A CBS News poll released Tuesday found that 57% of Republicans believe police officers treat black people and white people equally and 9% of Republicans believe that police officers give preferential treatment to black citizens.
These poll results would be astounding in any circumstances, but are beyond comprehension in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd and the subsequent protests against police violence.
Anecdotes are not evidence, but here’s one: In my 19 years as head of a New York City school, every single student of color I asked had been stopped, frisked, profiled and followed in stores. No white students I asked had been stopped and frisked. That’s called statistically significant — every single student of color and no white student. Perhaps that’s the preferential attention the 9% of Republicans are referring to.
Students of color in my school got “the talk” from their parents. “The talk” is a sad conversation about the reality and danger of being black in America. “The talk” is part of black family experience, whether a single parent family in the South Bronx or a hedge fund family on the Upper West Side. Many studies have shown that black men are perceived as larger, scarier and more likely to be criminals. That means a routine police stop can turn into a violent encounter in a split second. The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology published a report in 2014 showing that white police officers “commonly dehumanized black people” and that those officers were significantly more likely to have histories of violent treatment of boys of color. For the parents of these children, not a day passes when they don’t have a nagging worry that their boys will not come home.
Sure, I know, not all police officers are bad and it’s a hard job. But this bias, combined with increased militarization, makes any encounter a high-risk event for black and brown boys. As Joy Reid recently said on MSNBC, black people are not considered citizens to many in America. They are subjects. Deference, often with obsequiousness, is the unspoken expectation, especially in encounters with the police. Even I, a privileged white man, know that police expect deferential compliance. Ask yourself if you feel comfortable arguing or contradicting an intimidating police officer wearing unnecessary military-style clothing, reflective sunglasses, a scowl and a hat copied from those of military drill sergeants — even when handing you a ticket for a faulty brake light.
Despite this evidence of bias, much of the attention now is turned from looking at the cause of police violence into condemning the reaction to police bias and violence. While most folks generally seem to support the protests, even the most progressive among us fiercely condemn looting and violence. There is an argument to be made that only violence and destruction bring change. I could, but won’t, make that argument.
Our national response to the protests is destined to exacerbate, not calm, the turmoil. We are responding to people who recoil from excessive police force by imposing even greater police — and military — force. Recent images of police brutality or indifference are horrifying: Journalists shot with rubber bullets, women shoved to the pavement, a frail old man violently knocked to the cement by a policeman in riot gear. Among the most pungent of the street chants in recent days is “Why are you in riot gear? There is no riot here.”
We are responding to people whose constitutional rights have been violated by further violating their constitutional rights as when peaceful citizens in Lafayette Park were illegally tear-gassed, assaulted and intimidated by military helicopters — just so Trump could have a bizarre photo-op in front of a church he never attends while holding a Bible he never reads.
We are responding to people who don’t trust the police by teaching them to also mistrust the military.
With all this as backdrop, I will not condemn angry young men of color who loot and damage property — perhaps not “condone,” but surely understand.
The other evening, when I watched boys of color looting upscale shops in Santa Monica, I felt sad in so many ways. I know those young men are followed by security in those same stores. I know those young men are stopped and frisked by police. Those young men are told to take their skateboards and get away from the upscale customers. Those young men can’t get jobs. Those young men have fathers serving jail terms for minor drug offenses. Those young men can’t afford the goods in those or any other stores. Those young men are angry at a world that excludes and demeans them. Those young men see other young and older men shot and choked on the streets of their neighborhood.
They know they are one violent cop away from being a corpse. Through the lens of their experience, their restraint is remarkable.
And we are angry that they take a few pairs of shoes?
Steve Nelson lives in Boulder, Colo., and Sharon. He can be reached at stevehutnelson@gmail.com.