Even as the circumstances surrounding her death are yet to be determined, there's no escaping the fact that Sandra Bland lies stiff and lifeless in a refrigerator today because of the actions initiated by a power-drunk petty tyrant of a police officer who was empowered and facilitated by our history and by a justice system that cares naught for the lives of black people.
Sandra Bland lies dead today because a cop over-policed her to death.
Since learning about the unnatural death of Sandra, we have gone through the very predictable established ritual. Those of us who care have howled in pain, gotten angry, pleaded, shed tears. Just as predictable, those who understand the system that works for them and theirs, and see nothing wrong with the death of another unarmed black person after interacting with a law enforcement officer, have intruded in our space to once again explain legal intricacies and provide cover for a racist asshole of a cop and the system which gave him the power of life and death.
That system encourages officers to over-police black people to death.
Predictable, too, the response of the media. Having established themselves as willing partners and mouthpiece of murderous cops, they have covered the death of Sandra Bland as they would a Little League Game. "Neither of them tried to deescalate the situation," declared Anderson-Breaking-News!-Cooper. "She was very arrogant from start to finish," says CNN's Harry Houck, an "analyst" who has yet to see a shooting that wasn't justified. Score another one for the cop. Absolutely no outrage that another unarmed American lost her life as consequence of an illegal arrest. No attempt to connect the dots and discuss the very obvious pattern.
They refuse to admit that racist, overzealous, murderous cops over-police black people to death.
Officer Encinia had just finished writing a ticket for a white driver when he spotted Sandra's car. That white driver is alive and well. Did not have to lie face down in the dirt with a knee in her back. With the black Sandra, Encinia wrote her a warning, invited her to state her grievances, had his feelings hurt because she dared to take him up on his offer, and then decided to teach her a lesson. He wanted to stamp his authority all over her. How dare she try to defend herself. How dare she quote her knowledge of the law. Didn't she know who he was? More importantly, didn't she know who SHE was?
In giving his closing speech in A Time Kill, Matthew McConaughey's character conducted a little experiment. It is an exercise that I have used before. I want to use it again. For those of you who do not feel the urgency to do something; for those of you who are enraged that what happened to Sandra Bland overshadowed your candidate's appearance at NN; I want you to do something: Will you please, just for a moment, close your eyes and revisit the video of Sandra's encounter with Officer Encinia. See him approach her, hear his questions to her, hear her responses.
Can you see them?Imagine that she was your daughter, your granddaughter, your sister, your niece, your cousin, your girlfriend, your friend. Now tell me how you feel.I want you to picture Sandra and the cop.
Now imagine that Sandra is white.
The Support the Dream Defenders group is not content with only joining the chorus of voices condemning the continuing terrorizing of people of color by out-of-control cops. We want to do more. We want to use the law to fight back. Will you join us?
Will you help us? For Sandra. For the 96 people killed so far this month.
Help us make a difference by pressuring your representatives to pass the Michael Brown Over-Policed Rights Act (MBOPRA):
Please Contact Your Representative