Police brutality is evil.
Why is this statement surrounded by controversy? Why does
merely uttering opposition to police brutality elicit anger around some people?
I think a major stumbling block is the inability to move past
binary thinking on this issue. It seems that when I verbalize that I am against
police brutality, people hear me saying that I am against the police. But I can be against police who brutalize human beings, and those who are
complicit in the brutalizing, while still appreciating law enforcement officers
that treat all people with dignity and speak out against the officers that do
not treat all people with dignity. I’m not saying anything that hasn’t been
extensively explained by numerous others, but it is worth repeating here:
Anti-police brutality does not mean anti-police.
From my perspective, additional problems arise because it seems there are some people who are more interested in "proving" the criminality of victims of police brutality, particularly if the victims are people of color, than defending their humanity. The callousness is chilling. Under no circumstances, badge or not, should the abuse of an individual be tolerated. There is no excuse for kicking a handcuffed person in the head. There is no excuse for holding a loaded gun to the chest of a little girl while holding a gun to her grandmother’s head, assaulting her mother, and destroying her dolls. There is no excuse for driving a man who has already been arrested back to the home where he was apprehended in order to brutally beat him. There is no excuse for brutality. The stories of people terrorized and traumatized by police are extensive and need to be told for those who have ears to hear so that their hands and feet may be moved to action against this evil.
I believe narrative is powerful, not because of emotional manipulation but because we are reminded of the dignity, value, and worth of people when we hear their stories. In essence, their humanity is brought to the forefront, and we are confronted with our biases, assumptions, and unnecessary fear. We can see ourselves in others if we operate from a place of empathy when we are presented with an opportunity to listen. Unfortunately, because the ability of the powerful and privileged to empathize is often hindered, the tendency is to dismiss the lived experiences of and facts shared by the marginalized.
When marginalized communities speak out against injustice, particularly regarding a shooting that results in death, the privileged community is quick to demand more facts rather than weeping with those who are weeping and lamenting the loss of life. In an article for The Witness titled “Alton Sterling and Songs of Healing when Black People Die”, I read, "Facts matter, but life does, too. When a life is taken, an image-bearer is erased from this world. Death is tragic, and it is human to mourn." We shouldn't have to know all the facts to mourn with those who are mourning.
From my perspective, additional problems arise because it seems there are some people who are more interested in "proving" the criminality of victims of police brutality, particularly if the victims are people of color, than defending their humanity. The callousness is chilling. Under no circumstances, badge or not, should the abuse of an individual be tolerated. There is no excuse for kicking a handcuffed person in the head. There is no excuse for holding a loaded gun to the chest of a little girl while holding a gun to her grandmother’s head, assaulting her mother, and destroying her dolls. There is no excuse for driving a man who has already been arrested back to the home where he was apprehended in order to brutally beat him. There is no excuse for brutality. The stories of people terrorized and traumatized by police are extensive and need to be told for those who have ears to hear so that their hands and feet may be moved to action against this evil.
I believe narrative is powerful, not because of emotional manipulation but because we are reminded of the dignity, value, and worth of people when we hear their stories. In essence, their humanity is brought to the forefront, and we are confronted with our biases, assumptions, and unnecessary fear. We can see ourselves in others if we operate from a place of empathy when we are presented with an opportunity to listen. Unfortunately, because the ability of the powerful and privileged to empathize is often hindered, the tendency is to dismiss the lived experiences of and facts shared by the marginalized.
When marginalized communities speak out against injustice, particularly regarding a shooting that results in death, the privileged community is quick to demand more facts rather than weeping with those who are weeping and lamenting the loss of life. In an article for The Witness titled “Alton Sterling and Songs of Healing when Black People Die”, I read, "Facts matter, but life does, too. When a life is taken, an image-bearer is erased from this world. Death is tragic, and it is human to mourn." We shouldn't have to know all the facts to mourn with those who are mourning.
There is a painful and prolonged legacy of death of people of color in the United States at the hands of people who held power over them. The history traces back to the days of slavery when slave patrols began and continues through the days of mob violence and lynching supported by law enforcement and police establishing "law and order" by brutalizing those who dared to protest, bringing us to the era of mass incarceration. Our current system evolved from slave patrols and the corruption of the past. There are recommended resources below that detail the evolution of policing in the United States. I reference the past because the lives lost matter, past and present. This does not mean I think the lives of law enforcement officials don’t matter. I don’t personally know anyone who says that black lives matter while believing that “blue lives” do not. The response of the majority always clearly indicates that the lives of law enforcement matter, but the lives of people of color matter, too. There should be no opposition to voicing that other lives matter. Black lives matter. Indigenous lives matter. The lives of all people of color matter.
This topic isn't solely political for me. The subject of police brutality is important to me because people are involved. One of the main arguments I have heard against police brutality being an issue we need to discuss is the fact that more babies die by abortion or some other number associated with another calamity is touted in an effort to dismiss and distract. We can care about more than one issue, or more than our pet political issues. When discussing the statistics of recent deaths of teens of color or adults, it can seem like a low number compared to other tragedies, but I am operating from a mindset that one death is too many. Further, communities of color are traumatized because of behaviors that are more than split second decisions. 20 shots fired and 20 minutes of beating are just a glimpse of the depravity people of color face when they are targeted by law enforcement. We don't even know the full extent because if the police brutalize you, who are you going to tell?
Things are complicated more by policies that leave room for racist implementation, such as "sagging pants" laws and stop and frisk laws. If you think sagging pants make it easier to illegally carry weapons or drugs and suspiciously eye black boys and men who wear sagging pants, you're operating from an assumption that all black boys and men who sag their pants are packing heat and dealing illegal substances. However, the results of vehicle searches reveal white people are more likely to have illegal items. If you think black people are more likely to have drugs and weapons, this is a dangerous stereotype that is not supported by the facts. The 2018 Vehicle Stops Executive Summary from the conservative state of Missouri reveals that black people are more likely to be stopped and to have their vehicles searched but less likely to possess illegal weapons or drugs. Basically, white people are more likely to have contraband while black people are more likely to be pulled over by police.
If you think black people just disposed of weapons or drugs without law enforcement knowledge, a statement I am saddened to admit I said in the past and have heard from others, ask yourself why you're working so hard to prove criminality and add to the story actions that cannot be proven in order to perpetuate stereotypes. As we can see from the “not all” mantras, white people don't want anything contributed to white people as a whole and officers don’t want anything contributed to law enforcement as a whole. Black, Indigenous, and people of color don't want criminality contributed to them as a whole.
Many white people, whether they identify as conservative or progressive politically, want the freedom to be wary of others, usually with fears stoked by stereotypes, but don't want people of color to have the same freedom to be wary of law enforcement when historically law enforcement officials have been the oppressors and currently situations are dire for people of color during interactions with police. If you say, "Well, I didn't personally...," you're missing the point because the legacy of law enforcement in our country, whether we like it or not, is one of oppression toward those who are not white. We must be doing the hard work of dismantling the idea of white supremacy and the system we inherited while healing what the generations before us intentionally and cruelly created.
I pray that reading the haunting accounts of men, women, and
children of color that have been brutalized by law enforcement in the past and
presently will move us to action. Knowing the history of policing in the United States as a means for patrolling slaves and social control explains our nation's contemporary conditions. We have not fully acknowledged and taught the true history. We have not lamented. We have not repented. We have not repaired the damage that has been done. As a Christian, I believe that liberation and restoration can only come when the works of darkness are exposed. It is past time to pull the curtains back and let the light penetrate the dark. Join the movement to end police brutality to ensure all people are treated with dignity.
(Resources are linked below.)
“Unarmed People of Color Killed by Police, 1999-2014” by Rich Juzwiak
and Aleksander Chan
2018 Vehicle Stops Executive Summary for Missouri
Recommended Reading
Articles
“If You Love Me, Do Your Homework” by Tarmara C. Johnson
“Alton Sterling and Songs of Healing when Black People Die” by The
Witness
“What We’ve Learned about Police Shootings 5 Years after Ferguson” by Joe Fox, Adrian Blanco, Jennifer Jenkins, Julie Tate, and
Wesley Lowery
“’Rat Cop’ Joe Crystal Shunned from Baltimore Police Department after Reporting Police Brutality” by Sebastian Murdock
“Sheriff of America’s Deadliest Police Force Caught on Camera Admitting Killing Suspects is ‘Better Financially’” by Michael Harriot
“White Men Can’t Murder: Why White Cops are Immune to the Law” by
Michael Harriot
“Stanford Researchers Develop New Statistical Test that Shows Racial Profiling in Police Traffic Stops” by Edmund Andrews
Video to View
“Botham Shem Jean: Where Do We Go From Here?” (a sermon preached by Pastor Bryan L. Carter at Concord Church)
Music (that may make you
uncomfortable)
“VRY BLK” by Jamila Woods ft. Noname
“A Time Like This” by Micah Bournes
“Too Much?” by Micah Bournes
“Facts” by Lecrae
“Ally Anthem” by Micah Bournes
#policebrutality
#thehistoryofpolicebrutality #slavepatrols #antibrutalitynotpolice #endpolicebrutality
#treatpeoplewithdignity #loveyourneighbor #seekjustice #lovemercy #walkhumbly
#lament #repent #repair #facethepast #healthefuture #headlinesandhistory
#historyandheadlines #tellthetruth #equality #blog #blogger #newblogpost #tellthetruthaboutpolicebrutality #broadeningthenarrative
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