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On the night of January 7th, 2022, in the city of Memphis, five Black men wearing badges and sidearms, who swore an oath to serve and protect, did none of those things. Instead, those now-fired police officers beat Tyre Nichols so badly that he died, from their multiple kicks and punches, in the hospital days later. Tyre Nichols was also a Black man. The difference was, the only criminals on the street that fateful night were wearing badges. One need only watch the video once, to see that what those men did to Nichols was utterly unjustified and criminal.
What was the conclusion of CNN’s Van Jones, in a new op-ed? It wasn’t that (at least) five bad apples–wearing badges– ended the life of an innocent man. No, Jones concluded that Black men beating another Black man was an act of racism (and the subtext: white racism is to blame for black men killing a black man). As incredible as that sounds, that was, unfortunately, the expected opinion of race-baiters in media, where everything, even the beating of a Black man by another Black man, is racism.
Jones writes:
At the end of the day, it is the race of the victim who is brutalized — not the race of the violent cop — that is most relevant in determining whether racial bias is a factor in police violence. It’s hard to imagine five cops of any color beating a White person to death under similar circumstances. And it is almost impossible to imagine five Black cops giving a White arrestee the kind of beat-down that Nichols allegedly received.
It’s that simple. For race-baiters like Jones, if the victim is Black, he (or she) is always a victim of racial hatred. It’s a self-fulfilling statement. A statement that cannot be defeated, even when the criminals are Black. If a Black man is the victim, race is always the reason.
Jones and race-baiters like him are stoking flames that will envelop the nation. Antifa–the thugs and goons who burned America three years ago–have taken to the street again, and will, again, burn, loot, and destroy property. I saw plenty of signs on the streets of Memphis that called for “justice” for Nichols, but Antifa thugs burning cities isn’t about Tyre Nichols. It’s never about the victims of police violence.
The cops who beat Nichols to death have been charged with second-degree murder and will face their turn in the criminal justice system. As a lawyer, I don’t see any defense for their wanton violence. Watch the tape. Nichols was complying with commands, and he was beaten. He repeatedly asked the cops to stop, and they continued to beat him. When he escaped and ran (likely knowing that the beatings wouldn’t stop), he was then beaten even more, kicked, and thrown around like a rag doll. This isn’t about race. It’s about bad cops who will face justice–and if the justice system works, they will spend decades behind bars.
Why commentators like Van Jones cannot see view anything without it being through a racial lens is beyond me. That sort of commentary gives worthless thugs like Antifa a license to burn. It gives Blacks no hope. Many will conclude that regardless of who the cop is – or what race he might be – if you are a Black man, you will be beaten. It is an awful message to send, when it’s clear that race had nothing to do with Tyre’s death.
Unfortunately, when the president of the United States had the chance to lower the temperature, he did the opposite. In the first paragraph of his message Friday, he brings race into the equation, and then makes a political statement, trying to blame Republicans. It might be expected, but it doesn’t make it any less repugnant.
Biden’s message was the same during his campaign from his basement. If you are Black, “every day” you are at risk of being beaten to death by cops. It’s an awful lie. It is the wrong message to send, but that’s Joe Biden, the great uniter.
My heart goes out to Tyre Nichols’ family and to Americans in Memphis and across the country who are grieving this tremendously painful loss. There are no words to describe the heartbreak and grief of losing a beloved child and young father.⁰⁰Here’s my full statement. pic.twitter.com/ghROhSGtao
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 28, 2023
America will burn, and it’s people like Jones and Biden who are to blame.
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