"She saw his black skin. He had no other weapon,"
Merritt wrote on Facebook Wednesday. "We believe she weaponized his race, as Americans often do, particularly American cops. ‘Perceiving a threat' from black people doing mundane things is a part of the pattern we fight against."
"Everybody in the courtroom is just standing there with their mouths open,"
the reporter said in WFAA's video. "Most of us are trying not to cry while we're watching this happen."
"That is the judge, hugging the defendant, Amber Guyger,"
a moderator said, putting emphasis on the word defendant.
Commenters on WFAA's footage,
which was uploaded to YouTube, expressed disbelief over Kemp's actions.
"Did she even express this much sympathy to the actual victim's family?" one commenter said. "I'm appalled."
Another YouTube commenter wrote that the Central Park 5, the group of young black men wrongly convicted and later exonerated in a 1989 rape, were "watching this with their mouths on the floor."
"Did anyone else find it strange that the judge got more upset and angry at the lady that brought her laptop to court, and not at the person who killed an innocent human being?"
the commenter wrote.
The response was
equally negative on Twitter, where one man wrote: "How many other convicted murderers receive hugs and parting gifts from the judge who presides over their case? We are willing to bet the answer is zero."
"This is disgusting and totally inappropriate," Charles wrote. "Amber Guyger is a convicted murderer, yet Judge Kemp is embracing her as if she's a victim."
"A black judge let a white supremacist cop walk, then gave her a hug," one man tweeted, while another wrote that the legal system is not set up for black people to get rehabilitation or justice.
"It's designed to get us out of the way," he mused. "You got a black judge hugging a white cop who broke into a black man's house and killed him. What do you think they would do in the reverse?"
#TammyKemp
The hashtag #TammyKemp began popping up on the social media network, where some users called for disciplinary action against the judge or a recall to get her off the bench.
"A judge must be impartial. Tammy Kemp has undermined her credibility," radio talk show host and activist Joe Madison tweeted.
The response was
equally negative on Twitter, where one man wrote: "How many other convicted murderers receive hugs and parting gifts from the judge who presides over their case? We are willing to bet the answer is zero."
"This is disgusting and totally inappropriate," Charles wrote. "Amber Guyger is a convicted murderer, yet Judge Kemp is embracing her as if she's a victim."
"A black judge let a white supremacist cop walk, then gave her a hug," one man tweeted, while another wrote that the legal system is not set up for black people to get rehabilitation or justice.
"It's designed to get us out of the way," he mused. "You got a black judge hugging a white cop who broke into a black man's house and killed him. What do you think they would do in the reverse?"
#TammyKemp
The hashtag #TammyKemp began popping up on the social media network, where some users called for disciplinary action against the judge or a recall to get her off the bench.
"A judge must be impartial. Tammy Kemp has undermined her credibility," radio talk show host and activist Joe Madison tweeted.
"I was offended by the hugs and hair grooming," a woman wrote. "Even given her record of racist remarks and actions, black people felt compelled to make the white perpetrator comfortable, optically minimizing the harm of her heinous crime. Judge #TammyKemp was out of order. #RIPBothamJean."
"I personally want the best for you. I wasn't going to ever say this in front of my family or anyone, but I don't even want you to go to jail," Brandt Jean said. "I want the best for you because I know that's exactly what Botham would want you to do, and the best would be to give your life to Christ."
Bishop Talbert Swan, who heads the Church of Christ in God's Nova Scotia jurisdiction, lumped Jean in with Kemp and a black bailiff who, during a break in the proceedings, was seen brushing Guyger's hair. He said their actions "satisfy the demand that blacks suffer phlegmatically so our pain neither offends wypipo's (white people's) sensibilities nor sparks their guilt or fragility."
British blogger Louise Mensch replied: "Bishop with respect, she is a foul murderer but the victim's family's forgiveness is their privilege to grant or withhold. I believe Brandt Jean would have been as kind to any race of murderer. He is a role model to me, even at 18."
Paul Goldsmith, CEO of Goldsmith Media Group, tweeted that Jean's actions were "what radical forgiveness looks like."
"We need more people like Brandt in the world," Goldsmith tweeted.
"Regardless of how you feel about the outcome of the Amber Guyger trial, watching the brother of Botham Jean, Brandt, address Amber and then hugging her was the one of the most impactful things I've ever seen. He's a powerful young man," the woman wrote.
"I hate the fact that he hugged her, but what I'm not going to do is tell someone how to deal with their grief,"
one woman wrote. "Many people have questionable ways of coping. As long they aren't hurting anyone, shut up."
"Botham Jean's brother, Brandt, is a much better man than I'll ever be," he tweeted. "Amber Guyger isn't gonna give her life to Christ. She's just glad she got only 10 (years)."
Pastor and author Michael W. Waters wrote on Facebook that people who quote Brandt Jean, but not his mother, Allison Jean, have failed.
"Listen to her, Dallas," Waters wrote. "She has given us our marching orders."
In a news conference following Guyger's sentencing, Allison Jean said the city of Dallas needs to be cleaned up from within. She spoke of alleged corruption she said was brought to light by the trial and said it cannot go on.
"The Dallas Police Department has a lot of laundry to do,"
Allison Jean said. "The Texas Rangers need to know who's on board, and every single one of you, citizens of Dallas and residents of Dallas, need to know what to do to get your city right."
The Dallas Morning News reported that Dallas police Chief U. Renee Hall announced Wednesday that she has initiated an internal investigation into incidents brought up during Guyger's trial, including Officer Martin Rivera's testimony that he deleted texts between him and Guyger following the shooting.
"Our life must move on, but our life must move on with change. There's got to be a better day, and that better day starts with each and every one of us,"
Allison Jean said.
Dallas County judge sparks anger by hugging killer ex-cop Amber Guyger
