”, etc.
No, no human being is better or lesser than another, but clearly, some human beings make better choices. AND THAT’S THE POINT HERE.
In no way was I agreeing with Ms. Lee. I meant this is how people like her try in their demented ways to justify assaults on blacks who don’t behave or think the way certain members of the black community think they should.
Comments like Ms. Lee’s shows the degree “acting black” is so harmful to us. I would just looovve to hear what Ms. Lee thinks are the victims and her family’s “little ways”.
@tryin2understandurside
Excellent point!!! What were her “little ways”? Did she not speak quickly enough? Did she try to keep her child away from the street hoodlums?
How dare she be different in any way?
The posters on this site are right. The scary part isn’t that this is an isolated opinion or incident but rather that there is a world full of Ms. Lee’s waiting to judge us.
Some of my husband’s students have a little saying that is basically…if you left it out…you wanted it stolen. Did you leave a window open, a door cracked, were you too polite or not polite enough…you name it and they can justify their actions.
“But she was on a battle she could not win. She thought she was gonna come in with her little ways. (But) if you’re going to be in Dunbar Village you gotta do it the Dunbar Village way or you gotta leave.”
therein lies the problem. there should be no ‘Dunbar Village way.” as far as I’m concerned, there are two ways: the right way and the wrong way. the more this kind of separatist attitude is allowed, the farther back it pushes not just the black community, but the HUMAN community.
and the fact that people like ms. lee are allowed to shape the lives of others is something that will keep me up at night.
hatred has no place in ANY community.
for the record, i am not black. but i am a person. one who cares about the needs and rights of others. and i truly believe that as long as people have compassion for each other, WAOD’s noble goal can be reached.
And this kind of self hatred comes from years of indoctrination that black man is #1, black woman is negative infinity.
EXACTLY!
This woman needs to stop. When you are “something other than black, or perceived to be so, you live in fear of being racially attacked or assaulted by a certain element of black America. Her “little ways” means, “she’s not like us.”
I witnessed this growing up in Hempstead when many People started coming in from south America and Jamaica. It was just a few of them, in a predominately black area. Unfortunately, whether they were dark or white skinned, they were targets. Teased, ridiculed, assaulted, daily by black teenagers. Then the numbers increased and the Latinos formed gangs. Economic opportunities were seized by the Jamaicans and they bought up all of the property and opened shops. Now unfortunately, there is a big division and tension between Jamaicans and black Americans and the Latinos and black Americans. What did they expect? This is what happens when black America attempts to make “New N—rs” out of new immigrants. No one needs to be treated like that and shame on these officials and advocates who turn a blind eye!
It’s the crawdads in a bucket mentality on steroids. It’s the same mentality that makes low achieving black students say to those taking advanced high school classes “why you take all them white folks classes?” A lot of our people who have not prepared themselves can not stand to see another person who looks like them do anything different, like anything different, achieve anything they can’t do themselves. It makes them look too closely at themselves and realize that they have not tried or that they are too scared or hate themselves too much to do anything differently than be a stereotypical ni**er.