Shooting of Michael Brown - a murder, a police encounter, or a self defense?

There is no doubt that the police have a very hard job to do. The kinds of situations and challenges they face every day are so unpredictable and dangerous that it is very difficult to apply normal logic under some of these situations. But at the same time, many of these situations deal directly with human life and death, even a very small mistake can kill an innocent person or allow a dangerous criminal to get away. So, police officers need to be vigilant, careful, and attentive all the time. This all needs a lot of training along with a lot of physical and mental strength. That is why people from the police force or military are respected and honored for their service because they risk their own lives to save others every day. But when you read about the incidents like the shooting of Michael Brown then you doubt whether everyone in the police department is honest and dedicated towards their job. Under the circumstances Michael was shot raises many uncomfortable questions for which there are no easy answers.

Michael Brown, an unarmed teenager was shot dead by Darren Wilson on August 9, 2014. I don't think after reading the full story one can deny that Michael might have made some mistakes on that day (like stealing a pack of cigars from a store, getting into an argument with a police officer, or trying to resist the arrest). However, the question is, were his mistakes serious enough to fatally shoot him? Did he pose such a serious danger to Officer Darren Wilson's life that he shot Michael multiple times with the clear intention of killing him? If Michael committed some criminal offense then Officer Darren should have tried to arrest him, if at all he was required to use a weapon he should have tried to use it in a nonfatal way. Many teenagers do a lot of stupid things, many of these things they do without knowing the real consequences of their actions. There is no doubt that kids who make these types of mistakes should be punished if the mistake breaks any law or harms anyone to make sure that they don't repeat the same mistakes. But there are nonviolent ways to deal with such unpleasant situations, one needs to show a lot of patience while dealing with them. Brutal force should be used only when it is absolutely required. Every effort should be made by law enforcement officers to handle the matter without causing any serious injury when they are dealing with common people. This is because one can recover the lost or stolen items, one can chase or hunt criminals but one can not bring back lost lives and that is why this restraint and caution is necessary. 

This issue becomes more serious because of the racial angle involved in it. The victim Michael Brown was Black and Darren Wilson was white. One can understand why there is so much anger and protest against the grand jury's decision to acquit Officer Wilson. It is not only about the death but about the real intention behind the act of fatal shooting. Unfortunately, many protests are turning out to be very violent with a lot of destruction of public property. These kinds of violent protests rarely help the cause, but they do shift the focus away from the real problem as serious law and order situation is created due to violence and public property destruction. So, if people wanted to register their protest against the decision of the grand jury they should protest in a civilized and peaceful manner to register their protest, violence is not going to help. Also, this incident should be investigated by an unbiased and diverse jury so that people also believe that any decision taken is an unbiased decision. It is the job of investigating agencies to conduct a transparent investigation.

Some available statistics indicate that black teens are 21 times more likely to be killed by cops, this data is worrisome and concerning. If it is true then this problem needs urgent attention. Because of the many complexities involved, it is often difficult to decide whether such shootings are really a result of self-defense (where an officer shoots a person to save their own life) or potential murder. Police should try to show some restraint and caution while dealing with teenagers, if required they should be given special training for this. At the same time, teens also should be made aware of the role of police in their society and their own responsibilities as citizens of society. Spreading awareness among police and teens about their rights as well as responsibilities can be a first step in this direction. Michael is gone and I hope there is a proper investigation in this case to reveal the truth. The main focus should be on how can we avoid these types of incidents in the future. Let's try to accept first that there is a problem and then only we can find a solution for this. Unless both sides (society and law enforcement) which are part of this problem are actively involved in solving it I don't think there will be any viable solution for this. We all are part of this problem so we all have to be part of the solution also.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Links:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Michael_Brown
2. Ferguson’s Grand Jury Bought Darren Wilson’s Story
3. Deadly Force, in Black and White

Racial profiling - a very common mistake

Recently I read about George Zimmerman's trial and reactions to his acquittal from murder charges for killing Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African American high school student. This incident of fatal shooting took place on February 26, 2012, in Sanford, Florida, USA. The trial attracted a lot of media attention and the verdict to acquit Zimmerman resulted in a lot of protests and controversy. All this happened because many believe there is a racial aspect involved in this case. Many people think that Zimmerman got suspicious about Martin because of his skin color which subsequently resulted in an unfortunate incident of fatal shooting. I am surprised if this is true even though it will be impossible to prove it legally.

Racial profiling (I am using this as a general term where we try to label certain groups with certain characteristics) is a very common mistake many of us make consciously or unconsciously. I see that happening around me all the time. Actually, the issue of racial profiling is more complicated than it looks. I am not going to go into any historical accounts or produce any actual data (sometimes numbers don't give the actual picture) but want to say something based on my own personal experience in the US as well as in India. In India even though there is no issue of race, the issue is about caste, in both cases the mindset is the same, one race or caste feels superior to another.

When I was in India, I heard many things like how Muslims are not as patriotic as Hindus, how a particular caste doesn't deserve a white-collar job, or how people from some particular caste are not as intelligent (or brave or clean or honest one can use any criteria here) compared to people from so called upper caste and many things like this. The list can become very long if I include everything that I heard. People still say these things very casually without any regret or guilt. I also didn't feel any strange when I heard these things as a kid as this was discussed very openly and without any reservations, and very often as a kid when you hear these things again and again many times you start believing that they are true. Sometimes there are a few incidents that make you think that maybe whatever people around you are saying about others is true. We don't even understand when this habit of profiling people, that is judging people based on their religion, race, caste, or nationality is incorporated in our mindset. Even when I came to the US I found that there are very subtle currents of prejudice against some races. It's not very open here but one can feel that it's there. Some areas in every city or town are considered good neighborhoods and some are bad, one can easily look at ethnic groups living in those areas and understand that there is a strong racial connection to this labeling. Actually, the crime rate and other things that make some areas less safe than others are because of the economic condition of people living in those areas, not because of their race or nationality. People don't want to analyze the real problem they just see the symptoms and form their opinions based on crude observations.

Many times because of some historical social aspects (like years of suppression and negligence) people from certain castes (in India) or races (in the US and other countries) are deprived of good education and equal opportunities therefore they struggle economically which can sometimes lead to a high crime rate (due to the resulting poverty). But to blame it on their caste or race is unfair and wrong. Criminals are found in every society and ethnic group, there is no logic behind labeling a particular race or caste more criminal than another. But in reality, no one wants to think about these problems so seriously, most take the easier path of racial profiling. They label certain races or castes as good, and intelligent and some as criminals, not so intelligent or incompetent (many people do the same thing about gender also). Most of these people pass this flawed thinking to their kids, so even before kids know the world outside their home they are prejudiced about which people are good and which are bad, who are their own people (same caste, religion, race, or nationality) and who are others, so this vicious cycle continues.

I guess we all do some kind of people profiling at some stage. Some accept and some don't. The worst thing is that some don't even see anything wrong in doing this. I would be lying if I said that I have not done it myself and I am not at all proud of this, it doesn't really matter whether I did it intentionally or unintentionally. Society and our inner circle (friends and relatives) play a very big role in this. Many times we tend to follow their thinking, but when I saw the world through my own eyes removing all those prejudices and biases, then I realized how wrong I was. This was one of the important turning points of my life when I left that habit for good. We have progressed so much in science and technology, and we know many things about which our ancestors had no clue, but even today racial profiling is very common. People judge others based on their nationality, religion, or race. Many stand-up comedians love to make fun of people from particular races or nationalities and they are still very popular. I know that one should not take these things seriously, they are only for entertainment purposes but still, I don't like race or community-based jokes.

We all know that racial profiling is wrong. We don't like it when someone does it to us, but somehow many of us don't see anything wrong in doing it knowingly or unknowingly to others. Most of the time people do this without having proper knowledge about that race, religion, or country. Every culture is different, they all have some good and some bad aspects, no one is perfect, we all are humans with good and bad qualities. Our skin color, nationality, or race is just one part of our personality, we are much more than that so we should stop judging each other based on color, religion, or anything else. We all are humans and let's treat each other as humans.

Thanks for reading and please share your views about this topic. 

(Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing)

Links:
1. After Zimmerman verdict, can nation heal racial rift?
2. Shooting of Trayvon Martin
3. A Perspective On George Zimmerman That Every Person Should Hear