misinterpreted the use of a black-on-black crime straw-man argument, it was not the primary argument in asserting that the prevalence of systemic police racism is a myth. Rather, I included that excerpt from her well-presented op-Ed to emphasize her point that the African-American community faces a more ominous issue which should be a primary concern of those truly concerned with “Black Lives”.

Given the facts that based on the most recent published data, African-Americans made up 53% of known homicide offenders in the U.S. and commit about 60% of robberies, though they are 13% of the population, is it not logical that police would disproportionately investigate and enforce (or “engage”) the law in these communities?

And the frequency with which law enforcement must engage with a given racial group is a significant factor in level of force needed to be used by law enforcement. As the article mentions “The latest in a series of studies undercutting the claim of systemic police bias was published in August 2019 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The researchers found that the more frequently officers encounter violent suspects from any given racial group, the greater the chance that a member of that group will be fatally shot by a police officer. There is ‘no significant evidence of antiblack disparity in the likelihood of being fatally shot by police,’ they concluded.”

The message from left is conflicted. Some, like yourself, assert that protesters are not asking to dismantle the police force and have anarchy reign; they're asking for reforms that will lead to safer and fairer law enforcement practices. Yet, look no further than today’s news about movements in many left-run cities to dismantle their police departments. And the left continues to label those who throw bricks and ice bottles, destroy public and private property and loot along with those who are peaceful under the same “protestor” umbrella which is a dangerous distortion.

According to a recent Axios-Ipsos poll, an overwhelming 69% of Americans trust their local police and law enforcement. Unfortunately, the poll is split along racial divide, indicating 77% of white Americans but only 36% of black Americans possess such trust. Those perceptions may well be based more on frequency of engagement and an agenda-driven media than actual systemic mistreatment.

[Post edited by Hoos Operator at 06/06/2020 10:10AM]