Americans But Second-class Citizens?

Coach Mike Ditka commented on the “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” gesture that some members of the St. Louis Rams made before their November 30, 2014 game against the Oakland Raiders.  Coach leaned on some of the same evidence and spouted some of the same rationale that others, reasonable and unreasonable, have used in their public statements to draw the same conclusion.

According to the article in Sporting News Coach said “What do you do if someone pulls a gun on you or is robbing a store and you stop them?  I don’t want to hear about this hands-up crap.  That’s not what happened.  This policeman’s life is ruined.  Why?  Because we have to break somebody down.  Because we have to even out the game.  I don’t know.  I don’t get it.  Maybe I’m just old fashioned.”  The article went on to say ‘Yes, Mike Ditka pulled out the “I don’t know exactly what did happen, but I know that’s not what happened” line.”

From what I know about Coach Ditka based on his public persona, he is a reasonable man who holds strong feelings about certain things and who will stand fast on his opinions about those things when those opinions are based on his foundation of well-grounded principles.  He has a right to his point of view just like those of us who still want to see Officer Darren Wilson tried in open court have to ours no matter how badly we want him to see things from our perspective.

I know just as well based on that same public persona that he probably could not care less about what I think about him and would be p##ed off that I sided with him and decided to defend his right to his point of view.  That notwithstanding, since Coach mentioned that the reason that people like me are clamoring for a trial in open court to determine Officer Wilson’s guilt or innocence is “because we have to break somebody down”, I am going to break down the statement that he made in Sporting News.

I am going to break his statement down, not in an effort to do my part to try to beat him into submission so that he will agree with my point of view but rather in an effort to show why reasonable people like him should sit down and discuss this problem with other reasonable people who disagree with him.

If Coach Ditka and others who feel the same way that he does would do this then that would be a major step toward narrowing the gap of this great divide between people that think like him on the matter of Ferguson and people that think like me.  The only way that we are going to make any progress is through reasonable dialogue so I hope that by breaking down his comments I will have done something that will help to begin to generate reasonable discussions on race issues in our country; this is not just a Ferguson, Missouri problem.  So here is my rationale for breaking down Coach’s statement and asking that he take a retrospective view of what he said and then take some time to ponder as to whether or not he should try to make a contribution to help bridge the gap between these completely opposite points of view.

According to the article in Sporting News Coach Ditka said “What do you do if someone pulls a gun on you or is robbing a store and you stop them?”  The robbing a store part of the preceding sentence likely came from the video that was released of someone who was alleged to be Michael Brown, the young man that Officer Wilson killed, robbing a store of some cigars shortly before Officer Wilson shot and killed him.

The problem with this is that even if this was Michael Brown, it is disputed as to whether Officer Wilson knew this before he shot and killed Mr. Brown.  Further, even if he knew this was Mr. Brown in the video it did not give him the right to be judge, jury and executioner.

Coach also said “I don’t want to hear about this hands-up crap.  That’s not what happened.  I don’t know exactly what did happen, but I know that’s not what happened.”  This “hands-up” may be “crap” to Coach and people who think like him but it is not “crap” to those Black Americans and others like them who feel that Michael Brown’s life was assigned a cheaper value than that of his white counterparts and snuffed out unfairly as a result of that: especially if Coach Ditka and those others who feel as he does are basing those feelings partially or totally on information that they are aware of from the grand jury proceedings.

There was no information made available about Officer Wilson’s past let alone any derogatory information about him.  Neither he nor any of the grand jury witnesses faced legitimate cross-examination as they would have in a regular trial by jury in open court.  The information that Coach and those who think like him are basing their conclusions on appear to be totally biased and one-sided.

“The Policeman’s life is ruined.  Why?  Because we have to break somebody down.  Because we have to even out the game.  I don’t know.  I don’t get it.  Maybe I’m just old fashioned.”  Coach, the policeman’s life is ruined?  What about Michael Brown?  His life is beyond ruined.  What about Michael Brown’s parents and loved ones; are their lives ruined?

We have to break down all of those witnesses who testified to the grand jury about the Ferguson shooting, including Officer Wilson.  If character is going to be considered in making a determination, we need to examine the background and character of Officer Wilson just as thoroughly as we do that of Michael Brown.  That is why all citizens of Ferguson in particular and all Americans in general need to see Officer Wilson tried by a regular jury in open court.

Coach Ditka and people who look like him have always only lived on the white privilege side of life so they tend to believe that law enforcement is applied equally to all citizens and that a policeman is not prone to lie.  This is probably because it is unlikely that they have been followed around in department stores while shopping or suspiciously eyed by policemen for no apparent reason.  And if they are stopped and questioned it is unlikely that they are treated with loathing and disrespect.

Situations like the one in Ferguson is why it seems to me to be such a waste not to take advantage of the experience and insight of the first African American President of the United States of America when he has experienced both the white privilege side of life and that of the Black underclass side of it.  It seems apparent that if there were someone who could identify with and effectively relate to both sides of the issue, he would be that someone.  But instead of taking advantage of this exceptional opportunity politicians waste it fighting meaningless political battles and ignoring the American people and the dire situation that we are in.

Yes, Coach, you are old fashioned but so am I and so are a lot of other Americans who are watching to see what the final results will be on the Ferguson shooting of Michael Brown.  Not only the final outcome in Ferguson but the first meaningful step toward bridging the racial divide in our country could rest with you.  What are you going to do?  Sure, it sounds like a real stretch for me so say that but stranger things have happened.

Eulus Dennis