Let’s breathe justice, equality

O, let my land be a land where Liberty

Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,

But opportunity is real, and life is free,

Equality is in the air we breathe.

— Langston Hughes, Let America Be America Again (1936)

Equality in America, especially in the nation’s justice system, has been gasping for air for centuries.

In the case of Eric Garner, a 43-year-old New York man confronted by police in July, a banned chokehold by one officer and the aggressive behavior of others literally robbed him of the air he was trying desperately to breathe.

Although the episode was captured on video and has been seen by many worldwide as a grossly unjust act, the officer responsible for Garner’s death was no-billed by a grand jury on Staten Island Wednesday, leading to protest demonstrations across the country.

Garner, who was black, died at the hands of white policeman Daniel Pantaleo.

The grand jury decision not to indict Pantaleo came on the heels of a case in Ferguson, Mo., in which a grand jury failed to indict a white police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown, igniting several nights of protest marches and riots.

Peaceful demonstrations

Those legal actions, along with more reports of African-Americans being killed by white cops in various parts of the country, have slapped the conscience of thousands of residents in cities across America who displayed their anger and frustration by taking to the streets, most of them peacefully.

Once again leaders from the president to local politicians and community activists are calling for more dialogue on race relations, and particularly an examination of how local police departments interact with ethnic minorities.

I, for one, have grown tired of the commissions and studies and town halls and conferences on race relations in America.

But I’ve grown even more tired of the overzealous, undertrained, intolerant and, yes, in many cases, racist police officers who treat people differently based on the color of their skin, economic status and where they live.

By no means am I talking about most law enforcement officers, but I am speaking of what turns out to be too many of them. Sadly, the “bad cops” are too often protected by the “good” ones and a system that rarely adequately punishes peace officers for their abusive or negligent behavior.

When an incident or a series of outrageous or questionable actions by police catches the nation’s attention, especially when there’s an obvious racial component, we begin the dialogue — generally restating the age-old problems, proposing the same old solutions and promising that this time real change is coming.

The president and others are recommending that police be given another tool, body cameras, to help protect them and the residents they are sworn to serve.

The Fort Worth Police Department, with more than 600 Axon Flex body cameras, is second only to Winston-Salem, N.C., in the number of such devices.

Last week there was a police shooting here in which a man was killed after allegedly burglarizing a store and then charging an officer with a bat and screwdriver. The police chief was quick to note that the officer was wearing a body camera.

Chief Jeff Halstead later issued a statement saying, “A review of all video perspectives clearly support the action taken by the officers involved in the tragic incident.”

Let’s be clear that while having more video may be helpful in analyzing the actions of a police officer, images are often challenged by smart lawyers (on either side) whose job it is to make you see what you don’t see, or not see what you do. After all, there was video in the Garner case.

Unfortunately, things won’t really change until the people of this nation, including law enforcement, begin to live and breathe equality and justice.

Bob Ray Sanders is a columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.