Good Morning!
The three police officers on trial for the killing of Sean Bell were all acquitted this morning. The judge (not jury) found them not guiilty on all charges. How could unarmed men be fired at 50 times, and be at fault?
Historically, police officers are usually acquitted in cases of this kind. And this time, the racial motivation was played down because two of the three officers are Black. Why is it that White kids are never mistakenly shot? Or never have hairbrushes or cell phones mistaken for guns? Why is it that White children are referred to as teenagers and citizens, and Blacks are referred to as youth and male/female, respectively?
This is a Black/White thing; this is another example of the injustice of the justice system. This is another example of the Black community not taking social responsibility to ensure that they are treated with respect.
Sean bell (and company) may have been obeying the law, but how many young Black teenagers do not? How many times do older people not impart their knowledge and experiences on the younger generation? How often do successful people act unaffected and too far removed to make a difference?
It's no longer a matter of when is the madness going to stop? But when are those of us who can make a difference going to.
I am proud to report that as soon as I heard the verdict I promptly called my 16-year-old cousin and AGAIN reminded him about appropriate behavior with the law. That tomorrow morning after my NCNW chapter meeting I will be running a Girl Scout meeting with 11 six-eight year olds and we will AGAIN be having a meeting about current events and deciding on summertime events based on the grades they achieve in school.
I vote, I serve my community, and I am as current as current can be on events that affect my community. So I have the right to comment and challenge. I am not only my sister's, but my brother's keeper as well.
Today I leave with you a quote by Shirley Chisolm:
"Community Service is the rent we pay by getting to live on this earth"
1 comment:
While I agree that we need to take up the social responsibility of teaching the youth/teens in our community the correct way to approach the law and law enforcement, it seems to be very one sided these days. There are way too many instances of police officers overstepping their boundaries with regular law-abiding citizens with no responsibility falling on the officers or the police department who trains the officer. I am personally tired of the half-assed "internal investigations" of police brutality and profiling that always seem to lead to the same game of victim-blaming and/or hiding behind the shield.
Yes, it's never wise for citizens to get into public altercations with people on the street....and yes, being a police officer can be stressful and dangerous when you only have a short period of time to assess a situation. But, 50 unanswered shots from undercover police officers in a populated area, 31 coming from one ALONE (who had to take the time to reload to even get off so many shots), shooting at a moving vehicle (which officers are NOT supposed to do) all while the "suspects" broke no law and had no weapon...well, even in the best light that's excessive use of force and reckless endangerment.
I for one would just like to see the police department take take on some social responsibility to the communties they are expected to "protect and serve". It's difficult to explain to children and teens how they should approach a police officer who may or may not even value their safety or life. How can Nicole Bell explain to her children to respect police officers when it was police officers who killed their father?
sorry to write so much, I'm just really pissed at this morning's verdict.
Post a Comment