Captain Obvious, we know all cops aren't bad

 Published

2015/04/12

It seems that every time there’s an incident of a white cop killing a black man or some controversial incident involving law enforcement, it never fails that self-appointed do-gooders race to their computers, phones and tablets to post or tweet things on social media to the effect of “Not all officers are racists.” Or they post stories about police officers kissing babies and rescuing puppies. And if a black person posts something defending police it quickly goes viral and is revered like it’s a friggin’ tablet brought down from the mountain from God. Get over yourselves!

Is the bar really that freaking low? When a Catholic priest molests little boys do people need to be told that not all priests molest boys? When an NFL player beats his wife are there people who believe that every single NFL player beats their spouse? Even the military, which we hold in high esteem second only to Jesus Christ, has scumbags who rape other soldiers. Aberrant behavior in those we admire shocks us precisely because it’s not the norm.

But any time a controversial incident happens regarding police, Captain Obvious is going to be on the case reassuring us that most police aren’t doing this.

Life is about complexity and nuance. I’d like to believe I live in a country where even glassy-eyed, slack-jawed mouth-breathers don’t have to be told something that would be obvious to a child.

This is a straw man argument. There’s no one seriously advancing the idea that all police officers are racists and will shoot unarmed people like it’s deer season. Proving that not all cops are bad adds absolutely nothing to what happened in the Eric Garner or Walter Scott case, among many others.

These shootings and claims of police brutality are too important to lose in a haze of phony rah-rah sentiment. The Justice Department’s recent investigation into the Ferguson Police Department exposed problems with how the department treated minority residents. So racial profiling and bias is a legitimate area of inquiry in some departments. But one thing that’s often overlooked is heavy-handed policing is often less a problem of black and white as it is a problem of blue solidarity. After all, minority cops have been involved in police brutality cases, too.

In a recent viral video from San Bernardino County a white man, Francis Pusok, fled sheriff’s deputies on horseback. After falling off the horse, he’s tased and lays spread-eagle on the ground. The first deputy to reach him kicks him in the head while the next one kicks him in the groin. The deputies keep punching and kicking. Overall, he was kicked 17 times, punched 37 times and struck with a baton four times. Ten deputies have been suspended pending an investigation.

Why do so many cops look the other way when their fellow officers are breaking the law? The same snitches get stitches mentality that infects gang members and street criminals often rears its head among law enforcement in the blue code of silence. Plenty of good cops allow bad cops to get away with behavior that causes mistrust between the police and the policed.

In one study involving over 2,700 officers in 21 states, nearly half admitted they’d concealed misconduct they’d witnessed!

We know police do a dangerous, often thankless job. We all know that most do a good job. Duh. But when some screw up we need to take an unflinching look at their actions because we put the safety and protection of the public in their hands.

There is a constructive conversation to be had. We can check the data and see if the anecdotal evidence that police escalate to deadly force more quickly with minorities is, in fact, the truth. Maybe better training is necessary. It’s pretty well known on the streets that if you run from the police and they catch you, your odds of catching a beating are high. Go on YouTube and you can see video after video of police chasing a suspect and beating him when they catch him. Why is that? Also, as I mentioned earlier, officers witnessing bad behavior on the part of fellow officers need to step in. In many of these videotaped beatings there are other officers just standing around watching. That’s not protecting or serving.

Likewise, when African-American parents are having the talk with their kids, we have to make sure we’re telling kids to be courteous, compliant and not combative when stopped by police. I would never think of running from the police because it usually doesn’t end well. Running makes you look guilty of something. When stopped by police one’s behavior needs to be calm and cooperative.

But highlighting good cops when confronted with evidence of bad ones proves nothing. There’s no need to point out the obvious because for that tiny fraction of the population that might actually believe that every single cop is George Zimmerman with a badge there’s no convincing them otherwise.

When police screw up, let’s investigate it, hold the people involved accountable and make policing better. Let’s give each other the benefit of the doubt that we know all cops aren’t bad.