Police Brutality
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Extended Rochester Police Body Cam Footage Shows Cops Who Pepper-Sprayed 9-Year-Old Girl Just DGAF About Black Children
The Rochester Police Department—like police departments across the nation—is proving itself to be a microcosm of white America in that it appears to be indifferent to Black trauma and blind to Black innocence. Earlier this month, The Root reported that a 9-year-old Black girl was handcuffed and pepper-sprayed for seemingly no other reason than because…
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Derek Chauvin Agreed to 10-Year Prison Sentence for George Floyd's Murder Before the Plea Deal Was Quashed. Here's Why That's Interesting
On Wednesday, the New York Times published a piece chronicling the case of George Floyd and the upcoming trial for the ex-Minneapolis police officer accused of killing him, Derek Chauvin. Mostly, the story by the Times was a recap of things that have already been reported regarding the case, but the report did reveal one…
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Former NY Police Chief Says Cops Did Nothing 'Egregious' in Daniel Prude Death Because There Were No 'Strikes' or 'Punches'
On March 23, last year, police officers in Rochester, New York, confronted Daniel Prude after his brother had called them out of concern for Prude’s mental health and general wellbeing. Prude had been walking naked through the streets and rambling incoherently—but Prude complied with officers’ instructions. Police told him to get on the ground and…
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Former Ohio Police Officer Charged With Murder in Fatally Shooting Unarmed Black Man Andre Hill
If we’ve learned anything in our fight against police violence and systemic racism in our justice system, it’s that it is damn hard to hold cops who kill unarmed Black people accountable for their crimes. Even when they’re charged in connection with these shootings the charge is almost never murder. I personally believe that the…
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Board Reverses Firings of Atlanta Cops Who Tased HBCU Students, Dragged Them From Car During Protest
Ever since a national spotlight was put on police violence and systemic racism amid a wave of nationwide protests, cops across America have been big mad and big hurt. They feel they’re being treated as unfairly in the court of public opinion as Black people are treated in actual courts. Here’s the thing, though: Who…
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9-Year-Old Black Girl Pepper-Sprayed by Rochester Police After Refusing to Get in Patrol Car After Domestic Disturbance
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Cops don’t need to be called to every emergency. This goes especially for emergency calls that involve the mental health or general wellness of Black people. We’ve seen time and time again that when police officers are called to handle non-violent emergencies involving Black people, they…
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Black Student Who Was Knocked Unconscious by Florida Officer Is ‘Traumatized’ and Seriously Injured, Family Says
Last week, The Root reported that a Black high school student was body-slammed and knocked unconscious by a school resource officer at Liberty High School in Kissimmee, Fla. The Osceola County Sheriff’s Department said the officer was trying to stop a fight between her and another student, but video footage of the incident recorded by…
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Black Family That Was Handcuffed After Being Wrongfully Suspected of Riding in Stolen Vehicle Sues Aurora, Colo., Police
In August of last year, a Black family was stopped by police in Aurora, Colo. Four Black girls—children and teenagers, ages 6, 12, 14 and 17—were ordered out of their vehicle at gunpoint and made to lie on the ground while officers handcuffed the 12- and 17-year-olds while they screamed and cried in terror. The cops…
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Why Activists Are Frustrated by the Appointment of Louisville’s New Police Chief
What happens when a high-ranking police officer resigns from one police department after the unjust police shooting of a Black citizen only to become police chief of another embattled police department that came into the spotlight after the unjust police shooting of another Black citizen? Well, mainly, the new police chief is being greeted with…