Editorial roundup
Oct. 15
The Dallas Morning News
Jefferson shooting
There are moments that mark not just turning points in history, but points where it is evident that leaders must step forward and do the work to change the course of history.
The murder charge against former Fort Worth police officer Aaron Dean, who … shot and killed Atatiana Jefferson in her home, is one of these moments. The charge Dean now faces is what the facts, as they are known, appear to demand. Our community as a whole must see this as a crucial moment. …
There are other stories that also need to be part of our narrative. Although it is still within living memory, we are no longer in a period when the sanction of law perpetrated violence against racial minorities. Over the past several decades, laws have changed and many hearts have changed, too. Casting aspersion on all police officers based on the actions of a few is not only unfair, it is also damaging to us. Our assessment of police officers needs to be based in reality, and that reality is that there are millions of unseen actions that reflect the honor, integrity and respect our officers bring to work every day. Losing sight of that will make it harder for the men and women in blue to patrol our streets, to reduce crime, to keep us safe. …
We fully expect that each of these cases will now be woven into training at police academies and for more experienced officers. We also expect leaders within our communities to step into the fray with reasoned responses driven toward viable solutions. To unfairly castigate officers is to undermine our community in profound, if often invisible, ways. Doing so destroys the trust that is crucially important for a department to police a city, and it frays the bonds that enable officers to be connected to the community. Those bonds help residents better understand the role of police officers, and they help police officers better understand and stay in tune with concerns and issues facing the community.
If this sounds like we believe that in the aftermath of these shootings we should find ways to be better connected to our police departments, it is because that is what we are calling for. We are also calling for police departments to expand efforts to absorb the concerns of the community and take steps to reinforce the kind of culture and practices that can prevent these shootings.
It is possible to prevent these shootings. It is possible to build trust. But with each shooting, the hard task of doing such work falls farther out of reach.