It's almost as if there's a belief in this country that police officers are infallible. Incapable of doing any wrong. That their lives are more valuable than any others. This has to be addressed. Hollywood and media has helped perpetuate the narrative of police heroes. And to be fair, some are heroes. Let me be clear: not all cops are bad. But a sizable percentage are rogue and behave like a mob. Making matters worse, politicians and media have to be overly deferential to cops to protect their image and political clout. That has to stop. Regardless of whether this officer is found innocent or guilty, the last 11 days have been undeniable proof that this society needs to address militarized police, police culture, trigger-happy cops, and the relation of all of that to race. Stop for a second and think about this: the racial issues and segregation that many of you have only been exposed to in the last week is something the people of Ferguson and the rest of north county have lived with their whole lives. And they've been on the losing end.
paraphrased from Umar Lee, independent journalist and longtime resident of St. Louis
