The Grinding Persistence of America’s Police Problem
The videotaped death of Tyre Nichols is as shocking as it is utterly familiar.
The police killing in Memphis has deep roots in our national character.
Photographer: Fatih Aktas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
You will not believe the video that was released Friday night showing Memphis police officers beating — ultimately to death — a young Black man.
I don’t really mean that, of course. If you live in the US, and participate in society, you likely have no difficulty believing that a gang of violent police officers fatally pummeled Tyre Nichols in what the city’s police chief accurately described as a “heinous” attack. Indeed, if you have an Internet connection or a television, you have probably seen similar videos of police officers killing Black men, and women too, in other American cities. By choking, for example. Or shooting in the back. You may have seen videos of police not killing Black men — merely assaulting them while they are prone or otherwise defenseless.