Stopping Police Violence Against People of Color

July 7, 2016• byMichael Strangeways

Two shocking murders of black men by police officers within the last couple of days (in separate cities) have provoked more anger and more calls for a nationwide effort for reforms in policing especially in regard to acts of violence against the black community. Alton Sterling was shot to death in Baton Rouge, LA on Tuesday and Philandro Castile was murdered in Minneapolis, MN on Wednesday. Both men’s murders were recorded as bystanders used a cell phone to record Sterling’s shooting and Castile’s death was captured on video by his girlfriend who was present when he was shot.

Outraged Americans took to social media this week to protest these murders and demand an end to excessive police violence primarily directed towards young black men. Locally, Seattle residents can (and should) express their opinions to Mayor Ed Murray via phone or email.

And, for actual solutions to the problem, check out the CAMPAIGN ZERO website which succinctly breaks down the issues and offers workable/viable solutions to end the violence including:

End Policing of Minor “Broken Windows” Offenses
End Profiling and “Stop-and-Frisk”
Establish Alternative Approaches to Mental Health Crises
Establish effective civilian oversight structures
Remove barriers to reporting police misconduct
Establish standards and reporting of police use of deadly force
End traffic-related police killings and dangerous high-speed police chases
Monitor how police use force and proactively hold officers accountable for excessive force
Require independent investigations of all cases where police kill or seriously injure civilians
Increase the number of police officers who reflect the communities they serve
The Right to Record Police
Invest in Rigorous and Sustained Training
End police department quotas for tickets and arrests
End the Federal Government’s 1033 Program Providing Military Weaponry to Local Police Departments
Remove barriers to effective misconduct investigations and civilian oversight

About the Author: Michael Strangeways

As the Editorial Director/Co-Owner, Michael Strangeways writes, edits and does about a million other jobs for Seattle Gay Scene, Puget Sound's most visited LGBTQ news, arts and entertainment website now celebrating its 14th year as a media outlet. A semi-proud Midwesterner by birth, he's lived in Seattle since 2000. He's also a film producer who would like you to check out the Jinkx Monsoon documentary, "Drag Becomes Him" now available on Amazon.com. In his spare time, he gets slightly obsessive about his love for old movies, challenging theater, "otters", vodka, chocolate, "I,Claudius", Lizzie Borden, real books made out of paper, disaster films, show tunes, Weimar era Germany, flea markets, pop surrealistic art, the sex lives of Hollywood actors both living and dead, kitties, chicken fried steak, haute couture and David Bowie. But, not necessarily in that order.