There is only one victim between Austin Metcalf and Karmelo Anthony; I shouldn’t have to say this, but it’s not Karmelo Anthony.
You wouldn’t know that, however, if you read the fundraiser Karmelo Anthony’s family created for him on GiveSendGo.
They said, “This is the Official Support Fund for Karmelo and his family during this challenging and difficult time. The narrative being spread is false, unjust, and harmful. As a family of faith, we are deeply grateful for all of your support during this trying period. Your prayers and assistance mean more to us now more than ever.”
They have raised almost $380,000 in just 3 days from over 11,000 people. One of the donors said, “Let this child out of prison. He’s a minor…too many of our children and ancestors have been publicly lynched in this country for defending themselves against white people…if he was a white kid it would have been a quarrel gone bad.”
When God said “He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the LORD (Proverbs 17:15)and “Whoever says to the wicked, ‘You are in the right,’ will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations (Proverbs 24:24),” he was referring to people like that.
If you’re not aware of the apparent facts of the case, the available information so far is that during a track meet on a rainy morning a couple of weeks ago, Austin Metcalf and his twin brother saw Karmelo Anthony—a student from a different school—sitting under their school’s tent.
According to witnesses, Austin Metcalf asked Karmelo Anthony to leave, but Anthony angrily said, “Touch me and see what happens.” The witnesses said Metcalf grabbed or possibly pushed Anthony, and then Anthony immediately grabbed a knife from inside his bag and fatally stabbed Metcalf in the chest.
Some people say Austin Metcalf shouldn’t have grabbed or pushed Anthony. Maybe he shouldn’t have. Maybe Metcalf should have asked one of the coaches to address the situation. Maybe he should have been more compassionate and gracious. But that is irrelevant. The penalty for that shouldn’t be death.
Some people are attempting to frame Metcalf as a bully. But the bully is the murderer, not the victim. It’s not wrong to ask a person to leave a tent that isn’t meant for them. It’s wrong, however, to stab someone in the chest with a knife. This isn’t debatable.
Considering the facts, it seems like if he hadn’t killed Austin Metcalf senselessly that morning—he probably would have killed a different person sometime in the future. A person who immediately resorts to deadly violence like that is a danger to society.
It’s not self-defence. There wasn’t an imminent threat to his life. His actions were not proportionate to any perceived threat. Racists might think his use of lethal force was justified, but reasonable people do not. And even if he sincerely believed that his life or health was in danger, he could have safely retreated from the tent. Unless we’re missing crucial data, a jury will not believe his self-defence claim.
But that, apparently, doesn’t matter to many of the people—including his family—who are supporting him. This is yet another example that the racial grievance industry doesn’t help anyone. It isn’t helping Karmelo Anthony. The racial grievance industry will send more boys to the cemetery and the penitentiary.
What message do we send to black teens when they know violent acts against white people will be justified by some people? Do we think that will lead to less violent acts?
This brings me to the people I’m most disturbed by: Karmelo Anthony’s family.
We do not know what is being said privately. And I think all of us understand the inclination to defend family members. But what the family has said publicly is shameful. Some of their public statements suggest Karmelo Anthony is a victim. Their claim that the “narrative” is “unjust” and “harmful” is ridiculous. Anthony has already admitted to killing Metcalf, and according to the available information, there is simply zero justification for the fatal stabbing.
Good parents do not stop loving their children when they murder a person, but they do not support them. Instead of encouraging foolish people to donate to them, they should consider loving the Metcalf family as much as Austin Metcalf’s father, Jeff Metcalf, is attempting to love them.
By suggesting that he’s open to forgiving Karmelo Anthony, Jeff Metcalf has been more kind to the person who murdered his son than the Anthony family has been to his family.
Jeff Metcalf also said, “This is not a race issue. This is not a black and white issue. I don’t want someone stepping up on their soapbox trying to politicize this…This is a right and wrong issue.
It’s disturbing that one boy murdered another boy and some people are justifying it because of what the alleged murderer and victim look like.