Open Heart
Well-known member
Let me give this context by saying I am virulently opposed to any racism by anyone towards anyone, including the tendency of those on the left to hate white people and Jews. But in this particular case, the obvious racism was directed at two black men, and this form of racism is common and has a lot of history.
Basically you had six cops in Jackson, Mississippi that were known to be "the Goon Squad." They were abusive jerks in general, with a long history of harassing and assaulting LOTS of people including whites. But this one particular assault went way beyond anything they had done previously.
A neighborhood woman had called the police to complain about seeing black men in a home owned by a white woman, as if a white woman can't have black guests. The cops broke into the home without any warrant or reasonable cause. For an hour and a half they repeatedly raped and tortured the two men, using stun guns, a sex toy, and other object to sodomize them, all while repeatedly calling them the N word. One cop literally put his gun in one victim's mouth and PULLED THE TRIGGER. Amazingly, the victim survived, but his jaw and tongue are totally messed up. Afterwards, they engaged in a conspiracy which included their boss to cover it up. They planted drugs and a gun, which led to the arrest of one of the victims, and threatened to send him to jail for years.
All six pleaded guilty to state charges of obstruction of justice and conspiracy to hinder prosecution, and all six have now been sentenced, ranging from 5 to 30 years, by the state court. They have yet to be tried and sentenced in Federal court, so the likelihood is that their sentences will be increased when they face their Federal crimes.
The uncovering of this plot has led to serious questions about the Jackson police department, and law enforcement in Mississippi in general. Remember these guys all had long histories of police brutality. Why were they still employed?
One big factor is that even when the police chief wants to fire bad cops, the police union gets involved and prevents it. I am very, very pro-union, but there have to be limits. The police union supports corruption, and needs to be successfully curtailed from this.
It also certainly raises the question of how common anti-black racism might be in Mississippi. Some prejudices have a hard time dying.
But at any rate, it is very clear that while most police are good decent human beings who want to serve and protect, that police culture supports abuse. It's got to change, and all of us need to play a role in that by putting pressure on our elected officials.
Basically you had six cops in Jackson, Mississippi that were known to be "the Goon Squad." They were abusive jerks in general, with a long history of harassing and assaulting LOTS of people including whites. But this one particular assault went way beyond anything they had done previously.
A neighborhood woman had called the police to complain about seeing black men in a home owned by a white woman, as if a white woman can't have black guests. The cops broke into the home without any warrant or reasonable cause. For an hour and a half they repeatedly raped and tortured the two men, using stun guns, a sex toy, and other object to sodomize them, all while repeatedly calling them the N word. One cop literally put his gun in one victim's mouth and PULLED THE TRIGGER. Amazingly, the victim survived, but his jaw and tongue are totally messed up. Afterwards, they engaged in a conspiracy which included their boss to cover it up. They planted drugs and a gun, which led to the arrest of one of the victims, and threatened to send him to jail for years.
All six pleaded guilty to state charges of obstruction of justice and conspiracy to hinder prosecution, and all six have now been sentenced, ranging from 5 to 30 years, by the state court. They have yet to be tried and sentenced in Federal court, so the likelihood is that their sentences will be increased when they face their Federal crimes.
The uncovering of this plot has led to serious questions about the Jackson police department, and law enforcement in Mississippi in general. Remember these guys all had long histories of police brutality. Why were they still employed?
One big factor is that even when the police chief wants to fire bad cops, the police union gets involved and prevents it. I am very, very pro-union, but there have to be limits. The police union supports corruption, and needs to be successfully curtailed from this.
It also certainly raises the question of how common anti-black racism might be in Mississippi. Some prejudices have a hard time dying.
But at any rate, it is very clear that while most police are good decent human beings who want to serve and protect, that police culture supports abuse. It's got to change, and all of us need to play a role in that by putting pressure on our elected officials.
