I still maintain that the vast majority of police officers are decent, hard-working and fundamentally honest servants of the people.
Yet it only takes one rotten apple to spoil the barrel and, judging by the experiences of Stuart Lawrence and many more, this is clearly not a case of one rogue officer.So... middle-class, privately educated black man is stopped by the police, and claims he is not treated with the respect he feels he deserves, and has a hissy-fit about it in the press.
Oh, what does he do for a living, you say?
I own and run an international theatre school.Riiight...
But he's now 'lost confidence' in the police as a result. His black friends were right all along!
Lord Stevens, who was the Met's commissioner from 2000 until 2005, speaks of a 'national crisis' in police morale.
Well, it cuts both ways. Just as they have lost confidence in themselves, I have lost confidence in them.It doesn't 'cut both ways', though, does it Ben?
We are still not to draw any conclusions about the huge levels of black crime, that have lead to the formation of a special unit just to deal with it! We are supposed to tut, purse our lips, but keep silent on the cavalcade of notably melanin-rich faces that parade through this very newspaper under the 'crime' section? Not draw any conclusions whatsover by their over-representation at the bottom of employment and school achievement figures? Not point to the fact that, even amongst such a cesspit of iniquity as the political scene, their representation stands out as excessively stupid and ignorant and prone to gaffes?
But you are free to draw all the conclusions you want?
I think the police are equal opportunity offenders in the 'abusing members of the public' stakes nowadays. I didn't see that old guy who was hauled out of his Range Rover for not wearing a seat belt claiming 'Is it cos I is white'?
ReplyDeleteNot with you all the way on this one, Julia.
ReplyDeleteTrying to ignore the disproportionate involvement of young black men in the number of crimes committed by young men is wrong.
Nor does a single incident involving a man who has made it to his thirties without any complaint support arguments that all the police are institutionally prejudiced against black people.
But a police officer doing what is, we assume, a traffic stop properly carried out within his powers, must open discussions with the person(s) met with due courtesy and do all he can to maintain that. The account given indicates otherwise. Wrong.
Rgds
BertEBassett
Gosh, when I read this Black Comedy in the DM yesterday, I was all but ready to cave in with suggestions the Beeb award his company substantial contracts, you know, as a goodwill gesture.
ReplyDeleteI'm at a loss to suggest a better alternative, Julia. The top quango jobs are already taken by you know who.
I was angry when I read this story as well.At no time does the driver claim the officer racially abused him,planted drugs,assaulted him,but HE KNEW it was because he was black he was spoken to abruptly.I wish I was telepathic as well.That's assuming his version of events are correct of course.
ReplyDeleteAs a matter of protocol this officer would be very easy to trace if the driver were to complain.All police cars have trackers in and if he did a PNC check that would be logged under his number as well.But then we would hear the other side of the story wouldn't we?
Jaded
Obviously this case highlights the disaster that mixed adoption policies could bring. This poor lamb was kept away from his heritage for too long that an encounter with a modern plain clothes cop has him labelling all police as 'racists'. What this story highlights to me is that (a) The race hucksters are alive and well and take no account whatsoever in any of the changes to police training over the last 30 years and the massive importance of race and equality training endured by officers and staff for the last 13 years since McPherson
ReplyDelete(B) Mentioning training, recruitment standards have dropped to allow BME's and other 'specially qualified' people to join - I think this chap ticks two particular boxes there PLUS there is no more intensive residential training, all family friendly, on the job, computer based bollocks these days.
(c) The police really do represent the rainbow alliance of the communities they serve and modern UK society I'm afraid, They all seem to have degrees too! Though what sort is the question.
If this chap's account is true then the officer is a total cnut - end of, make a complaint and see it through.
Finally, I understand that 'Trident' units are soon to be no more....well in name only = = they'll be gang intervention units or something but the 'black on black' thing is being dropped....but we'll all know won't we.
Now come on Darlings....back to rehearsals!
XX Stuart Lawrence XX
ReplyDeleteSory I may have missed something but, are we talking the same family here?
You know the one I mean.
Ain't being funny or racist here, but aren't the majority of people that inhabit London now are either black or dark skinned? Should a cop just keep sights for white skinned people or what? What would that achieve? A racist promotion for whites? Funnily enough I doubt it.
ReplyDeleteFeral.
"I think the police are equal opportunity offenders in the 'abusing members of the public' stakes nowadays."
ReplyDeleteQuite!
"The account given indicates otherwise. "
Well, yes, but as Jaded points out, we only have his account. And it's not like he's not from a profession prone to embellishment, is it?
"As a matter of protocol this officer would be very easy to trace if the driver were to complain."
Which perhaps explains why he went to the 'Mail' instead!
"Ain't being funny or racist here, but aren't the majority of people that inhabit London now are either black or dark skinned? "
Not quite yet. Won't be long, though.
Newsflash: Black pot calls white kettle black.
ReplyDeleteAha, so its that Ben Douglas..
ReplyDeleteRead more: Ben- http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1361031/