Fogdog
Well-Known Member
Published March 3, 2022. In light of what happened in Memphis, as pertinent today as then.
www.nbcnews.com
According to data collected by The Washington Post, police shot and killed at least 1,055 people nationwide last year, the most since the newspaper began tracking fatal shootings by officers in 2015. That is more than the 1,021 shootings in 2020 and the 999 in 2019.
Black people, who account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, accounted for 27 percent of those fatally shot and killed by police in 2021, according to Mapping Police Violence, a nonprofit group that tracks police shootings. That means Black people are twice as likely as white people to be shot and killed by police officers.
This doesn't even account for those who died like Tyre. He was beaten to death.
Republicans make hay over the political misfire BLM made when they coined the term "defund the police". It would be nice if they saved a little outrage over police hurting the people they are supposed to protect.
People perceive that people protesting in the streets leads to people caring more, and sometimes it leads to people resisting the change more. And in this case, we’re talking about officers resisting the change,” said Ray, who is also a professor of sociology at the University of Maryland. “What we see in the immediate aftermath of the demonstrations is police officers’ hunkering down and standing behind the blue wall of silence even more.”
There it is again. That god damned blue wall of silence. Probably the largest obstacle to overcome next to white men's ignorance.
Williams said the data mean that “until we get to policies that dismantle the system that exists, we’re not going to see this stop.”
“We can say, ‘Things have changed because the national dialogue is changing.’ But until we get to the crux of the problem, we’re going to see this continue,” she said.
Leslie Mac, an organizer and activist from Brooklyn, New York, who calls herself a “staunch abolitionist,” said she was not surprised by The Post’s numbers, saying they stem from a lack of movement on policies to change officers’ attitudes.
“We’ve seen a double-down on reform measures that have already been proven to not work, that don’t get to the heart of the white supremacy that is built into policing in this country,” Mac said. “There’s nothing that actually addresses the root issues that exist within policing, whether that’s under-accountability, whether that’s the amount of weaponry they have at their disposal or whether it’s in who they’re accountable to.”
What is it that works? Fewer men with guns and more unarmed peace officers who have the right skills for the majority of calls that don't call for an armed warrior.
Like others who want to abolish police and systems of incarceration, Mac said funds intended for police should instead address root problems like ensuring safe housing and sufficient clothing, food and mental health and addiction services.
“The police are not equipped to deal with those things,” she said. “And so really what these communities are screaming for is to have resources put in the places where the community actually needs them. And I think so much of that got lost in the ‘How dare you take money away from the police to be safe.’”
Of course, this can't happen without a mandate from the people. Without strong community support and the threat of replacing mayors and coucil members with people willing to face down the police union, we'll just see what the police union wants, which are platitudes.
Report: Black people are still killed by police at a higher rate than other groups
"Until we get to policies that dismantle the system that exists," said Karundi Williams, "we’re not going to see this stop."
According to data collected by The Washington Post, police shot and killed at least 1,055 people nationwide last year, the most since the newspaper began tracking fatal shootings by officers in 2015. That is more than the 1,021 shootings in 2020 and the 999 in 2019.
Black people, who account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, accounted for 27 percent of those fatally shot and killed by police in 2021, according to Mapping Police Violence, a nonprofit group that tracks police shootings. That means Black people are twice as likely as white people to be shot and killed by police officers.
This doesn't even account for those who died like Tyre. He was beaten to death.
Republicans make hay over the political misfire BLM made when they coined the term "defund the police". It would be nice if they saved a little outrage over police hurting the people they are supposed to protect.
People perceive that people protesting in the streets leads to people caring more, and sometimes it leads to people resisting the change more. And in this case, we’re talking about officers resisting the change,” said Ray, who is also a professor of sociology at the University of Maryland. “What we see in the immediate aftermath of the demonstrations is police officers’ hunkering down and standing behind the blue wall of silence even more.”
There it is again. That god damned blue wall of silence. Probably the largest obstacle to overcome next to white men's ignorance.
Williams said the data mean that “until we get to policies that dismantle the system that exists, we’re not going to see this stop.”
“We can say, ‘Things have changed because the national dialogue is changing.’ But until we get to the crux of the problem, we’re going to see this continue,” she said.
Leslie Mac, an organizer and activist from Brooklyn, New York, who calls herself a “staunch abolitionist,” said she was not surprised by The Post’s numbers, saying they stem from a lack of movement on policies to change officers’ attitudes.
“We’ve seen a double-down on reform measures that have already been proven to not work, that don’t get to the heart of the white supremacy that is built into policing in this country,” Mac said. “There’s nothing that actually addresses the root issues that exist within policing, whether that’s under-accountability, whether that’s the amount of weaponry they have at their disposal or whether it’s in who they’re accountable to.”
What is it that works? Fewer men with guns and more unarmed peace officers who have the right skills for the majority of calls that don't call for an armed warrior.
Like others who want to abolish police and systems of incarceration, Mac said funds intended for police should instead address root problems like ensuring safe housing and sufficient clothing, food and mental health and addiction services.
“The police are not equipped to deal with those things,” she said. “And so really what these communities are screaming for is to have resources put in the places where the community actually needs them. And I think so much of that got lost in the ‘How dare you take money away from the police to be safe.’”
Of course, this can't happen without a mandate from the people. Without strong community support and the threat of replacing mayors and coucil members with people willing to face down the police union, we'll just see what the police union wants, which are platitudes.
