http://www.stltoday.com/opinion/columnists/getting-rid-of-structural-racism-again/article_8a72343c-4de6-53ab-a68a-7463f14834f2.html
By Karen Aroesty September 29, 2017 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
When Michael Brown was killed in August 2014, I wrote in this paper calling for reform in the structures that exist to create inequities and disparate outcomes for black and white people, particularly as it related to policing and community. I wrote that the structure of racism exists even when individual racism is absent. Efforts to reform key areas were being discussed across the region. Since 2014, however, nothing has effectively changed.
The challenge? We have to support both the profession of policing and acknowledge that race and poverty are factors that the justice system is simply not addressing intentionally. We have to overcome our inclination to scream, “I am right, therefore you are wrong!” Police and community must work together. So far, they’re not. What can we change?
There are a whole host of policies that can be addressed. They include internal police strategies like anti-bias learning, early warning systems for officers who need to leave the job, and rules that prevent problem officers from moving to other communities without accountability for previous harms. Police departments need to create community-law enforcement partnerships to break down the bias, lack of understanding and distrust that prevent police from being successful. Another policy that needs to be reformed is “use of force.” Police concerns about getting shot are legitimate, especially with Missouri’s open carry law. But legal standards of review are lenient and subjective, enabling officers to use deadly force in self-defense when it might be unnecessary. Data collection on policing needs to be reliable, not the flawed numbers published each June with the Missouri vehicle stop report through our “racial profiling statute.” Finally, we need fewer police departments. Regional police commanders know that the structure makes little sense; it undermines hiring, limits revenue streams and hinders trust between communities and police.
The anger and lack of communication are also why little has changed since 2014. I have no patience for anyone who perpetuates stereotypes about things they really know nothing about — those who don’t understand what policing entails, and those (including me) who don’t understand what it is to live as a person of color in this country. I will, however, shut down people who broadly condemn police as racist. And I will shut down those who condemn people young and old, white and black, who need lawful protest to express themselves. I will also condemn both policing and activism if neither steps up to work together to change the structure of racism that undermines us all.
And to Missouri’s legislators outside of St. Louis: Lifting up our cities lifts up the entire state. You have an interest in being part of the solution. You appear to be afraid of angering your constituencies, believing that they don’t care about our cities. But it will benefit your constituents as well as those who didn’t actually vote for you. Please know that there are many resources available. Forward Through Ferguson, of which ADL was privileged to be a small part, has the calls to action. Better Together has the data. Neighborhood leaders know how to do the work, and the importance of getting out the vote. But nothing will change unless you, the people we elected to be our leaders, actually lead. A reasonable start is the now 17-year-old racial profiling statute noted above. ADL would be happy to assist a bipartisan group of legislators to modernize this flawed law, something we have been trying to do since 2011. The bill was introduced to address bias by police in vehicle traffic stops. It isn’t effective because, due to a weakness in the analysis of the data, the numbers aren’t credible. It actually serves to undermine the capacity of community representatives and police to work together to address real issues around bias. With few changes to the statute, you can support “law and order” and yet create a positive structure for the very important task of developing greater trust between police and the communities they serve. We stand with community allies to work with you.
Anthony Lamar Smith should have been prosecuted for the crimes he actually committed Dec. 20, 2011. He did not need to die.
Karen Aroesty is the Anti-Defamation League’s regional director for Missouri, southern Illinois and eastern Kansas.