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systemic racism, or the racism which manifests in some
situations. Law enforcement agencies must create in-
ternal departmental alert systems that track an ofɿcer’s
physical enforcement interactions, citizen complaints
and department internal policy violation investigations.
Many police ofɿcers are not residents of the commu-
nities they patrol. In some of these communities, ofɿcers
are responding to heavy call loads that do not allow for
non-duty-related interactions with those they serve. In
communities where ofɿcers live and work, there is an
opportunity to interact with citizens through events like
schools, sports, church, dining. This allows law enforce-
ment ofɿcers to see citizens through positive experiences.
A young man I once worked with, who later became
a friend, and I were riding together. He pulled over a
vehicle occupied by two African American teens and
began harshly questioning them. Because of their
attire and the expensive vehicle they were driving—it
belonged to a parent—the trooper assumed they were
gang members. He began questioning them in a way
that I had never heard him do to any other violator.
I asked about it, and he told me his actions were
based on the indicators associated with their hoodies,
matching pants, expensive tennis shoes and jewelry.
We’d never spent time together socially, outside of
work, so I had to tell him that I too wore hoodies with
matching pants, expensive tennis shoes and jewelry.
You’re kidding, he said.
He perceived me as a “different” African American
because of the title of Trooper. And after we talked,the young trooper began to cry and apologized for his
actions with the teen. He said he’d grown up in an all-
white neighborhood and attended schools without any
African American classmates. His college had a small
percentage of African Americans; he had no personal
contact with them. After graduation he attended ʀight
school where there was not an African American in
his ʀight class. All he knew about African Americans,
the trooper said, was learned through news reports,
movies and conversations with others like himself.
If my friend had been trained by another white ofɿ-
cer with his same implicit biases, then the culture that
challenges us today would only have been reinforced.
Communities that allow ofɿcers to live outside of the
area could mandate that as a condition of employment, ofɿ-
cers must volunteer a certain number of community service
hours. Law enforcement agencies need to create oppor-
tunities for interactions that foster acceptance and trust.
There are nearly 1,000 police agencies in America
with varying leadership philosophies: a huge pileup of
differing policies and procedures. I challenge govern-
ment ofɿcials to form a decision-making body with
authority to review, revise, or create new, nationally stan-
dardized policies for all law enforcement to follow. The
choke-hold that killed George Floyd would most likely
have been prohibited if such a governing body existed.
As I said, I had fears about my own son’s safety in
encounters with police. I remember having that talk
with my son about dealing with police, while reʀecting
on the conversation my dad had with me. My son’s
response was a deɿant “why"”—the same response I
gave my father. I remember as a small child overhearing
my grandfather having a similar conversation with my
father. I wondered why my grandfather was telling my
hero he could not stand like a man but needed to be
submissive to ensure he would return to his family.
I pray that one day these conversations between
Black fathers and sons will no longer be necessary.
Noise researchers have found that most peo-
ple get used to a sound that they hear often. Their
brain tells them there’s no cause for alarm. If you
live near train tracks, after a week or so you may
no longer be awakened by passing trains because
your internal monitor tells you that there’s no danger,
that you can safely ignore even the loudest sound.
You have become deaf to the sound of the train.
White America has become deaf to the pain of African
Americans, believing there is no cause for alarm. After
all these centuries together, white America is no longer
awakened by the cry of an African American voice.
If we can hear each other, we can begin to go for-
ward—together.ƠRetired Captain Ron Johnson led protest-security
law enforcement during the demonstrations that
followed the shooting of Michael Brown Jr. He is the
author of 13 days in ferguson and the founder of
Lodestones Solutions Group.by
RON
JOHNSONIN CHARGE
Captain Ron Johnson of
the Missouri Highway
Patrol was in charge of
security operations in
Ferguson after violent
protests broke out there
in the wake of the death of
teenager Michael Brown,
who was killed by a local
SC police ofɿcer in 2014.
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