The callous disregard for Black lives is part of that legacy. The pervasive lack of empathy for the Black people found in the Mississippi River decades ago or—in contemporary times—for the lives of people like Sandra Bland, Eric Garner, Freddy Gray, Tamir Rice, Philando Castile,
and so many others lead me to believe no amount of policy changes, body cams, police trainings, citizen oversight boards, or police chief firings will make a major difference for Blacks if we don’t also address the underlying issue that is at the heart of this behavior.
Sharon Kyle