Op-Ed: No More Excuses for the Killing of Young Black Lives

Op-Ed: No More Excuses for the Killing of Young Black Liveshome insemination kits with syringes

As a mother of a spirited five-year-old girl, I can’t help but worry about the future. My daughter, with her bright eyes and curly hair, is a beautiful blend of Black and South Asian heritage. When I envision her growing up, I desperately hope I won’t be a grieving mother mourning over her, lost too soon to violence, much like the heartbreaking case of young Jasmine Thompson.

Can you fathom the pain Jasmine’s family is experiencing right now? Another young Black life has been tragically cut short by the very system that claims to protect us. The police department will undoubtedly offer a litany of justifications: “It wasn’t racially motivated,” “the officer feared for his safety,” or “let’s wait for all the facts to emerge.” But what more do we need to understand? A 16-year-old girl has lost her life, and it’s painfully clear that this happens far too often.

The primary duty of police officers is to ensure our safety, regardless of our race or background. Their role is to assist those in distress, not to escalate situations. When a young person like Jasmine reaches out for help, the response should be support, not violence. For communities of color, however, the outcome is often tragic. The killing of unarmed Black individuals takes an emotional toll on all of us.

We should all be outraged by the murder of another child. We remember names like Adam Toledo, Tamir Rice, and Michael Brown. The prevalence of officers who act without hesitation, viewing individuals through a lens of racial bias, is staggering. The culture of policing must change to prevent the unnecessary loss of life.

On that fateful day, we do not know what was happening in Jasmine’s mind. Perhaps she felt threatened, perhaps she held a kitchen knife in self-defense. But we will never know the truth because the officer shot first—four bullets fired into the chest of a girl who wasn’t even charging at him. He had been on the scene for a mere 10 seconds before resorting to lethal force.

Imagine if the scenario involved a white teenager instead. Would the response have been the same? I doubt it. The systemic racism that permeates our society means that white individuals do not face the same dangers as Black people. While mass shooters like Nikolas Cruz or Dylann Roof are treated with respect and care by law enforcement, Black individuals fear for their lives even in mundane situations.

The statistics are troubling. A study published by the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health revealed that between 2015 and 2020, there were 5,367 fatal police shootings, with 1,265 of the victims being Black—at a rate 2.6 times higher than their white counterparts. Yes, gun violence is a significant issue, but the underlying problem of racism in our policing practices is even more profound. We have reached a point where Black individuals must navigate their lives with a playbook for survival.

What will it take to change the attitudes of officers and the systemic racism that persists? Lives have been lost, and communities forever altered, yet the response remains the same: reassigned officers and empty promises of reform. Every day, we are reminded that unarmed individuals are still being killed. This is our reality.

I fervently hope that Jasmine’s tragic death will spark a change in the hearts and minds of those who prioritize skin color over humanity. She could have been my daughter, and until real change occurs, that fear will haunt me and countless other Black parents.

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In summary, the killing of young Black lives like Jasmine Thompson is a stark reminder of the urgent need for reform in policing practices. It highlights the systemic racism that affects our communities and calls for a collective response to ensure the safety and dignity of all individuals, regardless of their race.