When talking about systematic racism inside police departments and law enforcement in general, the narrative may sound emotionally compelling, with carefully selected videos that graphically depict what might appear to be abuse at the hands of officer.
(Article republished from LawEnforcementToday.com)
However, statistics are often conveniently left out, as they disprove the allegations.
The Black Lives Matter movement would lead its followers to believe police brutality runs rampant across the country, especially in big cities.
They push the narrative that innocent black males are in mortal danger of being randomly shot, or even deliberately targeted, by a law enforcement system bent on elimination of African Americans. Again, the data not support this.
Not only does it not support that accusation, it tells a completely opposite story.
For example, in 2019, only nine unarmed black males were killed by police across the entire US. Similar statistics permeate the data for the past several years. And just because they were unarmed – not carrying a deadly weapon – doesn’t mean they were not a threat or that the shooting was not justified.
https://twitter.com/newtgingrich/status/1286090896493236224
Does that disprove racism inside law enforcement? Maybe or maybe not. But what it does show is that the allegations of police officers targeting black males seems to not stack up against the actual numbers.
The debate about police racism has always boiled down to the emotionally persuasive narrative vs. actual data and numbers. As much as we would like to think numbers would be more persuasive, sadly they often are not enough to overcome deep seated ideologies and beliefs, no matter how false.
Chicago, a recent hotbed of racial accusation toward law enforcement, has become an example of the disparity between the perception of law enforcement interaction and actual data pulled together by the same leaders who claim outrage.
https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1285987990817382400
For example, in 2019 alone there were 560 homicides in Chicago. Out of all those murders, 475 victims were black, killed not by the police or even by white people. They were killed by other blacks.
That’s an 85% black-on-black murder rate.
The most recent stats for law enforcement use of force is 2018 (the 2019 report won’t be published until late 2020).
It showed over 3 million police-civilian interactions, resulting in 85,000 arrests – one out of every 35 contacts. But what about use of deadly force? The report showed that out of the 12,000 officers in the Chicago PD, there were only 43 firearm discharges the entire year.
That translates to approximately .004% of officers getting involved in shootings.
But the statistics tell an even bigger story.
Not all 43 weapon discharges resulted in deaths. In fact, the entire CPD averaged only 10 civilian deaths per year between 2013 and 2018. And since 2007, just one of the 400 deaths by police was found to be unjustified. All the other were legal and justified.
One statistic that is rarely reported is that almost all of the Chicago PD officers – 95% – have never discharged their weapons on duty.
This certainly does not bode well for the BLM narrative that systematic racism exists within the CPD.
https://twitter.com/OANN/status/1286092644444041216
Even more data shows that not only are Chicago PD officers not trigger happy – toward minorities or otherwise – they show great restraint in dealing with violent encounters.
In 2018 alone, over 1,200 officers were injured during use of force incidents. Over 300 of those injuries were after facing severe assault from suspects.
https://twitter.com/joelpollak/status/1286092645417115649
While it may be fashionable for individuals and corporations to back the Black Lives Matter movement due to social pressure, they are embracing a false narrative that simply is not supported by actual numbers.
The recent data from Chicago is just one example.
Here’s more on violence in Chicago- again, not at the hands of police.
At least 14 people were rushed to area hospitals after a shootout on Chicago’s South Side Tuesday night – outside a funeral home.
“All we saw was just bodies laying everywhere,” witness Arnita Gerder told WMAQ. “Shot up everywhere, all over. Legs, stomach, back, all over the place. We thought it was a war out here.”
According to the Chicago Police Department’s First Deputy Supt. Eric Carter, an SUV was traveling on 79th Street around 7:30 p.m. when people in it opened fire on those attending a funeral.
Several of the attendees pulled out their own guns and opened fire on the vehicle. It then took off and crashed not long after.
According to Carter, the people inside the SUV van off.
It’s not known who the shooters are at this point, and we’re told by police sources that even though at least “one person of interest” is being interviewed… nobody wants to ‘snitch’.
The victims were all adults and were taken to five different hospitals.
The Chicago Fire Department told local media that at least nine are in serious condition.
According to police, there were at least 60 shell casings found at the scene of the attack – and it’s not known whether there was a prior history between the two groups or if it was gang-related.
We saw a hat down on the ground and evidently it was his,” Kenneth Hughes, told WMAQ.
According to police, an officer had been assigned to the funeral as a precaution because of the size of the gathering.
On Monday, more than 20 people were shot in Chicago… and over the weekend, 63 people were shot and 12 were killed.
As a result, President Trump vowed to send federal forces into the city… something local leaders rejected, calling an overreach of the federal government.
That’s not going to stop them.
The Department of Homeland Security says they’ll deploy dozens of federal agents to Chicago to deal with the uptick in violent crime.
In a tweet Tuesday night, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said ‘no way’.
“Under no circumstances will I allow Donald Trump’s troops to come to Chicago and terrorize our residents,” she wrote.
Over the weekend, Chicago Fraternal Order of Police’s president John Catanzara asked for help from President Trump to combat Chicago’s gun violence problem.
The months of May, June, and July 2020 were a filled with shooting sprees across Chicago.
FOP President Catanzara wrote:
“I would be willing to sit down anytime and discuss ideas about how we can bring civility back to the streets of Chicago. These politicians are failing the good men and women of this city and the police department.
“Mayor Lightfoot has proved to be a complete failure who is either unwilling or unable to maintain law and order here.”
https://twitter.com/cbschicago/status/1284638694125731841
Catanzara also complained that he has been to City Hall to speak to Chicago’s leadership about the increasing gun violence.
Catanzara said:
“These politicians are failing the good men and women of this city and police department. …. I have pushed back on their failing liberal policies. I really believe your help and cooperation could make a big difference and rally the silent majority to say enough is enough.”
He continued:
“These politicians are failing the good men and women of this city and police department. …. I have pushed back on their failing liberal policies. I really believe your help and cooperation could make a big difference and rally the silent majority to say enough is enough.”
https://twitter.com/ChicagoPD19/status/1284675599848660992
President Trump has criticized the leadership of Chicago as well. In June, Trump sent a letter to Chicago Mayor Lightfoot and Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker demanding the to “urge action on the devastating violence in Chicago.”
This urgency stems from the recent months of gun violence in Chicago. It is only July and already the numbers compared to last year are way up.
President Trump wrote:
“Your lack of leadership on this important issue continues to fail the people you have sworn to protect. I am concerned it is another example of your lack of commitment to the vulnerable citizens who are victims of this violence and lack of respect for the men and women in law enforcement.”
Mayor Lightfoot responded to President Trump’s letter.
She wrote:
“If you really wanted to help the city, let’s start with the fact that you would weigh in, Mr. President, on common sense… gun reform. It makes no sense that people from Chicago can go across the border to Indiana and buy military grad weapons and bring them to our city and kill our children.”
Chicago has experienced many of its deadliest weekends since the summer holidays began, peaking at Memorial Day weekend and Fourth of July weekend.
Over Memorial Day weekend, over 80 citizens were shot and almost 24 killed. In June, in one weekend there over 104 citizens shot and 14 killed. On the Fourth of July weekend there were over 70 citizens shot and 16 killed.
Chicago Police Department released data mid-June 2020 in response to President Trump’s remarks on their murder clearance rate of 47% in 2019. Chicago PD stated their murder clearance rate in 2019 was 53%.
At the end of 2019, 419 citizens were killed in the span of a year, which is a 13% reduction from 567 murders in 2018. This marks a drop in murders for three years straight.
Mayor Lightfoot commented on Memorial Day weekend’s violence, one of the most deadliest Memorial Day weekends in a long time.
At the time, Mayor Lightfoot said:
“The reality is there is no circumstance like the one that we are facing.”
She commented the city is lacking federal resources, jail admittance and court hearings during COVID-19 pandemic. This is also making community police very difficult, perhaps the most difficult in over 20 years.
President Trump signed an executive order on police reform in mid-June as well.
Before signing the executive order, he said:
“Every day, police officers make great sacrifices o keep our community secure and safe. In 2018, our police arrested nearly 12,000 citizens for murder, 25,000 citizens for rape and nearly 1.5 million for assault. Very dangerous criminals. In many cases, local law enforcement is underfunded, understaffed, and under-supported.”
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