Highland Park shooter treated gently by police, Black man killed for traffic violation 

This weekend the world witnessed the two realities that exist inside the United States.

The heavily armed white suspect in the Independence Day parade shooting in Highland Park, while fleeing from police, was calmly arrested using de-escalation techniques but an unarmed black man, stopped for a minor traffic violation in Akron was shot 60 times for fleeing from police.

Robert E. Crimo III was arrested more than eight hours after the mass shooting in Highland Park following a chase. He was taken into custody “without incident,” the police reported.

On the flip side, Jayland Walker was pulled over for an equipment violation and a traffic violation. Instead of using de-escalation techniques offered to a terrorist, eight of the twelve officers present shot Walker, then proceeded to handcuff his mauled body.

The eight officers who were directly involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave according to department policy, the police said.

Absolutely no one who took part in shooting a person over 60 times should still have a job. This is as repulsive to read as it is to write, but it is necessary to understand that a system cannot fail those it was never meant to protect.

Policing as we know it in the United States is rooted in outdated racist beliefs as to who’s considered a criminal versus an American. Since day one, police were used as slave catchers. Then they aided and abetted white racist attacks on Black people as this country was going through Reconstruction following the end of slavery.

Statistically one in every 1,000 Black men can expect to die as a result of an encounter with police. The only solution to that hideous ratio is to eradicate our police state. It’s undeniably too late for a police reform.

We have to listen to Black people.

We have to listen to the voices of the historically oppressed in order to lead this country forward.

No amount of thoughts and prayers will end white terrorism in America from within the police and outside of it.