I just read an article from my hometown Kenosha WI. I see that the police profiled and arrested an innocent Black Male. The police went in search of two black males and a black female, who had a small child, who ran away from a hit and run accident.  According to a witness the suspects ran into a nearby Applebee’s. The police entered the restaurant and saw a young Black couple sitting in a booth with a baby. Even though the couple didn’t fit the description of the suspects the police went over and questioned them. What they fit the description of was they were Black but the number wasn’t right. The man refused to cooperate with the police when asked what vehicle he came in so they could verify if they were in the car accident or not. The manager stated that “The guy didn’t want to comply; he had his baby in his arms. The officers kept telling him he’s not under arrest but he’s detained and needed to answer this question. He was trying to say he needed to change his son’s diaper. He tried to go the other way, they tackled him into a wall and the baby hit its head on the wall. They continued to tackle him to the ground with the baby in his arms. It’s just sad. I just felt bad for the baby that it has to go through that traumatic event”. There is a video of the suspect on the floor and the Police punching him multiple times. Well, the man is  innocent. The real suspects were hiding in the restroom and were arrested. What happened to the guy they profiled and tackled to the floor and beat? He was arrested too for resisting. The woman that was with him was arrested for having marijuana which is legal in Illinois where she lived but not in Wisconsin.

With Kenosha making national news again and I know what will be said. All he had to do was comply. I will admit that is what I would have done. I would have answered the questions. Do I feel that I would have had a responsibility to comply? I am sorry, but no, I don’t. We do not live in a police state. In the movies you see the Gestapo agent walk up and say papers and expect the person to just show their papers. That is not how it is supposed to work here in America. Do you know why I would have answered the questions? I would have answered the questions because I do support the police. We need a good Police Department. I know that they have a tough job. They are called only when something is going wrong. When I had my heart attack who was the first ones on the scene? The Police, that’s who! I also know that they are also their worst enemies. If I was a Black male would I support the police after being profiled. I don’t think so.

Did the police do any other investigation than just see a Black family sitting at a table? At Applebee’s you don’t seat yourself. The last time I was at an Applebee’s, in fact it was that very Applebee’s, a Hostess seated me and my family. Did the police question the hostess first about when the couple came in? The description was two Black males and a woman carrying a child. Did they question the manager? Did they do a search before they assume that man that was sitting at the table was their person? The article doesn’t say that they did and if they had looked in the restroom they would have found the real suspects and left the family just there to eat alone. I can’t imagine living life as a Black person knowing that I already have one strike against me because of the color of my skin. For over 400 years Blacks in America have been made to summit to authority because they were Black. After the passage of the Constitution with the Bill of Rights one of the first things that was formed because of the 2^nd Amendment was what was called Slave Patrols. The job of the Slave Patrol was to catch runaway slaves and to patrol plantations for signs of a slave uprising like the one that happened in Haiti in 1789. Some historians say that these Slave Patrols were the precursor to what eventually became our Police Force. Now for me to say that in a school in Florida where I live now I would be breaking the law for talking about what Florida would consider Critical Race Theory. Society seems to have deemed everything Black as part evil.

I have said that the police are their own worst enemies which I really think is an accurate statement. There have been protests all my life about the police brutalizing Black People. Growing up I thought that is was just a southern thing because I didn’t see very much racism in Kenosha in the 60s like there was down south. We didn’t have different bathrooms or drinking fountains. Our schools were never segregated as far as I could see. Today I see it as a whole country thing. With all the publicity these issues have been getting, especially since the Rodney King beating, why are these things still happening? I really don’t think that police should be treating criminals that way let alone some guy having dinner with his family at an Applebee’s. Who is hiring these guys? What type of training are these guys getting? Are they taught to profile Black people. They aren’t judge and jury and people are supposed to be innocent until proven guilty so again I ask why is this still happening?

There are a ton of really good police out there that I am thankful for being out there for our safety. Is this a situation where there are just a few bad apples? Is this a situation of bad training? Is this a situation that we don’t police the police enough? Is it a situation of the police protecting their own? It could be all of that and more. I support the police but I also support the Constitution so I will not support any police action that takes away a person freedom or dignity. The man in Applebee’s did nothing wrong so he had no responsibility to submit. I am a believer in diversity training. Would  diversity training helped? I don’t know but our police shouldn’t go around assuming that everyone is a criminal. With all the publicity about Police brutality why are communities putting up with this. It is costing the municipality money. Their brutality is costing the tax payers money. In this case they needed to identify who the suspects were a little better. The police made a mistake, but what the hell?  Because an innocent man didn’t submit to their will let’s arrest him anyway. To me they should have said “I sorry”.

People are too quick to say that police action like this is justifiable. I was reading about the Kent State massacre and what struck me was that the next day a poll was taken and that 58 percent  stated that the shooting and killing of four students were justifiable.  There was no order to shoot. The  National Guard was not in eminent danger.  The students should have submitted. After a complete investigation the National Guard was at fault and the rules of engagement that the National Guards follow was changed. Our Fore Fathers didn’t submit to King George? Submitting is not the answer. Actual justice is. Good solid Police work is. I know that the Police’s job can get dangerous. Our streets get more and more dangerous by the day. Maybe they need to stop supporting the people that help make our streets dangerous. The people that have justified unlimited access to guns who has made the police’s job more dangerous. The 2^nd Amendment is the most twisted sentence in the entire Constitution. It was never intended to be used as it is being used today.

There needs to be a lot of work by the Police to repair their image within the Black community and that cannot be done by acting as an overseer with a whip.