Arrested Development

Police interactions that turn adverse
have become harder to conceal.
“Racism is not getting worse,
it’s just getting filmed.” is so real.

In too many public incidents,
likely rings a biased alarm
in the minds of law enforcement
with Blacks later deemed unarmed.

Their behavior suggests a fatal flaw
that skirts de-escalation; rarely
applying the Constitutional law
“innocent until proven guilty”.

Sudden moves from panic are met
with swift, violent retaliation,
while Whites are rarely beset
with acts of impulsive predation.

Despite video evidence depicting
actions that overstep authority,
little faith is had in justice convicting
rotten fruit on the poisoned tree.

Citizens robbed of their future
due to random overzealous police
who impact survivors like abusers
striking fear as families grieve.

People of color keenly observe
the outcome of unfair tragedy
and see those who “protect and serve”
as a cause of undue high anxiety.

Yet, due to media blinders
self-imposed on White communities,
moderates don’t have a mass desire
to demand reforms from authorities.

Tangents like black-on-black crime
are injected as deflection
to ignore statistics that, over time,
refute whitewash tactics upon inspection.

To be sure, law enforcement is hard,
a career unsung for good deeds,
but acts met with systemic disregard
for innocent lives lost betrays sworn duty.

© 2021 Joel Johnson