Current Events –
POLL:  Do You Trust The Police?

Some Americans see a police officer enter their neighborhood or pass them on the highway and feel an immediate sense of security and relief.  Other Americans see a police officer enter their neighborhood or pass them on the highway and immediately feel frightened, threatened and as if their life could be in danger.  Which one are you? Do you trust the police??

Current Events
Americas police departments have been the focus of the news lately.  Interestingly, many whites have a completely different viewpoint of the police than many blacks.  Wonder why?  Keep reading…

Having served 15 years on the Baton Rouge police force, Officer Michael Elsbury resigned last week after racist text messages by him were turned in to his superiors.  In one message, Elsbury — whose patrol included the area around the historically black Southern University — wrote that blacks are “nothing but a bunch of monkeys,” and that the “only reason they have this job is the nigger, nigger in them.”  It’s unclear what “job” he was referring to.

In another text, he wrote: “I wish someone would pull a Ferguson on them and take them out. I hate looking at those African monkeys at work…I enjoy arresting those thugs with their saggy pants.”

Police Chief Carl Dabadie said “It was gut-wrenching to believe that someone had that much hate in them, especially a police officer who is out there enforcing the law every day. It made me sick to my stomach.” Dabadie added he understands how an incident like this could “cast a bad light” on the entire department, but that he hoped the community would appreciate the alacrity with which the incident was handled.

Also in Baton Rouge, police are under scrutiny for the death of 22-year-old Victor White III, who police claim shot and killed himself while inside a squad car, even though his hands were tightly cuffed behind his back. The White family’s attorney, Carol Powell-Lexing, said the investigation contains “an avalanche of discrepancies” and the finding that White committed suicide is preposterous.

“Short of him being Houdini or David Copperfield, it’s just not possible,” she said.

Current Events
In July of this year, Eric Garner was strangled to death by police on the streets of Staten Island, NY, after Garner was accused of selling loose cigarettes outside a convenience store.  Officer Daniel Pantaleo used a chokehold (which NYPD has internally ruled to be illegal and unnecessary force) to take the 300+ pound Garner down to the ground.  Although amateur video footage showed Garner clearly telling police to let up because he was suffocating and could not breathe, his pleas in the final moments of his life went unheard.  An hour later, Eric Garner was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Also in July, Officer Darren Wilson shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown on the streets of Ferguson, Missouri. Originally, Police Chief Thomas Jackson said the officer shot Brown because he was a suspect in a robbery of cigars from a local convenience store. Then, Jackson amended his story, relating the shooting of Brown to him “walking down the middle of the street, blocking traffic.” Jackson claims Brown was shot resisting arrest, although at least 3 eyewitnesses came forward with testimony that Brown had his hands in the air, but the police officer shot and killed him anyway.  A brand new videotape and testimony from 3 white construction workers corroborates that Brown was not resisting arrest, but was murdered in cold blood by the cop.

Last week, Daniele Watts, who happens to be African-American, told how she was handcuffed and held in the back of a police car after officers thought she was a prostitute.  Why did police believe she was a prostitute? Because she was seen kissing Brian James Lucas, a white man, in public. However, Daniele Watts is not a prostitute…she is an actress.  As for the white man she was detained for kissing… he was her husband!

Police officers put their lives on the line every day to serve and protect.  However, some officers hop on a power trip and take their racist views and general frustrations out on a fearful public.  Are police officers getting a bad rap for simply doing their jobs under stressful circumstances?  Or have there been enough violent and bigoted incidents to justify a legitimate fear and distrust of police?

Do you trust the police to serve and protect, or does the mere sight of a cop put you on edge?

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