No More Paid Vacation?
The five MPD officers
On Jan. 7, Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old father, was attacked and brutalized by five Black Memphis Police Department officers during a traffic stop that resulted in a confrontation. The body cam footage that MPD collected was referred to as "appalling" and "violent" on every level imaginable. Nichols passed away on Jan. 10 at a Memphis hospital. The five officers involved in the altercation were terminated after the Police Department determined that they had used excessive force, rightfully so, but the question is, why now? The swift firing of Police has never been a frequent thing taken place in the case of police brutality, as we have seen months-long investigations that have resulted in law enforcement officers being placed on administrative leave while being backed by police unions for decades now, with those long periods resulting in months-long protests. Many believe that the firing was completely justified - as it was - but those that feel that way also have their brows raised. Some in the Black community have come to see this situation where "Blue Lives Matter doesn't count when you're Black," as we have seen many police departments stick up for their officers until criminal charges were made against them, but why isn't that the case now? The only difference between these five officers and the past officers that caught headlines that committed the same offense is the color of their skin while wearing Blue. Is this the beginning of a change in the reactions made by authorities to the killings of the innocent by Police, or is it just the start of a precedent being set for all Black officers to know that they won't be able to get away with the things their White brothers in Blue do, and open their eyes to reality?
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When I first heard this story break, I also noticed that they were fired- not placed on paid administrative leave- extremely quickly in comparison to the many other police brutality cases that are published. Of course, police using excessive force should always be a fireable offense, but I will say that I did raise my brow. They were fired before the footage even came out. They were fired when I heard the story, not weeks after. From what I have seen reported, the difference may have been because Memphis is a predominantly black city. Maybe their government and community felt led to hold them more accountable than a predominantly white community would have. I think this is the first time that this specific situation has been broadcasted nationally (a team of black cops kills a black man), so it would be hard to predict a motive behind the course of action. We can only hope that more districts will follow the lead of Memphis and fairly apply this standard to all officers, but records indicate that the nation is far from this.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first found out about the murder of Tyre Nichols on twitter I was shocked that there was no public outcry, up until it was announced that his death was at the hands of black officers. Following that a day later it said that the officers involved were immediately fired. I am not justifying their actions at all however, it is odd how the black officers were immediately fired without an extensive investigation and will most likely be found guilty with no other objections. The officers involved were fired before the camera footage was released. Unlike past comparable events with white officers it would take months to a year for an investigation to begin. Sometimes the police departments would decline to release body cam footage, so how come the black cops were immediately fired and not put on administrative leave? Now with their being national awareness to the situation it is interesting how people are shining light on their being black on black crime especially considering the offenders were black officers. This is just another example of systematic racism and it seems like no one is questioning it. Those officers deserve to be punished for taking a life but all officers should face the same treatment that the 5 black officers are facing.
ReplyDeleteThis week I did a post on this as well but more from the police chiefs point of view in a way. Cerelyn C.J. Davis was the first African American female to take on that position in 2021. She has always had a strong position on police reform and is a big advocate. She has said that she waits for a day that all Black lives are valued by all police officers. For this reason, I think her quick actions can be seen as a positive step in the right direction when it comes to holding police officers accountable. The 5 officers that played a part in Tyre Nichol's death were wrong no matter how you look at it. When there are videos of these things taking place things should be done immediately whether the public has seen that video evidence or not. I doubt the family cared what the officers looked like, but that they were held accountable. So would them dragging their feet for 6 months to a year or even longer make the situation no longer be about race? Authorities prolonging these actions would have caused social unrest and protesting leading to other problems. At the end of the day the question should be why do these men, Black or White, who wear a badge feel like they are above the law and the lives of others.
ReplyDeleteI was always curious about what the response from within the law enforcement community on this one. I predicted it correctly as did you. There was a swift negative reaction and now these officers will fry. I cannot sit here today and tell you that the reaction would have been as swift if the officers were white. I can see all he justifications that would have been made if the officers were white. "Well, he was resisting arrest." "Well, he ran from them". I believe the response still would have been negative, but it would have been much slower with excuses. I do not believe black police officers have the same support system within the law enforcement community as does white officers. Black officers always have to remember that they are not as equal as their white counterparts when it comes to controversies. Do not get me wrong here, I believe that 95% of the police force no matter the race, gender, etc. are public servants. We cannot, however, ignore what is obvious. White police officers have a system of support that is apparent when racial controversy arises. Black officers do not. Hopefully this incident will spur action on policing reform across the board in the United States.
ReplyDeleteWhen I saw this on the news, I wasn't shocked. I knew that either they would be fired immediately. I saw a bunch of tweets saying "What happened to ending Police Brutality" or "I guess this doesn't apply to Black cops?". The thing that they are not getting is that this is what we want to happen. Police being held responsible for their horrific and violent actions. Cops are not above the law by any means. The issue at hand is that when it comes to black cops, they are immediately reprimanded. Whereas with other situations, the cases are dragged out for months, sometimes years. Ending police brutality and wanting a change with the police department applies to all cops. It's scary to see that those who supposed to "serve and protect" could be the ones that end your life. Black cops have to remember that they are not going to receive the same treatment as their counterpart. These five men are still black men at the end of the day, badge or not.
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