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I'm a social worker. I want a world where our race, religion, sexuality, gender, food habits and every other thing don't play into how we treat each other. Discrimination is not cool. Racism is wrong. We are equal human beings.
But I still think stupidity shouldn't be rewarded.
In June, Austin PD responded to a night club in East Austin where a report was made about a man with a gun. This is a night club with a bad history for disorderly behavior by its patrons as well as drugs and crime. It's not a nice neighborhood. It also happens to be a more minority centric neighborhood than say, Circle C ranch. They go out, and officers are questioning a man about the gun. He runs. The police chase after him. Officers see him reaching for a gun at his waist. Shots are fired, and the man is shot in the back. He dies.
The NAACP and some people from his neighborhood are throwing a fit that a grand jury refused to indict the officer.
Wait, stop. He runs away from the police. He had a gun. Why the fuck should the officer not shoot? Should the officer wait until this dude shoots a cop, or a bystander? (Well no cause then this same community would be screaming about how the police won't protect them.)
This man was questioned by police. He had a criminal record that included drug charges. The guy was high on cocaine and marijuana, which was confirmed in the autopsy. This man took actions which presented an immediate threat to the safety of the neighborhood. But this same neighborhood is screaming racism because the man is black and the cop is white.
That is bullshit.
Yes, there are racist cops. Yes, we could use more Hispanic and Asian and African American cops. Yes America has a history of discrimination. Yes, APD has a poor history. But APD is working on the problem, actively. It makes me so mad when people talk about how they aren't afraid of the drug dealers here but they are afraid of the cops. When you look at the overall numbers, there have been about two dozen murders in Austin this year. There have been numerous hit and runs, drunk driving accidents, and other ways people die pointlessly. There was one shooting and killing by a police officer. I hardly see how they are a scourge. One of the dead guy's friends got on TV claiming he ran out to help after police fired shots and that he was "assaulted" by APD officers.
Wait. You ran at an officer on the ground with a wounded suspect? On what planet does this seem like a good idea? How does that officer know you aren't the guy's buddy coming to attack him if you're not dressed as an EMT? In a dangerous situation where an officer has just had to shoot a person, why would it seem like a good idea to suddenly run up at the officer?
The officer in question is a twelve year veteran. He's not some hot head new kid on the block. He's a missionary, who volunteers his time and money in Mozambique. Yes, he had *one* excessive force complaint that was dropped. I don't see any evidence in any of the coverage that this man goes to work spouting a racist agenda, or that any of his actions were racially motivated. This entire thing was caught on video by a local access TV producer. I am curious to know if that video was given to the grand jury. Part of it was shown on the local news.
All I'm saying is that you don't have to be an idiot to know that running from the police or running at the police = very bad idea. This is not racism.
But I still think stupidity shouldn't be rewarded.
In June, Austin PD responded to a night club in East Austin where a report was made about a man with a gun. This is a night club with a bad history for disorderly behavior by its patrons as well as drugs and crime. It's not a nice neighborhood. It also happens to be a more minority centric neighborhood than say, Circle C ranch. They go out, and officers are questioning a man about the gun. He runs. The police chase after him. Officers see him reaching for a gun at his waist. Shots are fired, and the man is shot in the back. He dies.
The NAACP and some people from his neighborhood are throwing a fit that a grand jury refused to indict the officer.
Wait, stop. He runs away from the police. He had a gun. Why the fuck should the officer not shoot? Should the officer wait until this dude shoots a cop, or a bystander? (Well no cause then this same community would be screaming about how the police won't protect them.)
This man was questioned by police. He had a criminal record that included drug charges. The guy was high on cocaine and marijuana, which was confirmed in the autopsy. This man took actions which presented an immediate threat to the safety of the neighborhood. But this same neighborhood is screaming racism because the man is black and the cop is white.
That is bullshit.
Yes, there are racist cops. Yes, we could use more Hispanic and Asian and African American cops. Yes America has a history of discrimination. Yes, APD has a poor history. But APD is working on the problem, actively. It makes me so mad when people talk about how they aren't afraid of the drug dealers here but they are afraid of the cops. When you look at the overall numbers, there have been about two dozen murders in Austin this year. There have been numerous hit and runs, drunk driving accidents, and other ways people die pointlessly. There was one shooting and killing by a police officer. I hardly see how they are a scourge. One of the dead guy's friends got on TV claiming he ran out to help after police fired shots and that he was "assaulted" by APD officers.
Wait. You ran at an officer on the ground with a wounded suspect? On what planet does this seem like a good idea? How does that officer know you aren't the guy's buddy coming to attack him if you're not dressed as an EMT? In a dangerous situation where an officer has just had to shoot a person, why would it seem like a good idea to suddenly run up at the officer?
The officer in question is a twelve year veteran. He's not some hot head new kid on the block. He's a missionary, who volunteers his time and money in Mozambique. Yes, he had *one* excessive force complaint that was dropped. I don't see any evidence in any of the coverage that this man goes to work spouting a racist agenda, or that any of his actions were racially motivated. This entire thing was caught on video by a local access TV producer. I am curious to know if that video was given to the grand jury. Part of it was shown on the local news.
All I'm saying is that you don't have to be an idiot to know that running from the police or running at the police = very bad idea. This is not racism.