America Didn’t Learn Anything From George Floyd—We Have Gotten Worse

Written by Mbye Njie, CEO, Legal Equalizer

Ninety shots; 60 of those 90 shots hit him. They then proceeded to handcuff his lifeless body before they did anything else. If Jayland Walker was a loose tiger or lion that was actually attacking those Akron police officers that shot him 60 times, they would have treated him with more respect.

Is this the reform and the new training that many police departments, including the one in Akron, Ohio, have bragged about for the past two years since George Floyd? Where in the training does it show to shoot someone who is running away from you over 60 times as their back was turned?

Just seven years after the brutal death of Freddie Gray at the hands of the Baltimore Police Department, we have a repeat of that case in New Haven, Connecticut. Richard “Randy” Cox happens to be a little bit more fortunate than Freddie Gray, in that he is alive today, but he is still paralyzed from the chest down and is still in critical condition in the hospital due to the reckless and heartless actions of New Haven police officers. You can read about what Mr. Cox went through here.

Mark my words, within the next year, there will be another national protest over a video of a police killing or beating once again. Despite America claiming that it had learned its lesson about policing and police brutality after George Floyd, we have gone backwards. Since the death of George Floyd, this country has had an average of three people killed per day by police, and in the immediate year after his death, in 2021 police set a record for most people shot and killed in one year.

America truly had a chance for legitimate and meaningful reform after George Floyd, but rather than listen to the most marginalized communities and the people that are most affected by policing, we ignored them and we doubled down on the failed ideas that got us here in the first place. There has been a documented case of protests over policing in this country every single decade since the 1890’s and yet we act like this is a new phenomenon every single time it happens.

The same exact routine happens with every single one of these incidents, and we end up with the same outcome. Why?

● The first mistake that we repeat is that the media always accepts the initial version of the police’s story, and that is how the story is framed from the start. I’ve always wondered why we immediately run to believe the initial version of the police officer’s story despite the fact that they have the most incentive to lie about what happened. Time and time again, we have seen the story that the police tell us does not remotely match what the video eventually reveals. From Walter Scott, to Laquan McDonald, to George Floyd, to Jayland Walker, we have seen the video not remotely match the initial police reports or the initial media reports, and yet we continue to run with the narrative the police gives us.

● The second mistake that we continue to repeat is that we always try to see both sides of things that shouldn’t be a both-sides situation. It is incredible how quick the media is to bring someone with a contrarian point of view that is irrelevant and clearly done so to provoke people’s emotions. What is the relevance of talking about someone’s criminal history when that criminal history has absolutely nothing to do with the reason why they died? Media should really evaluate the story they are telling before using their platform as an attempt to criminalize a person who can’t defend themselves, and whose criminal history had nothing to do with their death in an attempt to absolve an obvious crime committed by a police officer.

● The third mistake is that we consistently focus reform around the wants of what the police say, and we refuse to even entertain what the communities most affected by policing are saying. Rather than investing in communities and making sure that these communities don’t have food deserts, and have parks and resources and better schools, we have doubled down on investing even more money into the same police departments who have historically harassed and traumatized many people within these communities. New York City raised their total police budget to over $11 billion while simultaneously making a cut to their education budget, and people wonder why crime is on the rise. Imagine them spending more money on education, jobs, parks, mental health services, and after school programs, and maybe they actually start to address the root causes of crime.

● Lastly, the fourth mistake that we repeat is that we quickly forget about these horrible incidents, and we continue to write them off as one-offs rather than the systemic problem it actually is. We only care about these incidents as a nation, when Black people finally get fed up, and God forbid, they start to destroy some property to get attention. At this point, the media then decides to focus on the poor property, rather than the loss of life that spurred these people to destroy that property just so that it grabs your attention. Until America decides to start asking itself, “what is the root cause of these protests?,” we are going to continue to have these protests on a regular basis.

It is because of these repeated and unforced mistakes that we continue to make in our society, Legal Equalizer will continue to be necessary. With the apparent lack of change, we are going to need people to have the right to have eye witnesses at all times and legal representation. With us doubling down on protecting police rather than citizens, we are going to continue to need to learn our rights and know the law. As long as we continue doing the same thing, apps and companies like Legal Equalizer will always be necessary in an effort to protect as many lives as we can.

The solutions are easy and they are right in front of our eyes here. We have grown into a country that is fully embracing a lack of empathy. We continually gaslight marginalized communities and tell them that we hear them and yet our actions show the exact opposite. America changes when it is shamed and embarrassed in front of the world, but in many circumstances that change is just a temporary blip in order to avoid that shame and embarrassment.

I’m hoping that we can eventually get to a day where this country will finally listen to the poorest, and most marginalized people and communities. But until that day happens, I know I and the team at Legal Equalizer will continue to work as hard as we can to make sure people have every tool possible to protect ourselves.