White Male Confession

in #equality8 years ago (edited)

 My first exposure to the ‪#‎BLM‬ movement was watching a Sanders rally in Seattle. I was pissed off at the disruption until I saw Sanders himself step off the stage and give the protesters the podium. So I did some reading, talked to some friends of color and learned a few things. The “Broken Window” police policy, which says: by targeting people who commit the smallest crimes, law enforcement can, “re-knit the social fabric”, begs the need for things like “stop and frisk” and other zero tolerance police policies which rely on the presumption of guilt as justification for maximum police action in the streets. So, evidence-based policing takes a back seat to assumption based, forceful action. We have a military industrial complex, long known to sell off old war weapons to state and local police forces, all over the United States, further militarizing these agencies, who are meant to protect and serve us. We are seeing people by the millions who have no problem at all with D.Trumps hate and fear filled madness. Police Unions have long taken a page from the mafia handbook; “protect your own at all costs”. So, we don't have many examples of officers holding each other to the highest standards in our courts of law; instead, officers are rewarded for covering one another's mistakes. As a result, the lines of justice are blurred. The idea that anyone or group is above the law (especially, 'The Law Enforcers') undermines the very idea of justice. #BLM is sounding an urgent cry for help. They are demanding that we agree that they still matter. The burden of privilege is to continue to relate and offer alliance to those less fortunate than ourselves. It should not come as a surprise that the poor, minorities and immigrants, who are the most vulnerable amongst us, would be the first to sound the alarm if/when there is a shift in the expression of power and authority, as observed in the actions of law enforcement officers, nationwide. We are “privileged” in that we do not reside on the front lines of this battle. We are fools to pretend that we are immune to the lethal use of force by our police. It's just not our turn yet. 

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