During a charity golf outing hosted by a retired LAPD officer, former investigator Gary Fishell took the microphone and began to sing a parody of the song, “Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown,” substituting his own words and directing it at Michael Brown, the unarmed African-American youngster who was shot and killed in Ferguson, Missouri, by police officer Darren Wilson.
Not only did Mr. Fishell make light of the killing of this young man but he injected humor into his rendition of the song as if this were a joke he could share with his friends. Many of the people in attendance were former police officers, although there were some civilians.
Like Mitt Romney who, during his campaign for president, speaking to his constituents, the wealthy and greedy capitalists, stated that 47% of Americans were takers and contributed nothing, Fishell must have thought that being among friends he could sing his song without consequence. But, lo and behold, like Romney, his performance was being videotaped.
The Los Angeles Police Department has opened an investigation into this matter. Is it because they feel that what Fishell has done is wrong? I doubt it. There is a great deal of political pressure in response to the thousands of people who have taken to the streets throughout the nation demanding an end to police brutality and the killing of unarmed black men.
However, Mr. Fishell, the individual, is not the major concern. He has done nothing more than give voice to what a great many of us feel.
We live in a racist society, one in which we have all been contaminated, whites as the beneficiaries of this racism and blacks who are its victims. Most of our actions, relationships, and perceptions are influenced by these prejudices and stereotypes we impose on others.
Some of us try to overcome the sickness of this state of affairs, while others indulge in it.
The police, like all the rest of us, suffer from this disease and when they commit to becoming police officers, they bring with them all that they have learned while growing up in their communities.
Then, we arm them and give them the authority to use these weapons.
If the black man is stereotyped as a danger and threat, the white cop confronting a black man will see and experience a threat. If the black man is stereotyped as a criminal, then the white cop will immediately see the black man in front of him as most likely guilty of something.
The response to charges that police officers have arbitrarily and without cause murdered black men is that most cops are not like that and the culprits are merely bad apples. But, that does not deal with the greater picture, that of institutional racism where cops guilty of murder do not face the consequences of their behavior; where cops are not held accountable for their behavior; where cops who enforce the law are seen as above the law. Why? Because they are a reflection of what this society is about.
True, there are cops who are nice people, who love their families, who are great neighbors, who take out the garbage and read stories to their children. But, once they don the blue uniforms, they have taken an oath to enforce the law, any law, justified or fair or not.
They become agents of the state and the corporate executives who run the state. Therefore, their main responsibility is to keep the general public under control and protect the top 5% from the rest of us.
Providing police officers with cameras will not make a difference. They are already being filmed and their brutality made public and still, the brutality continues and citizens are dying at the hands of our “peace officers.”
What about having prospective police officers better trained? I wonder whether it is possible to train life-long fear and suspicion out of one’s perceptions. It is not better procedures that will make a difference, it is how the other is perceived. That’s why we see cops most often taking the time to deflate a confrontation with a white suspect and take them into custody, while black suspects are often shot dead immediately.
What about the black police officer? What’s clear is while the black officer is in uniform, he is recognizable and safe. Interestingly, when the uniform is taken off, he becomes just another black man who very often faces the same indignities and mistreatment as other black men. That’s why many undercover or off duty black cops have been killed by other cops.
As long as we allow our institutions such as politics, education, justice, health care, housing, etc., to promote and perpetuate racism, we will not make the changes that are necessary. Applying Band-Aids and punishing the “bad” guys allows us to feel good but doesn’t effect the structural aspects of the disease.
Dave Alpert has masters degrees in social work, educational administration, and psychology. He spent his career working with troubled inner city adolescents.
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Letting it all hang out
Posted on January 6, 2015 by Dave Alpert
During a charity golf outing hosted by a retired LAPD officer, former investigator Gary Fishell took the microphone and began to sing a parody of the song, “Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown,” substituting his own words and directing it at Michael Brown, the unarmed African-American youngster who was shot and killed in Ferguson, Missouri, by police officer Darren Wilson.
Not only did Mr. Fishell make light of the killing of this young man but he injected humor into his rendition of the song as if this were a joke he could share with his friends. Many of the people in attendance were former police officers, although there were some civilians.
Like Mitt Romney who, during his campaign for president, speaking to his constituents, the wealthy and greedy capitalists, stated that 47% of Americans were takers and contributed nothing, Fishell must have thought that being among friends he could sing his song without consequence. But, lo and behold, like Romney, his performance was being videotaped.
The Los Angeles Police Department has opened an investigation into this matter. Is it because they feel that what Fishell has done is wrong? I doubt it. There is a great deal of political pressure in response to the thousands of people who have taken to the streets throughout the nation demanding an end to police brutality and the killing of unarmed black men.
However, Mr. Fishell, the individual, is not the major concern. He has done nothing more than give voice to what a great many of us feel.
We live in a racist society, one in which we have all been contaminated, whites as the beneficiaries of this racism and blacks who are its victims. Most of our actions, relationships, and perceptions are influenced by these prejudices and stereotypes we impose on others.
Some of us try to overcome the sickness of this state of affairs, while others indulge in it.
The police, like all the rest of us, suffer from this disease and when they commit to becoming police officers, they bring with them all that they have learned while growing up in their communities.
Then, we arm them and give them the authority to use these weapons.
If the black man is stereotyped as a danger and threat, the white cop confronting a black man will see and experience a threat. If the black man is stereotyped as a criminal, then the white cop will immediately see the black man in front of him as most likely guilty of something.
The response to charges that police officers have arbitrarily and without cause murdered black men is that most cops are not like that and the culprits are merely bad apples. But, that does not deal with the greater picture, that of institutional racism where cops guilty of murder do not face the consequences of their behavior; where cops are not held accountable for their behavior; where cops who enforce the law are seen as above the law. Why? Because they are a reflection of what this society is about.
True, there are cops who are nice people, who love their families, who are great neighbors, who take out the garbage and read stories to their children. But, once they don the blue uniforms, they have taken an oath to enforce the law, any law, justified or fair or not.
They become agents of the state and the corporate executives who run the state. Therefore, their main responsibility is to keep the general public under control and protect the top 5% from the rest of us.
Providing police officers with cameras will not make a difference. They are already being filmed and their brutality made public and still, the brutality continues and citizens are dying at the hands of our “peace officers.”
What about having prospective police officers better trained? I wonder whether it is possible to train life-long fear and suspicion out of one’s perceptions. It is not better procedures that will make a difference, it is how the other is perceived. That’s why we see cops most often taking the time to deflate a confrontation with a white suspect and take them into custody, while black suspects are often shot dead immediately.
What about the black police officer? What’s clear is while the black officer is in uniform, he is recognizable and safe. Interestingly, when the uniform is taken off, he becomes just another black man who very often faces the same indignities and mistreatment as other black men. That’s why many undercover or off duty black cops have been killed by other cops.
As long as we allow our institutions such as politics, education, justice, health care, housing, etc., to promote and perpetuate racism, we will not make the changes that are necessary. Applying Band-Aids and punishing the “bad” guys allows us to feel good but doesn’t effect the structural aspects of the disease.
Dave Alpert has masters degrees in social work, educational administration, and psychology. He spent his career working with troubled inner city adolescents.