I was talking to one of my childhood friends today about the shooting of an unarmed African-American male in Tulsa, Oklahoma. His remark about the shootings of Black men by police officers made me realize one thing.
These shootings will not stop. There may be a temporary respite from time to time but the shooting and killing won’t stop.
This time, Terence Crutcher, a Black man in Tulsa was stopped. The police officer, Betty Shelby, had Crutcher get out of his SUV. Backup police arrived and Terence Crutcher was first tased and then Officer Shelby shot him to death.
Of course, the Tulsa chief of police, Chuck Jordan has called for a full investigation. Of course, Officer Shelby has been placed on administrative leave and of course drugs were found in the victim’s vehicle.
Let’s not leave out that the audio tape between the police, the dispatcher and the police helicopter officer suggested Crutcher was on something. In a search of the vehicle no gun or anything else that could be used as a weapon was found although it has been reported that PCP was found.
The aforementioned steps have been pretty much the same in the deaths of other unarmed Black men.
Black men, pay attention! Our lives are not valued by the larger society. This is what I know not what I think.
