THE OLD MAN AND THE BRIDGE

VOLUME 4 — Protect and Serve?

Certainly, yes, of course, absolutely — All Lives Matter — EQUALLY! That is the point of the protests, demonstrations , rallies, all around the world. The spark provided by a Mpls. policeman’s killing of an otherwise obscure Black man named George Floyd [obscure no more] and the video of a similarly obscure, but courageous, Black teenage girl. It was the choke hold seen “round the world”.

It certainly was not the first of such killings nor, shamefully, will it be the last, but “change, it is a comin”. Get on board or get out of the way: Republican congressmen, Trump supporters and apologists, some police unions , and white supremacists. There are too many good minded people out there to stop the cause of racial justice if a good and merciful God be willing — and how can She not be.?

The dehumanization of Floyd was the catalyst for change, and the responses of law enforcement remain the focus of those who seek justice. To generalize about officers of the law as racist and uncaring is wrong and self-defeating, but to claim that our country has no systemic racism problem is to put one’s head in the sand or someplace else.

To bring it closer to home, my experiences with Mankato law enforcement has been generally mutually respectful [except for one particular expensive traffic “violation” , but let’s not go there]. I hear all of the correct vernacular from the people in charge. They speak of: Community Policing, vetting and psychological testing of officer candidates, de-escalation training, mental health assistants, Protect and Serve. But as a pale, old white guy I’m not likely to test the system — not a likely candidate for Driving While Black. I believe that the intentions of the administrators are positive, that, in theory at least, our police dept. is above average. In practice there may still be work to do and my guess would be that those in charge would agree.

The following is a letter I submitted to the Free Press on 6/21/20:

. Austin Dean Heights is dead. The 24 year old was on a raft in the Minnesota River with weapons he had fired at law enforcement officers who then shot him. [How did he come to have weapons?] Did his white life matter? Of course it did, just as George Floyd’s black life mattered, to their families and, hopefully, to all of us. Did it have to end that way? Almost certainly not and it raises so many questions. Did it take a mental health expert to determine that Mr. Heights was not a well man? What was the mind set of the law enforcers when they confronted him? Was there an effort to de-escalate the situation? Did they know anything of his history? Would the presence of a different kind of professional have avoided the killing? Was there any need to be in a hurry to “get” him? Do we still not have any reliable non-lethal weapons we can employ? And finally, how many more have to die, including police , before we get answers to-so many questions.

Thanks for listening and stay tuned.