Thoughts on Protests

PROTESTS. I’ve recently been sent several videos. One lashes out at the protests claiming that because of the violence and looting that took place, especially in the early protests, that they were useless - even counterproductive. Another several showed outrageous disrespectful and dangerous behavior toward police and highlighted the arguments of a small minority who seem to hate cops and want to disband or eliminate police departments.

As someone who has worked with law enforcement professionals for 40 years I’d like to share my opinions.

1) Have the protests made a positive difference and is it fair to characterize the motives and actions of all protesters by the small number of agitators, criminals and hotheads that caused major damage and endangered innocent people. My simple answer is yes for the first part and no for the second.

One video had an impassioned rant by a black former police officer who was outraged at the futility of the protests which he characterized by violence. He roundly condemned all the protests.

Sadly this is not a nuanced understanding of all the different factions involved in the protests and the extreme variety of protest experiences, the vast majority which involved no looting or vandalism.

If his outrage was limited to those who threw things at police, set fires, vandalized and looted I would agree. With all the videoing I hope they identify and hold each one accountable. I think the Atlanta mayors statements along the same lines was right on point.

But of the millions who participated in the protests only a tiny fraction were agitators and criminals and the vast majority hated the violence as much as this angry former officer because they didn’t believe in it and they knew it would discredit their message.

In fact, these protests have, overall, been the most extensive and effective in American history. They have sparked worldwide attention and a promising reform movement addressing two separate but related problems:

1) The too frequent use of excessive force resulting in the deaths of people who did not need to or deserve to die and

2) Discriminatory enforcement and use of force practices against black men so common as to embed fear and resentment in a very large portion of the black community.

I think every person who threw a rock or bottle, set a fire, attacked a police officer or looted should be arrested and convicted. I also believe that every officer who used unnecessary force to keep the peace should be disciplined, fired or criminally charged depending on the conduct.

We cannot judge all police by the worst or all protesters by the worst.

2) Can widespread instances of disrespect and violence against police be justified by the instances of bad policing?

No. Blue prejudice, assuming racist attitudes and actions in all officers is as improper and pernicious as prejudice against young black men and boys.

Though both sides may justify their bias on personal experiences and some interpretations of data, it is always wrong to judge and treat a whole class of people by generalizations and stereotypes.

Police who demonstrate bad behavior and unprofessional attitudes should be identified and held accountable as as should any citizen who breaks the law.

We need and greatly benefit from professional policing and the dedicated men and women who risk life, limb and ridicule to keep us safer. Discriminating by words or deeds against officers who have not violated their oaths and obligations makes it unfairly difficult for public servants that honorably protect and serve - and we will be worse off if they quit or hold back needed actions.

That is not to say that concerns of institutionalized racism are groundless. There is ample evidence that far too many (still a minority) officers have used bad motives or exercised bad judgment in the use of police powers in a manner that has generated distrust. Instances of unjustified force, especially against black males, is simply too frequent to dismiss as totally rare or isolated. It is a real problem.

U.S. police practices in many jurisdictions must be reformed.

Exclusion of choke holds, training to assure deadly force is not only a last resort and only when there is real and Imminent danger to the officer or others, mandated intervention by officers to prevent excessive force, mandated medical assistance to injured suspects, and mandatory body cameras have been recommended for years and adopted by many police agencies long ago.

I also think federal oversight of DOJ through investigations and imposition of consent decrees(abandoned by the current administration are critical and powerful . They made a huge difference in Los Angeles.

To built trust reform is essential.

3) Is the view that police departments be disbanded by defunding or other means a critical or dominant theme in those who participated in and or support the protests? No. In its extreme interpretation it is a ridiculous idea as impractical and foolish. The Biden,mayors of Minneapolis, Atlanta and St Paul have said so. This is a poison held by a small minority on the extreme left and it is just as improper to characterize the reform movement by this position as it is to judge legitimate law and order advocates by extreme KKK or neo Nazi positions.

This is a watershed moment in the police reform movement but it may take a full decade to accomplish its goals.

Though I have extreme reservations about mass protests during the pandemic, from an American values perspective they demonstrate the power of democracy.