I have been struggling with trying to find the right words to discuss this issue with the police shootings. I don’t think I have enough writing skill to explain this properly but it’s difficult as a black man when a situation comes up that reminds you of where you stand in this society. It seems like since Katrina there has been more of these times than ever but this Danziger 7 situation is the exclamation point. It bothers me, scares me, and pisses me off at the same time and I am having trouble moving past it and I’m trying to work through it. I’m really not sure what I want to see happen. Maybe I want all those people who chanted “heroes!” when the officers left the court the first time to apologize to the families of the victims and to the community for standing by their side. Maybe I want the other officers involved to come forward, plead guilty and accept their punishment so we can start moving forward. I think I want Jim Letten to make sure everyone involved gets the highest possible sentence and at least life in prison for the shooters because if anyone else shot an innocent family for no reason we would probably be sitting on death row. For myself I need to get over the thought that my dad, brother, cousins and friends were all here after the storm and could have ran across the wrong officers in the wrong place and got shot down. I’m thinking about how it would be to go through life day to day for all this time with the world thinking my brother was a criminal who was trying to harm police officers and got what was coming to him. I need to stop taking this so personal.
Jarvis DeBerry broke this down already but I really would like our police chief to accept some responsibility for this taking so long. I know he wasn’t on the bridge when it happened but sometime during the first year he was chief he could have at least read the report. I would like to hear something from my mayor as well. They are always talking about the ‘shadow government’ and all that junk. Well, here’s the chance to stand up for the people and all I hear is nothing. It just reminds me one more time of why people in the community don’t vote anymore. It doesn’t matter who is in charge. The pecking order is going to still be the same. Now I am waiting to see who Mitch Landrieu will select as the next police chief. That choice may make or break his administration before it even starts.
I’m not talking about this again until someone else pleads guilty or gets arrested. I hope that is not too far away.
3 comments:
I just don't see how anyone can cheer the shooting of seven fellow human beings.
I am not even clear on what they (the shooting victimss) were suspected or accused of doing wrong. The exhaused hurricane refugees who tried to walk to the West Bank across the Crescent City Connection bridge were also treated with suspicion and contempt, in spite of the humanitarian crisis. I feel that the recent earthquake victims in Haiti and Chile were reached more quickly than those stranded in New Orleans after Katrina. Those were horrible days and the whole story will never be known. sp, n.o.
Reminds me of a song by Public Enemy many years ago...with a line in rapid succession: "Overseer, overseer, over-cer, officer, officer" The line is blurred but essentially the same.
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