Hello Readers,
INJUSTICE… INJUSTICE… INJUSTICE. It has gone on for centuries. Back in 2005, I wrote in an editorial that there would be protests in the streets. They started around 2012. That time, our president was Barack Obama, and our governor was Chris Christie. Obama was president from 2009 to 2016 and Christie was governor from 2011 to 2018.
On August 23, 2020 in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Jacob Blake was shot in the back 7. Police were attempting him to arrest him for a domestic dispute. In front of his 3 children, he was shot, and his father claims that he is now paralyzed.
The racial injustice is amongst black and white people. However, there is another race besides black and white…money/power and poor/middle class.
When we talk about fatal police brutality, the list goes on and on. Here are just some that come to mind, as our paper cannot list them all.
2014: Eric Garner, NY; accused of selling illegal cigarettes, killed via chokehold despite saying “I can’t breathe” – officer was fired, but never prosecuted.
2014: Michael Brown, Missouri; unarmed, accused of stealing a box of cigars.
2014: Tamir Rice, Ohio; a 12 year old boy shot due to showing a toy gun.
2014: Akai Gurley, NY; an officer fired in an unlit stairway and a bullet bounced from the wall and killed Gurley.
2014: Gabriella Nevarez, California; allegedly rammed into police cars when asked to pull over.
2014: Tanisha Anderson, Ohio, taken to mental hospital in handcuffs.
2015: Walter Scott; shot in the back.
2016: Alton Sterling, Louisiana; confronted by officers outside a shop.
2015: Michelle Cusseaux, Arizona; officer thought she had a hammer and shot her.
2015: Freddie Gray, Maryland; arrested and held in a police van, died in 45 minutes, his spinal cord was nearly severed.
2015: Tanisha Fonville, North Carolina; officer claimed she had a knife in her hand.
2016: Philando Castile, Minnesota; shot by police while he was reaching out for his license.
March 2020: Breonna Taylor, Kentucky; police raided her apartment with a “no-knock” warrant. Breonna’s boyfriend shot at them, thinking it was a burglary, and in return, officers fired and killed Breonna, a medical technician.
May 25, 2020, Minnesota: The story of a lifetime; George Floyd who allegedly gave a counterfeit $20 bill and walked away from a store with cigarettes. He lost his life after Officer Derek Chauvin kept his knee on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. Like Garner, he told the officers he could not breathe, but was ignored and choked to the death.
2020: Rayshard Brooks, Georgia, killed by Atlanta police officer, who was charged with murder in June 2020, after the momentum of George Floyd’s death and protests.
The protests have started all over the country and the world. As of today, they have not stopped.
By the FBI’s 2019 statistics, 48 police officers died in 2019 and 56 officers lost their lives in 2018. Out of 48, there were 40 white officers who lost their lives, with 6 at traffic related stops. So, it is not easy for police officers to do their job as well.
That said, when they do not follow protocol, they must be punished severely. Also, the system is wrong. As I have mentioned before, the internal affairs division should be from outside the county. A civilian review board system may not work. The authority goes from the hands of the police department to the mayor of the city, as the council and the mayor are appointing the board members. So, indirectly the mayor becomes more powerful. The council has failed time after time to discharge their duty in putting checks and balances on the administration. .
Have a wonderful week.
I’ll talk to you next week.
