Yes, black cops can be racist

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OPINION: Even before the world saw officers of American descendants of slave hunters lynching Tire Nichols, people wondered how black cops were part of white supremacy.

This week, those perpetually blinded by the red glare of rockets and bombs bursting through the air watched the debut of another American Horror Story, starring a familiar villain in the lead role.

On Friday, the city of Memphis released footage of the three-minute beating of Tire Nichols, 29, by five Memphis, Tennessee, police officers, all black. According to The Associated Press, the officers were charged with second degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression. Perhaps the only new part of this hackneyed premise is the plot twist that White has already brought up:

How can a black person be racist towards a black person?

Spoiler alert: black cops can be racist because they are black cops.

To be fair, I understand the confusion. Many white people have bought into a manufactured definition of racism that includes intent, hatred, and Jesus knowing what’s in their hearts. Although I’ve never subscribed to the theory that black people can’t be racist, I understand why black people believe power is a necessary component of racism. Yet when I define words, I tend to quote a little-known book called a dictionary. One such book, published by an obscure publishing company called Merriam-Webster, defines racism as the systemic oppression of one racial group for the social, economic and political benefit of another or a political system. or social based on racism and designed to execute its principles.

Let there be no doubt; slavery is racist. The race-based, constitutionally protected human property system, euphemized as slavery, was a system designed to oppress one specific racial group for the social, economic, and political benefit of another. Criminologist Victor Kappella traces the origin of American policing to 1704, when the Carolina Colony developed slave patrols to maintain economic order and to help wealthy landowners recover and punish slaves who were essentially considered property.

The story continues

Other historians cite the 1838 establishment of the Boston Police Department as the first modern police force. But three years earlier, after black abolitionist David Walker published his Appeal to Colored Citizens of the World, North Carolina Governor John Owen sent a letter to police in major cities across the state. and to senators from thirty-two eastern counties. , Writing:

Please bring this matter to the police of your town and call their prompt attention to the necessity of stopping the circulation of the book. I would suggest the necessity of the most vigilant enforcement of police laws and state laws.

If the police had not yet been created, who was he talking about?

He was talking about slave hunters. He told them to prevent black people from contemplating freedom. He was referring to a political system based on racism and designed to execute its principles. There is no need to extrapolate an opinion because he literally said it.

He was talking about the police.

So when protesters, activists and ordinary black people call the police racist, they are not complaining about the content in the hearts of the cops. They are not protesting each law enforcement officer’s intent or feelings for black people. They talk about the policing system which, according to this little reference book, corresponds to the exact definition of racism. The meaning, story, or purpose doesn’t change because the person doing the work has a different skin color. If Beyonc wore white face, she wouldn’t automatically have the ability to play the banjo and become Taylor Swift. A man who plants and harvests seeds is a farmer, even if he wears a tuxedo.

Farmers Farm.

The singers sing.

The police practice racism.

In addition to Tire Nichols, whose filmed assault was broadcast on World Holocaust Remembrance Day, we should remember the examples of Emil Maurice and Erhard Milch, two men of Jewish descent who succeeded to survive their government’s campaign of racial terror.

According to his biography, Maurice was a German watchmaker who was an activist and a great fighter. He was the founder of a militia and served as a driver for his best friend. A 168th ranked Schutzstaffel Stormtrooper (SS) leader eventually found out about Maurice’s Jewish heritage and told Maurice’s boss. Luckily, Maurice was so beloved that his boss declared him an honorary Aryan.

It probably helped that Emil was the man who founded the group called the SS. It probably helped even more that Emil Maurice’s best friend, who was SS#2, was listed as SS#1. Even if you don’t know much about the Nazis, you might even have heard of Emil’s friend:

Some guy named Adolph Hitler.

And that brings us to Erhard Milch.

When accusations of Milch’s Jewish heritage surfaced, Hermann Gring, the Gestapo’s secret police chief, said: I decide who is Jewish. Milch oversaw production and supply to the Luftwaffe, the German Air Force. To build the German air fleet, Milch personally imported slaves from concentration camps. During a mutiny at one of the factories, Milch suggested that the guards shoot one in ten protesters. This way they could maintain order without exhausting their manpower.

In his war crimes court, Milch argued that he did not pull a single trigger or beat a single person; he has just applied a system based on racism. When asked by British Brigadier General Derek Mills-Roberts (No, Derek is not black. There were plenty of white Dereks) about the atrocities committed in his name, the response of Jewish, but anti-Semitic and Nazi slave supervisors perfectly sums up how a black policeman can be racist towards black people:

These people are not human beings like you and me.

This is how white supremacy works. It has no logic, principles or values. He breaks the rules and does what he wants. Its only precedent is the hackneyed plot that has become as commonplace as the savagery it depicts.

This is also how the police work.

It has no values, principles or laws to uphold. He murders the people he promises to protect and steals the lives of those he is supposed to serve. Whether you are in a labor camp, a protester or a black person in America, the identity of the person wearing the uniform does not matter. All of their badges are swastikas. We are all their human possessions.

And, of course, there are good cops. I can’t confirm this as fact, but I’ve heard people talk about their existence. Then again, if you told me that Jewish Nazis designed some of the best planes and most reliable watches, I might believe you. However, I still wouldn’t call them good Nazis. In fact, I can’t decide who is good, who is bad, who is guilty of murder or who should be considered racist.

Someone has already created a system for this.

Whether we blame all the cops, racist cops, or the specific men who robbed Tire Nichols of his life, freedom, and pursuit of happiness, I’m sure we can agree on one thing:

These people are not human beings like you and me.

Michael Harriot is a writer, cultural critic and Spades Championship player. His book, Black AF History: The Unwhitewashed Story of America, will be released in 2023.

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