Racial Justice: Packet #1 - The Issue
Racial Justice & Policing Worksheet #1: The Issue
How is police violence an injustice?
As we have studied in our Ferguson unit, racial injustice and police violence are part of an epidemic, or widespread problem, which continues to occur again and again in the United States today. Before looking at the movements fighting against this epidemic, we will first examine the facts and stories of recent victims of racial injustice and police violence.
Statistics to Consider
v Between 2007 and 2012, 550+ police killings were not reported in the federal statistics.
v Between 2006 and 2012, there were 96 reported cases of a white officer killing a black person.
v Michael Brown was 1 of 4 unarmed, black men who were shot and killed by the police within the same month.
v Between 2004 and 2008, 37 of 45 police-shooting victims were black in Oakland, California.
v 43% of black people who are racially profiled for looking, driving, or behaving “suspiciously” are shot and killed by police. Only 13% of those killed actually threatened others’ lives.
Female Victims & Their Stories
Shereese Francis: Francis suffered from schizophrenia and her sister called an emergency hotline when Francis had stopped taking her medicine. Officers arrived at the house only to arrest Francis, handcuffing her and putting her face down into a mattress. Francis stopped breathing soon after, and the medical examiner said this was the cause of her death.
Shantel Davis: An unarmed car thief on bail, Davis drove dangerously in a stolen car. The police pursued her. Surrounded by police, Davis continued to try to flee in the car. An officer entered the car, attempting to put the car in park, and shot her in the chest—whether intentionally or not is still unclear. Davis died soon after this event.
Sharmel Edwards: Edwards took her boyfriend’s car without his knowledge or permission. He reported Edwards to the police and said that he kept a gun in the car. Officers as well as the SWAT team pursued Edwards. Edwards exited the car and it is still unclear whether or not she was unarmed or holding a gun. Five officers shot 15+ bullets at Edwards; the gun in her boyfriend’s car was never fired.
Miriam Carey: After Carey parked too close to the White House gates and hit a bike rack, a police chase ensued. With a 1-year-old in the backseat, Carey fled from the police until she crashed into a police barrier. She got out of her car unarmed, and the police shot and killed her. Carey suffered from postpartum depression, or depression that occurs for some women after giving birth.
A Closer Look At Indictment Through Eric Garner
v What does “indictment” even mean?
Indictment is a formal charge of a crime. In the Eric Garner case, the police officer responsible for putting a chokehold on Eric Garner did not receive an indictment.
v Key Facts about the Eric Garner case:
Project Implicit: Test Your Unconscious Racial Bias
One of the reasons why African Americans and Latinos are more targeted by police is that most people (including police and even these minorities themselves) have unconscious bias against them. Harvard University wanted to help people notice their own biases and also wanted to collect information about them. You can test your own biases by following the links below:
https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ *
*NOTE: This test takes 15 minutes. You have to register and then click “social attitudes” to get to the Racial Bias Test.
This is another link to a similar test:
http://www.understandingprejudice.org/iat/index2.htm
How is police violence an injustice?
As we have studied in our Ferguson unit, racial injustice and police violence are part of an epidemic, or widespread problem, which continues to occur again and again in the United States today. Before looking at the movements fighting against this epidemic, we will first examine the facts and stories of recent victims of racial injustice and police violence.
Statistics to Consider
v Between 2007 and 2012, 550+ police killings were not reported in the federal statistics.
v Between 2006 and 2012, there were 96 reported cases of a white officer killing a black person.
v Michael Brown was 1 of 4 unarmed, black men who were shot and killed by the police within the same month.
v Between 2004 and 2008, 37 of 45 police-shooting victims were black in Oakland, California.
v 43% of black people who are racially profiled for looking, driving, or behaving “suspiciously” are shot and killed by police. Only 13% of those killed actually threatened others’ lives.
Female Victims & Their Stories
Shereese Francis: Francis suffered from schizophrenia and her sister called an emergency hotline when Francis had stopped taking her medicine. Officers arrived at the house only to arrest Francis, handcuffing her and putting her face down into a mattress. Francis stopped breathing soon after, and the medical examiner said this was the cause of her death.
Shantel Davis: An unarmed car thief on bail, Davis drove dangerously in a stolen car. The police pursued her. Surrounded by police, Davis continued to try to flee in the car. An officer entered the car, attempting to put the car in park, and shot her in the chest—whether intentionally or not is still unclear. Davis died soon after this event.
Sharmel Edwards: Edwards took her boyfriend’s car without his knowledge or permission. He reported Edwards to the police and said that he kept a gun in the car. Officers as well as the SWAT team pursued Edwards. Edwards exited the car and it is still unclear whether or not she was unarmed or holding a gun. Five officers shot 15+ bullets at Edwards; the gun in her boyfriend’s car was never fired.
Miriam Carey: After Carey parked too close to the White House gates and hit a bike rack, a police chase ensued. With a 1-year-old in the backseat, Carey fled from the police until she crashed into a police barrier. She got out of her car unarmed, and the police shot and killed her. Carey suffered from postpartum depression, or depression that occurs for some women after giving birth.
A Closer Look At Indictment Through Eric Garner
v What does “indictment” even mean?
Indictment is a formal charge of a crime. In the Eric Garner case, the police officer responsible for putting a chokehold on Eric Garner did not receive an indictment.
v Key Facts about the Eric Garner case:
- Eric Garner, a 43-year-old, unarmed African American man, was charged with illegally selling untaxed cigarettes and argued with New York police officer, Daniel Pantaleo, about these charges.
- Officer Pantaleo tried to handcuff Garner, who pulled away from the officer. Taking this as resisting arrest, Officer Pantaleo put Garner into a chokehold position with Garner repeatedly saying, “I can’t breathe.”
- Garner died from a heart attack following the chokehold; the medical examiner said this was the cause of Garner’s death.
- Despite the chokehold position being banned for over 20 years by the New York Police Department (NYPD), no indictment was given to Officer Pantaleo.
Project Implicit: Test Your Unconscious Racial Bias
One of the reasons why African Americans and Latinos are more targeted by police is that most people (including police and even these minorities themselves) have unconscious bias against them. Harvard University wanted to help people notice their own biases and also wanted to collect information about them. You can test your own biases by following the links below:
https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ *
*NOTE: This test takes 15 minutes. You have to register and then click “social attitudes” to get to the Racial Bias Test.
This is another link to a similar test:
http://www.understandingprejudice.org/iat/index2.htm