Ian Whiteley

Lady Liberty Weeps

by Ian Whiteley

Friday 8th July 2016 1:42 pm

Lady Liberty Weeps

In a Minnesota precinct

On a Minnesota street

The day starts like any other

For the Baton Rouge elite

In the land of the brave

In the land of the free

A cop with a pistol

Shoots liberty

A man reaches for a wallet

With a target on his back

Red white and blue

All the patrolman sees is black

Where the gun is law

The sheriff of the west

Has immunity to kill

Wearing a star on his chest

And this is the country

Who sets itself above

The rest of the world

And preaches peace and love

But it can’t control the forces

It creates to protect

And it can’t control the hatred

It chooses to elect

Where every stand off

Is resolved by the gun

And red neck lobbyists

Believe the lies they have spun

Now in Dallas Texas

There are cop killers on the street

The day ends like any other

The cycle is complete

🌷 (2)

gun lobby injustice minnesota shooting police killing race violence

◄ Attrition

Blue Smoke Ghost ►

Comments

M.C. Newberry

Mon 11th Jul 2016 18:07

Ian - thanks, as always, for the considered reply.
I think we can both agree about the tragedy of all
such incidents "over there". Never was a country
"conceived in liberty" such a victim of its own origins.
I continue to believe that the most important duty
is to approach all such happenings with a detached
and impartial desire for the truth, unfettered by
conditioning or prejudice. That's all.

Ian Whiteley

Sun 10th Jul 2016 17:17

we will have to agree to disagree MC
my point is about American gun culture breeding unnecessary murders of innocent people - black, white and 'other' - as well as cops.
The difference is that the police are sworn to protect - it doesn't matter what colour anyone is - but the evidence suggest that beatings and killings are more prevalent against the black community.
It is too easy for the police to abuse their position as gun carriers when there is little or no perceived threat - as appears to be the case in this case.
If they 'take out' a criminal - as in the Dallas response - no one can argue that that is the right thing to do - I do not believe it correct to shoot someone in their own car for no reason - in this case a black, gun license holder reaching for his license as requested by the law officer.

M.C. Newberry

Sun 10th Jul 2016 16:52

Ian - the content and power of your poem is not denied.
It's always valued being to debate the points you raise in your thoughtful blogs.
My own misgivings centre on the way the media - even
more available via online dissemination in this global world
- make a "rush to judgement" about the tragic deaths
involving police action and those in their sights in modern America.
You seem to corroborate this approach with the words
in your second paragraph about the killing by "a cop" of
"a black man", asking the question: "would this have
happened if the man in the car had been white?" then
supplying your own answer: "Very probably not".
Therein, I suggest, lies the damaging presumption that
needs to be challenged. America has its own history,
and part of that does include a substantial amount of
crime - especially violent/ often gang and drug-related,
which sees an disproportionate ratio of black and hispanic inmates occupying US penal institutions.
This forms a big part of the scenario that some would
try to explain away or ignore, rather than face as the
festering social sore that it represents. Against this
background, the police are expected to step forward daily and face the unknown from their public, large numbers of which are actively encouraged & convinced
by vested/victim-orientated interests to view them as "the enemy", despite those in police ranks drawn from
varied ethnic origins.
Let me mention one example of how distortion can be
used to manipulate the reality to deceive. When the
video of "black motorist" Rodney King was given world-
wide media publicity and the LA Police roundly condemned for beating him with their batons, what was
not shown but apparently available to the Grand Jury
that declined to indict the officers involved, was the
preceding footage (edited by the media) that showed
King, a suspected drunk driver who had been pursued
by both the California Highway Patrol and the LAPD,
rushing at the officers (including a woman) on being
eventually stopped and challenged. A large and
threatening criminal, King suffered the consequences
- as did the officers (no guns used) under intense public
criticism for their actions. I suspect that if King had
been white, he would have "probably" got some of the
same until he was amenable to arrest.
"It's a fair cop, I'll come quietly" is not widely known in a country which has a history firmly rooted in its gun culture, its habit of making heroes of villains - and its
ongoing substantial social divisions, not helped by selective headlines like "Police Shoot Black".

Ian Whiteley

Sun 10th Jul 2016 13:12

thanks so much for the 'likes' and the kind and supportive comments on this piece.
Just a response to MC
I'm not sure whether you are agreeing or disagreeing with the points I make here - I suspect the latter. Let me make it clear - this is not meant as a pro or anti anybody poem. It is about a cycle of hate and prejudice triggered by a medieval gun law in a country that is supposed to be the 'leader of the free world.
Where a cop - who is pledged to 'protect and serve' kills a black man who is 'licensed to carry' - for what reason? would this have happened if the man in the car had been white? very probably not. Because the police seem to be indoctrinated that 'black = threat' when, in fact, it should be 'proven violent criminal = threat'.
Consequently - an illegal, homicidal gun owner - takes it upon himself to 'avenge' a killing by targeting members of a force that is there to 'protect and serve' and in a huge majority do just that.
What is unacceptable is the fact that this situation is triggered by men of violence - whether in uniform and badged or in militia combats and un-badged.
Neither are right.
Both are wrong.
It's cyclical - but if the attitude by some police forces to target black people as criminals and violently react to the slightest provocation by over indulgence - and it is their responsibility not to do that if they don't want to be bracketed with the criminals - is not altered, then there will be more violence.
After all - if police forces do not treat everyone equally - and the justice system of a country does not protect that balance - then why are we surprised if the true criminal elements within any society react with violence?
Rant over

M.C. Newberry

Sat 9th Jul 2016 18:51

But who acts for the officer who is faced with non-
compliance to his orders and violent resistance to
arrest? How do you reason with someone who will not
listen or who does not/will not do what is demanded of them in a country where hundreds of law officers are
killed and wounded each year, often when stopping
people...shot from a vehicle at a roadside by those whose hands are not visible and who fail to show them on demand, except when a gun appears in the hand?
The dash cameras of US police vehicles often show just
how those approached by officers fail to comply with
directions given to them - often repeatedly - and place
police in immediate defence mode in the knowledge that
their own death could be a moment away. It is also
the case that these cameras have offered evidence
of police misbehaviour that results in officers being
disciplined/dismissed...something rarely publicised.
The media approach seems to be focussed on the racial
ethnicity of anyone who is subject to police action in
preference to providing "background, evidence and cause".
If a man is shot, it is highlighted that he is "black" -
but when has it been the case that this emphasis is
afforded to those of other ethnic origins? I can't recall
such an event but I'm ready to be proved wrong.
America has its history to deal with - exacerbated by
the resort to firearms - but the reality of what is
happening deserves not to be distorted by selective
irresponsible reporting that fans the spark of social
unrest and division. The black chief of police in Dallas
was dignified and responsible in his reaction to the
murder of his officers, a stark contrast to the mobs
that take to the streets to protest about unproven racial motivations behind police actions.

Simon Widdop

Fri 8th Jul 2016 14:21

Another moving piece Ian!

elPintor

Fri 8th Jul 2016 02:40

Hi, Ian,

I watched a series of videos this evening..all filmed by witnesses to recent gun crimes committed by those we are supposed to trust. These are only examples of some of the worst offenses. There are many examples of police brutality that will never make the news while we labor under a system that forces an accused to trade justice for a plea.

I believe that there are many decent men and women who serve in this capacity. However, I also believe it a shame that any aberrant handling of civilians is not only tolerated, but protected behind the blue line.

I could go on and on about the many heated arguments I've had with so many..cops and civilians alike.

I hope with a heavy heart that everyone is looking at these fatal incidents from a perspective that objectively includes humanity as it exists in all its habitat. Thanks for writing.

elP

ps
Some 15 years ago (to the best of my memory), a man suffered asphyxiation as he struggled against his own death with a knee buried in his back. In the city where it happened, a sort of citizen oversight committee was implemented where people could lodge complaints against the police force. It's supposed to be made up of people from the community of all walks of life. I would be interested to know how effective it has been in curbing police brutality.

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