The Karmelo Anthony case has once again exposed a uniquely American pastime: deciding guilt or innocence based on which team someone appears to play for. Unfortunately for some, the race of a victim and a murderer is the ONLY thing that matters, evidence be damned.
Long before many of the facts were known about the murder of 17-year-old Texas high school student and athlete Austin Metcalf (and even AFTER they were) racial “tribes” on social media had already convened thousands of self-appointed jurors who said that Anthony was not guilty for murdering Austin Metcalf. They said he was being framed. They said it was self-defense. There were a plethora of excuses.
They continued to say the same thing during the trial and even after Anthony was convicted of murder. Why? Race has EVERYTHING to do with it.
Karmelo Anthony being found guilty is an exact representation of black boys never being afforded the luxury to make a mistake, as it clearly is in today’s society. They are not afforded the same empathy that many Caucasian males are, nor the
— Tamorah Shareef Muhammad (@ModestyQueen19) June 9, 2026 [1]
I think I hate all white people. https://t.co/roBldEzd1P [2]
— The Black Tucker Carlson Jr 🇺🇸 (@B1TuckerCarlson) June 9, 2026 [3]
If you have a black son. You should be angry. How are we supposed to tell our sons they can’t defend themselves against a racist attack?
— Reece Starks (@Reece_is_3ABM) June 9, 2026 [4]
I wish white people didn’t teach their kids that they have authority over Black people. Then Austin would still be alive. Do better. https://t.co/obFjvzbtTx [5]
— Dr. Allison Wiltz (@queenie4rmnola) June 9, 2026 [6]
These Anthony-supporters ignore the fact that Anthony admitted to stabbing Metcalf. They ignore the fact that most, if not all, of the witnesses said Austin Metcalf didn’t want to fight him and Anthony was repeatedly (more than repeatedly) asked to leave the track team’s tent and he wouldn’t comply. They ignore the fact that Anthony was the one who brought a knife to a track event. Why?
They ignore all the witnesses too. The students, the coaches, emergency personnel…Even the ones who weren’t white. It’s quite sad when there are so many people who have more compassion for a convicted murderer than the victim who was murdered based on the race of the murderer and the victim. But that’s where we are.
The phenomenon feels eerily familiar to anyone who remembers the O.J. Simpson era, when public reaction was driven less by the details of the case and more by broader cultural grievances. Check out the reactions to the O.J. Simpson verdict on the Oprah Show when he was found not guilty.
Live reaction to OJ Simpson’s verdict on the Oprah Winfrey show.
This was a really telling moment. pic.twitter.com/bJ1cndkyan [7]
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) June 10, 2026 [8]
Decades later, little seems to have changed except the technology. The courtroom drama now unfolds through hashtags and comment sections, where Americans dissect every development in real time, spread misinformation, vent their outrage and attempt to turn a case rooted in facts and evidence into yet another battleground for racial division.