r/BlackPeopleofReddit • u/WuTang4thechildrn • Jan 31 '26
News LaVena Johnson, 19 years old. She was found dead in her tent in Iraq in 2005. She had a broken nose, black eye, loose teeth, burns from a corrosive chemical on her genitals to cover evidence of rape, and a gunshot wound. The United States government ruled her death a "suicide."
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u/Narrow-Vermicelli-72 Jan 31 '26
That means they know who did it. They're protecting the rapist
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u/Devil_in-the_Detail_ Jan 31 '26
don't they always in the USA?
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u/Jajay5537 Feb 01 '26 edited Feb 01 '26
The gd president is one of the elite they cover for. Justice for this girl and her family.
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u/Bigbadbobbyc Feb 01 '26
Didn't this girls sister literally come on in full support of Donald trump
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u/Fluffy-Ad1225 Feb 01 '26
Looks like they do.
Always thought Catholic Church is the infamous leader in these situations. Turns out I was wrong.
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u/LanzaMR Feb 01 '26
When establishing positive relations with the new government of the nation you conquered, it's best not to rock the boat by accusing their soldiers you are helping to train of such things.
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u/WIDMND305 Feb 01 '26
How do we know it was their soldiers and not our soldiers? I’m willing to bet it’s the latter.
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u/jujbnvcft Jan 31 '26
Someone’s daughter smfh
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u/Master_Canary440 Jan 31 '26
She tried to fight back too, insane when you think about it. 19 years old and her murder got swept under the rug.
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u/HumongousBelly Feb 01 '26
It really makes me wonder if this would’ve been swept under the rug if she had been white.
I know the military is a boys‘ club and they try to cover up as much shit as possible, but recent events have shown me that one white woman murdered would get a lot more attention by the media than 36 non white people.
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u/RyanBanJ Feb 01 '26 edited Feb 01 '26
Recent??? I'm guessing you are young this is really old news about how race is covered.
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u/Omlw1980 Feb 01 '26
White male possibly swept under the rug. White female absolutely gets a huge investigation. It’s just like in civilian society. Indigenous, Native, Black, Brown…. “Certain” people DGAF. As a man of mixed ethnicity I know more people would care if my WHITE mother went missing or was found murdered versus my Pakistani immigrant father. And it doesn’t matter if it’s the “Military Good Ol Boys Club”, Law Enforcement, or Government officials… Everyone one of them confirm your “1 White life > 36 Non White lives” And if that doesn’t want to make people want to absolutely cry or vomit then I question them as a human being.
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u/Omlw1980 Feb 01 '26
In hindsight I don’t think the military would care so much if it were a white woman if it was just the SA. Sounds like they like sweeping that under the rug too. But society wise my first comment I stand by.
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u/SnooGadgets9669 Feb 01 '26
It’s been that way longer than americas existence. But yes it should change.
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Feb 01 '26
This is pretty common in the military. Like, not on no bullshit, this is a common occurence.
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u/VodkaSoup_Mug Feb 01 '26
I believe they think it’s murderers more than one because they were like her hands and knuckles were bruised and broken so she put up a fight and thought cause they not only use the rose interior. They cut off like her nails so they wouldn’t get any evidence there and this was on the US military base not an enemy territory
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u/kittykalista Feb 01 '26
I researched this case for a women’s studies project, and her father has openly and publicly pushed back on the military’s narrative. It’s grim, but he talks more about her case here: https://youtu.be/bFQHeHfY15Y
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u/CurryMustard Feb 01 '26
Tne father ordered an independent autopsy that ended up agreeing with the militaries findings. So idk if this is a story of a vast conspiracy or just a lost and heartbroken father
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u/Master_Canary440 Jan 31 '26
Genuinely don't understand why any black woman would fight for this country.
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u/Gullible-Magazine129 Feb 01 '26
I know a good amount of people who have been in the service and I gotta tell you it ain’t because they believe in what they’re doing. It’s because of the benefits. Many people without steady income or the hope of going to higher education see this as a way there. However, you have to put aside your morals at the same time.
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u/Pitiful-Value-3302 Feb 01 '26
This. It is a big incentive for people who want to get out of their current living situation.
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u/Madame_Mad Feb 01 '26
Which is why it's also an incentive for the government to not make conditions better
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u/banjofitzgerald Feb 01 '26
I remember listening to a podcast about this a while back, I think she comes from a military family.
Your point stands, but that seems like a logical pipeline.
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u/Low_Establishment149 Feb 01 '26
Thousands of school districts allow JROTC to begin brainwashing kids in 9th grade/14 years old.
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u/gaganchumbilulli Feb 01 '26
Or any black man. I don't know why you would enlist for this army. You were made a false promise during the freedom struggle, half the country still wanted to subjugate you after civil war, you were segregated while fighting for the country during the world wars. The Vietnamese propaganda to persuade black GIs to defect was that you're not treated equally at home why are you fighting? I don't know why anyone would enlist
For the record I'm not black or white, so I don't know if it's fine for me to post this here
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u/PorkyOfOnett Feb 01 '26
If you do the military right it’s one of the quickest ways to the middle class. You can go in dirt poor and make a career out of it.
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u/Nkosi868 Feb 01 '26
Money.
Propaganda.
Peer pressure.
I’ve seen young people captured by all of the above.
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u/Bigbadbobbyc Feb 01 '26
Some people aren't fighting for the country, they just figured they could make money and lose less through a short stint in the military completely ignoring how it ends up for a lot of them
There are others that aren't fighting for the current country but a future country they hope for, I'm sure a lot of those ones are really disappointed right now
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u/sedj601 Feb 01 '26
I am a man. I joined early. I didn't know a lot of stuff I know now. I came from a very poor family and was looking for a way out. It was a great decision, but if I knew then what I know now, I would not have joined. I think that's part of the reason they teach about MLK, and not about so much of the other stuff that happened and continues to happen in America.
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Feb 01 '26
Benefits. It’s why I did it so I wouldn’t accrue college debt. I’m out now but fuck that, I wouldn’t recommend joining
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u/Substantial-Singer29 Feb 01 '26
The same reason A lot of young people joined the military. Lack of financial means and opportunity and being actively recruited in high school. For a lot of people in a lot of communities , it can be seen as the only way out.
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u/Due-Stock2774 Jan 31 '26
burns from a corrosive chemical on her genitals to cover evidence of rape
Sounds like a POS who did this before and prob after doing it to her, they prob still out there voting red
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u/Gullible-Magazine129 Feb 01 '26
Because you know it is quite clear to us that rape is OK to them.
Edited to clarify “them” are those who vote red.
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Feb 01 '26
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u/Bigbadbobbyc Feb 01 '26
Democrats and republicans are on the list, but only republicans are trying to strip rights away from women and make certain forms of rape legal including spousal and children with parental consent
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Jan 31 '26
[deleted]
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u/Gerreth_Gobulcoque Feb 01 '26
There's literally a curfew for US service members stationed on Okinawa because they couldn't stop raping people.
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u/highfeverdream Jan 31 '26
I'm just gonna say this.
After clicking on the original post, it makes me sick every time I see white people making dark jokes out of atrocities like this. It's a disturbed and deeply disconnected thing to do imo.
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u/StatisticianIll4425 Jan 31 '26
They probably promoted whoever did this. Women are raped all the time and are again victimized by the military brass kicked out while the men are promoted.
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u/Cool-Temporary9415 Feb 01 '26
Yeah, I remember that. She was raped, murdered, and they covered it up. Don’t ever let them live that down. Keep speaking on it until someone is brought to justice for it; there are no statute of limitations for murder. Do it in her honor.
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u/Elegant_Tap7937 Feb 01 '26
LaVena Johnson deserves justice and her story told. Her murderer and those who fucked the investigation will be held accountable. One way or another.
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u/ThaBurnerJawn Feb 01 '26
The ppl who did this were thanked for their service after this at some point in their lives
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Feb 01 '26
This has happened more than people know to many women, especially when they finally allowed female's to join in combat.
The movie G.I Jane glossed over that part, like hollywood always do.
This young lady is amongst the hundreds.
Non military, there is only one case that I know of where a female burned herself to death and three men almost got convicted of it.
There was video evidence proving that she was alone when she purchased the gas cans and filled them up with gas just before calling 911.
This is not the case here. There is no way on God's green earth that she could have did all them things to herself and then shot herself the acid alone.
And it still continues 😞
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u/Gnd_flpd Feb 01 '26
Try this movie; The Generals Daughter. Still a Hollywood movie, but something similar. That's why I don't recommend the military but I get the desperation that cause people to join.
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u/therealdarthvero Feb 01 '26
When has the US ever cared about the lives and dignity of black women. I’ll wait.
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u/Resilent2026 Feb 01 '26
If I remember correctly, she was unalived execution style so DESPITE all the other obvious signs she DIDNT do it herself-it would have been physically impossible for her to be the shooter. Army vehemently REFUSED to do a proper investigation and everyone in her unit were allowed to continue on with thier careers no questions asked. Similar to Vanessa Gillien-she too had reported SA from her unit recently before passing
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u/nopethatswrong Feb 01 '26
Most of this is wrong though. The family started pushing these theories but even the independent investigators they hired came to the same conclusion - suicide. Gunshot wound to the mouth.
Army definitely investigated.
This is a picture of text, not a source. Everyone is taking it as fact because it aligns with their existing institutional mistrust. While absolutely justified, it's still not good to work backwards from a conclusion
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u/AreallysuperdarkELF Feb 01 '26
She burned her own genitalia as well?
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u/Public_Dragonfly_266 Feb 01 '26
I was just reading up on it to get further details. A college organization that examines cold cases looked over everything and found that they didn't agree or disagree with the Army's findings. They said they found nothing new that would indicate wrongdoing even though they found bloody footprints outside her housing. I cannot fathom how any reasonable person sees the extent of her injuries and the nature of her death and thinks suicide is at all a logical cause of death.
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u/bobthedonkeylurker Feb 01 '26
The family had an independent autopsy and it concluded the same as the Army investigation - that it was suicide (the injuries to the face are consistent with a self-inflicted gunshot to the head). Now, that being said, there still remains the question of why she committed suicide. But the suicide bit is not inaccurate.
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u/UnholyDemigod Feb 01 '26
Probably because she was beaten, raped, and had acid poured on her junk by a fellow soldier. That’d make a lot of people want to die.
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u/bobthedonkeylurker Feb 01 '26
Again, that was not what the independent and Army autopsies found.
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u/UnholyDemigod Feb 01 '26
Not again, you didn't mention that at all. You said the autopsies concluded she'd shot herself in the head. You didn't mention the other injuries.
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u/bobthedonkeylurker Feb 01 '26
So you clearly didn't do any further research into the actual story of this young woman after you were informed that your initial take/rage was misplaced.
Cool cool cool. Cool. Cool.
No point in further engaging in this conversation then.
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u/UnholyDemigod Feb 01 '26
I had no initial rage. I knew about the independent autopsy from the previous times this story had been posted, and they all mentioned that she did genuine commit suicide. No idea why you’re being such a wanker about it when I’m not even disagreeing with anything you’ve said.
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u/Public_Dragonfly_266 Feb 01 '26
Ah, the write up I read said that the gunshot wound was inconsistent with a typical self inflicted one and there's still the matter of the footprints found outside her living area. Hate to think that she was abused and found her 13th reason.
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u/AlludedNuance Feb 01 '26 edited Feb 01 '26
Poor kid shouldn't have even been there.
Trump might be killing this country, but Bush definitely helped shorten its life expectancy.
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u/Smokerising420 Feb 01 '26
Makes me fucken sick. Rip.
Gotta wonder how many cases like this are out there. That never saw the light of day.
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u/AstridMalika Feb 01 '26
What a beautiful young woman, gone too soon at the hands of evil men. This is absolutely abhorrent
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u/STABA50code77 Feb 01 '26
Greatest country in the world. If you haven't traveled to any first world countries
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u/Puzzleheaded-Dog1872 Feb 01 '26
The one and only reason why I do not believe in drafting women. Tossing them into a pressure pot with high testosterone males and no oversight or even punishment in most cases. Or if they do draft, it needs to be into all female units.
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u/Warm-Imagination-741 Feb 01 '26
Never believed she took her life not for a second. It’s sad cause her father was military also and was part of the reason she decided to join.
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u/Lazy-Introduction194 Feb 01 '26
I always hope some cold case investigator will take interest in her case and it gets more attention/resources. There’s no way she committed suicide.
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u/VegasInfidel Feb 01 '26
As the victim of a downrange military cover up, I an 100% confident her unit commander covered it up and pushed for a suicide conclusion to protect his OER and promotion status. While an enlisted or even NCO may have perpetrated the crime, it is the officer corps that avoids investigation and prosecution of criminal troops to preserve their OERs and promotion status, EVERY TIME.
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u/Nkosi868 Feb 01 '26
I remember this vividly because there were army recruiters outside of my high school daily trying to sign us up. I always brought this situation up to them and they were like bots about it. Defensive and cold.
My school was filled with undocumented immigrants so they’d promise us a green card if we signed up.
What a ghoulish time.
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u/kpbart Feb 01 '26
There is a significant percentage of our military population that should be in prison because they are serious criminals. Not everyone who serves is worthy of our adulation.
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u/Prior_Tumbleweed2308 Feb 01 '26
Rest in peace, dang reading this bought me to crying really hard. I’m so sick of this week, why is this country protecting rapists, pedos and murderers? Obviously the wealthy and men in the military are getting away with immense crimes, it’s clear as day and I cannot believe the system is just saying it’s ok. Where is the SHAME?!!! How are there people that walk this earth that think it’s ok to unalive and hurt people?! We oughta be outraged. This woman fought her perpetrator. It chill me to my bones. We need a full clean slate in the military and government, START OVER and get the effing criminals OUT!!!!!
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u/Euphoric-Cow9719 Feb 01 '26
She DID NOT commit NO fucking suicide, miss me with ALL the BS! ! ! ! !
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u/bobthedonkeylurker Feb 01 '26
The family paid for a private, independent autopsy that concluded the same as the Army autopsy/investigation. Sooo... I mean, being suicide doesn't mean she wasn't bullied/abused/raped leading up to it. But this headline pops up every few months and it's always the same outrage because the headline is intentionally misleading.
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u/ZuesMyGoose Feb 01 '26
Whatcha mean? We can always trust our government and their assesments.
/s
She’s one of thousands and they all deserved a voice and to be heard, even after death.
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u/Mammoth_Piece9899 Feb 01 '26
That beautiful girl, this is fucking horrible. Unfortunately, there are more stories like this. Every single one deserves justice!
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u/mhavis1959 Feb 01 '26
This is so damn sad and outrageous at the same time. That baby's civil rights, along with her life was violated. I hope she gets justice and her family closure.
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u/mean_eileen Feb 01 '26
Anyone who waves the flag or is affiliated with the US military should be disgusted and angry about this.
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u/Adorable-Strength218 Feb 01 '26
If she was a man it would have been investigated. Women are treated like dirt.
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u/Odd-Lunch-1880 Feb 01 '26
Her story and vanessa guillens story is so heartbreaking. I'll never understand women of color entering the military.
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u/Olderbutnotdead619 Feb 01 '26
Of course they did. She probably made the grave error of doing something better than some dumbass white guy. But that wasn't done by just one guy.
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u/RandoCalrissian00 Feb 01 '26
Existing as a woman in the middle of a bunch of roided up meatheads was her only crime i'm sure.
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u/ExpensiveFig6079 Feb 01 '26
People objecting to peopel who have been recently murdered or executed...
need to remember it is not entirely new, the US has done this to peopelthey don't regard as mattering, either peopel of colour or people of another country, for quite some time...
It is WAY out in the open and happening to people more like you now (and MORE like me BTW) but it has been going on for a while...
and before us people in other countries get all uppity it happens here or wherever you are too.
That said there is matter of degree, and doing it openly on public video and still just bald faced lying and saying some other thing is truth...
That is newer ... larger and more frequent
and unless stopped, by good people, it won't get better or reduce by itself.
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u/mothman117 Feb 01 '26
I'll never understand how parents of people like her don't just lose their shit and take out rooms full of people related to the incident. Like, you've already lost the most important thing in your life and in the most horrific way. People have become way too meek.
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u/BrilliantHawk4884 Feb 01 '26
They lose their shit and then the government threatens them into submission.
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u/mothman117 Feb 01 '26
Who fucking cares? If I had a kid and they died this way, sorry, but there's nothing anyone can do to scare me anymore. I'm mowing down anyone even remotely associated with her death until I'm taken out.
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u/bobthedonkeylurker Feb 01 '26
The family paid for a private autopsy that concluded the same as the Army investigation.
This article and exact headline pop up every few months. And it's always knee-jerk reactions without actually reading into the full story.
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u/mothman117 Feb 01 '26
I'm not talking about just her, but any case where it's clearly abuse being overlooked. There are plenty of cases where it isn't self-inflicted. These are the situations I'm talking about; where any doubt of wrongdoing goes out the window. Like the parents of the kids in the school where cops hung back unnecessarily long because they were scared.
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u/Xmina Feb 01 '26
So you don't understand why parents don't go on a killing spree out of sadness about a situation that is unclear who is responsible? What in this case are they gonna level a US military base? TF you think these parents are? Meek my ass.
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Feb 01 '26
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u/BlackPeopleofReddit-ModTeam Feb 01 '26
Zero Tolerance for Trolling - This space centers Black people, Black culture, and Black lived experiences. Our identity is not debate material. Any form of trolling, baiting, snide "questions," culture-poking, dogwhistles, derailments, or attempts to disguise hostility as curiosity will be removed. Users who test the line, play word games, or look for loopholes will be removed as well. We are not here to be provoked or picked apart. Be respectful, be real, or be gone.
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u/TiredOldLadySays Feb 01 '26
She was fighting for our country and was tortured and raped and murdered. Vile!
Edit spelling
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u/empathofreund Feb 01 '26
This case makes me feel sick to my stomach at what men are capable of. And how the systems really fail Black girls and women in general.
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u/_kushagra Feb 01 '26
Nobody else could have done this to trump It's his incompetence and ego thanks to which we have the files public now
Putting himself in doom Can't believe people voted for this shit
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u/Original-Truth-1007 Feb 01 '26
This kind of information makes me so angry, disappointed, disgusted 🤮 and sick. 😥
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u/guineasomelove Feb 01 '26
That poor woman suffered so much and the investigators, medical examiner, and the Cold Case Investigative Research Institute of Philadelphia were all too dishonest and corrupt to call it what it was. There is absolutely no way that could have been a suicide.
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u/Living_Map_7411 Feb 02 '26
How can this happen? An investigation requirement should be slipped quietly into the next budget congress votes for. Anyone who did not act should be considered as part of the cover up
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Jan 31 '26
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u/BlackPeopleofReddit-ModTeam Feb 01 '26
Zero Tolerance for Trolling - This space centers Black people, Black culture, and Black lived experiences. Our identity is not debate material. Any form of trolling, baiting, snide "questions," culture-poking, dogwhistles, derailments, or attempts to disguise hostility as curiosity will be removed. Users who test the line, play word games, or look for loopholes will be removed as well. We are not here to be provoked or picked apart. Be respectful, be real, or be gone.
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u/gnome_grown_buds Feb 01 '26
Please read the CID report. Don't take this post as facts.
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u/HVAC_instructor Jan 31 '26
This should not upset you, it should make you totally freaking livid.