Ash writes: "Attorney General Lynch is the best-positioned person in the nation to confront excessive police violence. As the head of the Department of Justice she has more powerful tools at her disposal than any other law enforcement officer in the nation. But she will not use the power that she has."
The scene in Dallas as police came under sniper fire. (photo: LM Otero/AP)
Americans Are Troubled, Mr. President, but Attorney General Lynch Still Does Nothing
08 July 16
ou said: �All of us as Americans should be troubled by the shootings.�
All of us are. To make matters worse, 12 police officers have apparently been shot in Dallas at a demonstration to protest the shootings. Reportedly five of them are dead.
Attorney General Lynch is the best-positioned person in the nation to confront excessive police violence. As the head of the Department of Justice she has more powerful tools at her disposal than any other law enforcement officer in the nation. But she will not use the power that she has.
Instead, she and Vanita Gupta, who heads the department�s Civil Rights Division, launch investigation after investigation for political cover, always deciding in the end not to proceed with charges.
Yes, for the record, Civil Rights charges in many of these cases can be brought. Most recently in the case of black Chicago police officer Aldo Brown. Brown was in fact charged and convicted on Civil Rights charges for beating a suspect armed with a gun, in violation of the constitution.
So it can be done. Neither of your Attorney General appointees however has ever chosen to do it. So here we are in the middle of a bloodbath that can only be mitigated by justice. Not justice for some, but justice for all.
You also said, �We have extraordinary appreciation and respect for the vast majority of police officers.� Would you like to have less respect for American police officers? Watch this video. I guarantee you will never respect a police officer again.
As of today, The Guardian�s count of people killed by police officers in the U.S. this year stands at 566. Last year it was over 1200. Valerie Castile, the mother of Philando Castile, the man killed by police as he sat in his car, said it plainly, �We�re being hunted, every day. It�s a silent war against African-American people as a whole.� To separate police officers shot from people shot by police officers expands the conflict. To end the conflict, there must be justice for all.
I�ve said it before, most recently in January of this year, you and Attorney General Lynch must act. Until you do that, the violence is going to continue to escalate. This is a problem that cannot be solved at a podium. It must be confronted with federal authority when local jurisdictions cannot or will not act. You must.
It will only get worse until you do.
Marc Ash is the founder and former Executive Director of Truthout, and is now founder and Editor of Reader Supported News.
Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.
THE NEW STREAMLINED RSN LOGIN PROCESS: Register once, then login and you are ready to comment. All you need is a Username and a Password of your choosing and you are free to comment whenever you like! Welcome to the Reader Supported News community. |
Comments
We are concerned about a recent drift towards vitriol in the RSN Reader comments section. There is a fine line between moderation and censorship. No one likes a harsh or confrontational forum atmosphere. At the same time everyone wants to be able to express themselves freely. We'll start by encouraging good judgment. If that doesn't work we'll have to ramp up the moderation.
General guidelines: Avoid personal attacks on other forum members; Avoid remarks that are ethnically derogatory; Do not advocate violence, or any illegal activity.
Remember that making the world better begins with responsible action.
- The RSN Team
Imagine that, organized and coherent in English and Spanish. They can talk about so many issues, diplomacy,match ing the rest of the developed world in affordable and effective healthcare for everyone (including those that endanger us, too, if their health fails epidemically). Imagine rebuilding alliances with civilized nations (instead of murderous predatory regimes just for the arms profiteers). It will take a while to see on all the solutions and variations they are ready to methodically implement and fine tune. They talk to each other, and the real people (in multiple languages).
Individual 1's other languages
are Wrestler-mouth Tauntanese/Twit terese, Pidgin Lawyerese, and Locker Room Talk,"
ho got lined-up on the same stage with kamala!
as robbee recalls -
"Kamala Harris Announces Plan to Fine Companies That Pay Men More Than Women
By Chelsea Janes, The Washington Post
20 May 19
"it's against my religion to play bookie or dump on a candidate outstanding in her own right, but -
"i believe kamala would make a fine veep for bernie!
"i also believe kamala will be biden's kryptonite!, biden's waterloo!"