Do unto others

Nearly seven decades ago, in rural northwestern Pennsylvania, the incidence of African-Americans was rare. Then one day a black family moved into town and several new students appeared in our school. Them being a bit different, and us being a bit confused, we asked our mother about it. Reaching into her Presbyterian grab-bag, she sweetly told us to “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Later, after joining the Marine Corps, I encountered a series of black non-coms and officers who demanded and deserved nothing but respect. Staff Sergeant Tolbert, our assistant DI, pummeled black and white recruits equally into the final product: United States Marines. Later, Master Sergeant Sims, a bulky, black, former professional wrestler, with a wonderful sense of humor but a deep knowledge of what was right, kept us in line.

All this in the late 1960s, not long after the Civil Rights movement began. We were taught that there were no black Marines, no white Marines, only green Marines. The Marine Corps was light years ahead.

And back in the civilian world, in later years, there were many black friends, and colleagues, and neighbors. Trusted and respected.

No, not everyone’s experience was like that. There still remain pockets of vicious racism, particularly evident in anonymous comments posted on the internet. (Anonymous posters are oh-so-courageous).

But indeed things are changing.  African Americans are increasingly successful in a wide range of endeavors. It is not at all unusual to see successful black CEOs, politicians, scientists, doctors, astronauts, and entrepreneurs. And generals and airline pilots, and famous actors and entertainers, and sports heroes and judges. We are no longer surprised to see blacks serving in any of society’s roles.

Another important sign – mixed marriages have become common. More importantly, the acceptance of such marriages has skyrocketed. Dr. Elwood Watson, a professor of African-American studies, describes a Gallup poll from 2014. While in 1958 only 4% of white Americans supported interracial marriage, that has now risen to “overwhelmingly supportive at 84 percent.” And for younger folks 18-29 years old, the support is nearly unanimous at 96%.

So with all this good news, what explains the ongoing national uproar concerning blacks and the police?

Are blacks targeted by police? Are they more likely to be shot and killed than whites?

A surprising study by Roland G. Fryer, a black economist at Harvard, finds an unlikely answer. According to the New York Times:

“A new study confirms that black men and women are treated differently in the hands of law enforcement. They are more likely to be touched, handcuffed, pushed to the ground or pepper-sprayed by a police officer, even after accounting for how, where and when they encounter the police.

But when it comes to the most lethal form of force — police shootings — the study finds no racial bias.”

To anyone who has been paying attention these last few years, that is a shocker.  As Dr. Fryer said, “It is the most surprising result of my career.”

We are left with a problem here. The study finds no bias in shootings, but it does find different treatment in less lethal contact. How to square this circle – why are the officers treating blacks differently? Is it purely racism or is there something else at work?

One possible explanation might be found in the FBI crime statistics as reported by the Washington Post. In the years 2004-2013, 930 police officers were killed by black offenders and 1,180 by whites.  While that seems to offer roughly equal odds for a police officer to meet death at the hands of any offender, it must be adjusted for population. After doing so, we find that the officer is nearly 4 times more likely to be killed by an individual black assailant than a white one.

Further, FBI arrest statistics reveal that blacks are arrested for serious felonies at a rate 2.6 times that of whites. While some of those arrests may result from bias, it is indicative of a very serious crime problem in the black community. (We need only read the weekly body count from Chicago to get a sense of that).

A fair reading of the numbers reveals that officers have more to fear from interacting with black subjects, and a much higher opportunity for such interactions. This is an untenable situation.

We as a society have let down our black brothers and sisters horribly. By not addressing the serious crime issue in black urban communities, we have sentenced them to lives of victimhood, stress, fear, and economic deprivation. And, of course, elevated police scrutiny.

Only by understanding root causes can we effect change. And it is a moral imperative to do so.