The killing of 40-year-old Justine Ruszczyk by a black immigrant officer has forced racists to become creative in finding a new language with which to discuss cop-on-civilian murders. The usual ready-made jargon just won’t work for this killing. The apologists and enablers of murderous cops are reluctant to use any of the stock-in-trade apologia and legalese that they have so liberally employed after every Michael Brown and Tamir Rice. Justine, described by the guardians of white womanhood as the “blonde, blue-eyed beauty,” was inexplicably killed by a trigger-happy black cop and thus arousing the collective protective instinct of the white majority. With this killing, the usual go-to defense of “I fear for my life” will not fall on receptive ears...as it should not. If there’s one thing that people on the full continuum of the racial spectrum agree on this time, it is that Justine’s life mattered. No way should an unarmed civilian who was only trying to do her civic duty lose her life at the hands of those who swore to protect and serve. I have no doubt that the killer will be held accountable...this time.
A Kernel of Hope
We in this space have long argued that over-policing will end when white people en masse demand a sophisticated and compassionate police force. So far, despite the heart cries and protests of black and brown people, the white community, for the most part, has turned blind eyes, deaf ears, and unsympathetic hearts to our lamentations. They, for the most part, have bought hook, line, and sinker every lie and every irrational excuse told by misbehaving cops. God-fearing white folks believed that a 12-year-old boy playing in a park was justifiably killed because he “looks like an adult male.” Our white neighbors rewarded a murderous cop with house and cash because they chose to believe his lies that a wounded and bleeding 18-year-old would suddenly stop, turn around and charge the man who was firing a gun at him. A cop told a tall tale of how a fleeing 50-year-old man actually did pose a threat to his person and I guarantee that nobody was as surprised as he was when he learned that his peers actually bought his bullshit.
Up until this point, no lie told by a cop has been too idiotic to be believed by a loyal, protective majority community.
Gallup recently published the result of their latest survey on how we view law enforcement in this country and, once again, we see the extent of white indifference to the pain and anguish inflicted on communities of color by rogue the police. White people in general, people over 55-years of age, and Republicans were the only groups to report that their confidence in the police grew since the last survey.
The return to the historical average comes after confidence edged downward during the tumultuous years of 2014 and 2015. Overall confidence fell from 57% in 2013 to 53% in June 2014, after the acquittal of George Zimmerman for the shooting death of black teenager Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman's acquittal led to the founding of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Confidence in police then dropped to a record-tying low of 52% in June 2015, as the Black Lives Matter movement gained national attention with a series of protests against police shootings of unarmed blacks in New York City; Ferguson, Missouri; and North Charleston, South Carolina. As violence continued over the past two years -- with fatal police shootings of black men in Minnesota and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, followed by deadly attacks on police in Dallas and Baton Rouge by black men -- the percentage of Americans confident in the police climbed back to 56% in June 2016 and to 57% last month. Only two other institutions (the military and small business) of the 15 others measured this year scored higher than the police.
Bear in mind that police have been killing people at a staggering, mind-blowing rate.
Fatal Encounters’ data from earlier years is admittedly incomplete, but they have so far collected more than 14,000 records of people killed in interactions with police from January 2000 through June 2016.
Killing unarmed people, killing people who are clearly mentally disabled, killing children, killing the elderly, killing women, killing people “armed” with knives or clubs or cell phones or pens. In addition to taking lives, we have seen the many instances of unprovoked, nauseating cruelty. Like this one:
A wanton disregard for the sanctity of the human life. A disrespect for the dignity of the living.
Despite all the empirical and anecdotal evidence that they have read, seen, and heard over the years, white people, for the most part, have steadfastly refused to hold the police accountable. They have stubbornly explained away bad acts and maliciously demonized victims of color. Dare we hope that the murder of Ms. Ruszczyk will finally force the majority community to come to their senses and insist that police act within the boundaries of the law and that when they abuse their powers that they are prosecuted to the full extent of said law?
Dare we? Dare we hope that white mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, cousins and in-laws will finally wake up to the realization that though Black people, Native people, Brown people, and the mentally ill are killed at a faster rate, in sheer numbers, the majority of those who are sent to early graves by our police force are actually white people? Dare we hope that this realization will result in a coordinated push for police reform? Dare we hope that white women and men will cease to see the police as their personal pocket security to be used at will against POC?
I have seen nothing as yet to nurture that kernel; nothing that will make me think there’ll be any significant shift in the consciousness of white folks about their beloved police. But it’s early yet. I’m just going to keep on hoping...at least for a little while longer.
Rest in peace to Justine Ruszczyk.