Five Policeman Dead- Is Empathy A Zero Sum Game?

As many may know, five Dallas policemen are dead after snipers fired on police during a peaceful protest.

The cases of Philando Castille and Alton Sterling got little sympathy as it was, and now their deaths are overshadowed. The death of the Dallas policemen is undoubtedly a tragedy, but it brings up another issue.

I was reading a cracked article that a man wrote about being raped by a woman. I am currently at work and I am hesitant to type rape into a search, therefore I will add the link later.

The man made the point that he understood women get raped and that he was not trying to use his issue to detract from their issues. He made the point that sympathy for one group is not always antithetical to sympathy for another. Empathy is not a limited resource that we must devote only to one cause.

I find people always try to derail arguments by appealing to this zero sum mentality.

“Black people always complain about racism, but what about the racism my people face.”

“Women say they’re victims of sexual assault, but what about men?”

If people apply the zero sum mentality to this week’s incidents, then all sympathy will go to the policemen, and the two men killed earlier this week won’t get any.

The five policemen deserve our sympathy, so do Castille and Sterling.

Peaceful protest against police brutality is not meant to imply that all cops are racist or poorly trained. The peaceful protests are seeking justice for what was done and better training and evaluation of police officers at an institutional level. I am sure none of them condone the shooting. Why would they? It detracts from their efforts and creates more sympathy for the institution they are protesting against.

As this issue unfolds, let’s see if the zero sum mentality reigns supreme.

 

The Black Death

“Heard about Philando Castille and Alton Sterling shootings and I’m not even surprised anymore. Let’s see if any of the cops are actually punished for it, or just end up getting paid vacation and a bonus through a gofundme like Darren Wilson did.”

I posted this status to my personal facebook page earlier. Honestly, I know I should be full of rage at the two police shootings of unarmed black men this week, but I think I’m sadly becoming numb to them. I already know all the excuses the apologists are going to throw out.

“The one guy was a sex offender anyway.”

Of course people think someone has to be a saint to live. No one is saying Sterling was an upstanding citizen. The question here is did he deserve to die at this point and time. Was anything he did at that point and time worthy of execution. He was not a known criminal who the police had the authority to kill on site, or someone who was already wanted in connection with another crime. Trayvon Martin may have been caught with weed at school, but that doesn’t convert to being deserving of death when buying arizona and skittles. We are dealing with human beings, not checklists.

“We don’t have all the facts folks, let’s not jump to conclusions.”

A good principle, but often not applied well. Even in the case of the Walter Scott, where there was a video showing Scott get gunned down in the back by a cop, people still used this excuse. Even when we see Castillo strapped into his seat, with a seat belt, and bleeding out, people will still say we don’t have all the facts and can’t judge the policeman prematurely. Castillo was pulled over for a BROKEN TAILLIGHT. He has no criminal record. There was no warrant for an arrest. Castillo told the cop that he had a gun, which he was licensed to carry. The cop told him to put his hands, up, then told him to get his identification. Then shot Castillo when he got his identification. You can hear the panic in the cop’s voice. He is meant to be calm under pressure, well trained. I don’t see that reflected here. I see a jittery man who is panicking more than Castillo’s girlfriend is.

I am grateful that she recorded the incident, because if she didn’t I am sure there would be a lot more people assuming Castillo deserved to die.

People generally think it is okay to assume the victim was guilty, but it is not okay to use the evidence at hand to argue that they were likely innocent.

“White people get killed by cops too, why do we have to focus on black people? That’s race baiting”

If people would be bothered to do a two minute google search, they would see that black people are killed at a disproportionate rate. 31% of police victims, while we are 13% of the population. Those numbers don’t add up right? Maybe apologists will say we deserve it. Do you think Castillo deserved it?

“The cop in the Castille shooting sounds scared and sorry.”

That doesn’t change what happened. A crime was committed, and being remorseful does not mean that the cop should walk free. That isn’t how the legal system works.

“Not all cops are bad.”

No one is arguing all cops are racist or poorly trained. However, there is a growing trend (as evidenced by statistics, not just news coverage) and it is time that a cop faces consequences for his actions. Additionally, changes need to be instituted for better training for policemen and less profiling. A stop for a broken taillight should not have escalated to the point where a cop shoots someone four times. Especially if Castille advised the cop that he has a licensed firearm.

I’m pretty sure some or all of the officers involved will have money donated through a GoFundMe campaign and there is a good chance that some or all of them may be acquitted or face little jail time for their crimes.

Our anger, our “prayers” mean nothing. We need real action. We need to see accountability in the system. If not, this will keep happening. More outrage will poor out and nothing will change. Apologists and gofundmes will reign supreme.