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A Sacrificial Lamb
omething tells me Min-
neapolis police Officer Mohamed Noor is headed to prison. Even though the investigation into the cir- cumstances that led him to shoot Justine Damond, after she called 9-1-1 to re- port a crime in progress, is still ongoing, I don't think it's a stretch to assume that, somewhere, there's a protec- tive custody cell being pre- pared for him to take up residence.
Right now, he's probably thinking to himself that the shooting was a terrible mis- take that can easily be ex- cused by using the old reliable “I feared for my life” defense that usually works so well for his professional col- leagues. What they probably didn't tell him, though, when he was going through the Po- lice Academy, was that the strategy only works when po- lice officers kill Black people.
The truth is that he could have killed three Shamika Robinsons while they walked home from church and probably wouldn't have had to worry about changing his plans for Labor Day. But when the victim is blonde, fe- male and foreign, the rules of the game tend to change.
Terms like "justifiable homicide" are tossed out the window in this scenario be- cause prosecutors know first-hand the kind of ques- tions that typically cross any potential juror's mind (white or Black) when the person killed fits, what's often con- sidered, a "fair" description. "Couldn't he tell she was white? Clearly, she never meant him any harm, right? How did he get onto the force in the first place?"
The irony of the situation is that a jury, pulled from the same pool of individuals who exonerated Officer Jero- nimo Yanez in the death of Philando Castile because Castile's Blackness was au- tomatically viewed to be pre- disposed to violence, would, more than likely, find Noor guilty for the exact same rea- son.
Am I saying that, if Noor is found guilty, justice wouldn't be served, of course not. Any cop who kills an in- nocent, regardless of race, should be held as account- able for taking a life as any- one else.
The thing is that, if Offi- cer Noor and another Black police officer in Louisiana, who was recently given 40
years for killing a white child after shooting into a sus- pect’s car, are the only mem- bers of law enforcement punished for their deeds, what does it say about how justice is applied and who it's applied for in this country?
With pressure coming from Damond's home na- tion of Australia, the resigna- tion of the Minneapolis police chief, the calls for the Minneapolis mayor to step down and the conspicuous silence coming from those who normally side with po- lice officers in these types of situations, it appears that Noor's fate is all but sealed.
For those looking to change the current narrative, that has frequently shown police officers being held to a different standard when it comes to the law, Noor's conviction will stand as a shining example that even those who are charged to up- hold it aren't above it's reach. But, to those of us who know better, it will just be an opti- cal illusion. One that will surely be exposed the next time it happens when the shooter and victim switch racial persuasions.
Reality On Ice is © by the Florida Sentinel Bul- letin Publishing Com- pany. You can write to Mr. Barr at: Clarence Barr 43110-018, Oak- dale F. C. I., P. O. BOX 5000, Oakdale, LA 71463.
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Studies Prove Racism Is Alive And Wreaking Havoc
f we told you, you wouldn’t believe the ways in
which racial bias presents itself.
So, we reviewed racial bias studies that confirm the
prevalence of racism in the criminal justice system, sports, religion, and in practically every sphere of life. For instance, in the criminal justice field, a Depart- ment of Defense study showed that Black polygraph ex- aminees are more likely to be found deceptive on
polygraph exams.
And, Blacks are more likely to be held in jail before
trial, and are more likely to get offered plea bargains. Not surprisingly, Blacks are arrested more often for relatively minor offenses and are more likely to have traffic stops end in arrests and death.
In the sports arena, National Basketball referees call more fouls on players of a different ethnicity. No doubt, implicit bias plays a significant role in these disparities. Check it out when you watch NBA games.
When considering religion, a study found that Chris- tian participants often harbored prejudiced views of other ethnic groups, and that the more devout the reli- gions community was, the greater the racism. So much for loving thy neighbor.
A study of Portland, Oregon drivers showed racial bias at crosswalks wherein twice as many drivers failed to yield for Black pedestrians than did those who were white. The study concluded Blacks had to wait a third longer for cars to stop for them when they had the legal right-of-way.
Honestly, we did not need these studies to prove to us that racism is alive. But, in a world that thrives on studies...............#racismisalive, and wreaking havoc..and we have the studies to prove it!
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2017 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 5
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