Fatal shooting reboots vicious cycle of racism

The deadly police shooting of an African American man in Atlanta has brought the focus of Black Lives Matter protests back full circle to where they began.

In the past few weeks, debate over the treatment of black people at the hands of police in the United States has widened to include massive protests against racism around the world.

The debate has also deepened to take in discussion of general inequality, the legacy of the US Civil War, the fate of statues of controversial historical figures, the ongoing impact of colonialism, the cultural influence of the protests, and also what impact they will have on the coronavirus pandemic.

But the killing at the weekend of Rayshard Brooks, 27, a father of four, brought such conversations back down to earth with a thump, as a new wave of angry protests set off a frustratingly familiar turn of events.

Buildings and cars were set alight, the city’s police chief resigned, memories of peaceful protests after George Floyd’s death in Minnesota faded.

In the middle of a global focus on excessive use of force, and as authorities scrambled to introduce reforms, a routine police call-out went horribly wrong, yet again. It’s a triumph of systemic problems over new signs of progress.

As with Floyd, who was arrested on suspicion of a minor offence and died after a white officer pressed a knee against his neck for more than eight minutes, Brooks’ final minutes began in innocuous fashion. Officers responded to a complaint that a man was sleeping in a car blocking the drivethrough lane at a Wendy’s fast-food restaurant. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Brooks failed a sobriety test then resisted arrest. He grabbed a Taser from police and tried to run away.

As with Floyd, there was video of Brooks’ death. The security camera footage shows a man running from two white police officers. He raises a hand holding the Taser towards an officer a few steps behind. The officer fires an estimated three times.

A lawyer for the victim’s family, Chris Stewart, said the officer who shot Brooks should be charged for “an unjustified use of deadly force, which equals murder”. Stewart added: “You can’t say a Taser is a non-lethal weapon . . . but when an African American grabs it and runs with it, now it’s some kind of deadly, lethal weapon that calls for you to unload on somebody.”

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said: “I do not believe this was a justified use of deadly force.”

She announced police chief Erika Shields’ resignation. The officer involved was fired. Despite the quick action, protesters were not mollified. They set fire to the Wendy’s restaurant and blocked traffic on a highway nearby.

US federal, state and city authorities are moving to reorganise police departments in a push for greater accountability. But an apparent instinct by some officers to escalate situations with black Americans and an insufficient commitment to preserve lives in such confrontations still results in tragedies.

It is a cycle that seems too difficult to break.

This newspaper is subject to NZ Media Council procedures. A complaint must first be directed in writing, within one month of publication, to formalcomplaints@nzherald.co.nz.

If dissatisfied, the complaint may be sent to the Media Council, P O Box 10-879, The Terrace, Wellington 6143. Or use the online complaint form at www.mediacouncil.org.nz

Include copies of the article and all correspondence with the publication.