Cops are Being Targeted, but Not by Whom They Think

Once again, a nonviolent black man has died at the hands of police officers. As Minneapolis burns in the wake of the death of George Floyd, who was being arrested for allegedly passing a forged $20 check, the question arises again—are white cops targeting people of color?

Unfortunately, the answer seems to be yes. In whole numbers, the number of white men versus black men killed by police officers per year is largely comparable. But when looked at in terms population ratios, black men are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by law enforcement; for black women that number is 1.4 times more likely. According to a Rutgers University study, 1-in-1,000 African American boys and men will be killed by police in their lifetime; for white boys and men, the rate is 39 out of 100,000.

Contentious History

But why? Historically, law enforcement has had a contentious relationship with Black Americans going back to the antebellum South when constables, sheriff’s, and state militia were responsible for hunting down escaped slaves. In the postbellum South, those same figures of authority were often the night riders of the Klu Klux Klan. Southern cops were also charged with enforcing the South’s notorious Jim Crow laws.

But that was then; this is now. So, are police officers today more likely to shoot African Americans because people of that race kill more cops than Caucasians? According to FBI statistics, of 556 persons charged in cop killings between 2004 and 2013, 289 were white, 243 were black, and the rest were Asian/Pacific Islanders or Native Americans. Again, in whole numbers, there is statistically no difference in the number of white and black cop killers. Yet, according to the Census Bureau, African Americans comprise only 13.4 percent of the American population. So, police could say they are more fearful of encounters with black suspects than white suspects, hence the outcome of those encounters are more likely to be violent.

Gunning for Cops

Yet, because America’s gun culture is largely a white phenomenon, Caucasian suspects are more likely to be armed, and heavily armed at that. And some of those armed whites are out gunning for cops.

According to a study by ThinkProgress, 33 officers shot between 2007 and 2017 were targeted by far-right extremists, including white supremacists and anti-government sovereign citizens. Statistics compiled by the Anti-Defamation League showed right-wing extremists killed 51 police officers between 1990 and 2018. Left-wing extremists, including black nationalists, killed 11.

These statistics and incidents do not include the dozens of alt-right extremists who, over the past two decades, planned attacks on local police and federal agents but were arrested before the attacks could be executed.

In June, police in Northern California arrested an active duty Air Force airman on charges of

Suspected alt-right extremist Steven Carrillo 
was charged with ambushing Santa Cruz 
sheriff's deputies.

ambushing and killing a Santa Cruz sheriff's deputy and wounding other. Steven Carrillo is also suspected in other recent attacks on local and federal law enforcement officers. Carrillo is suspected of having right-wing extremist belief based on statements on his social media. When arrested he was in possession of a semiautomatic rifle and home-made bombs.

Voting for Their Own Killers?

 Generally, law enforcement officers tend to be conservative and vote as such. But these officers may be supporting the very people targeting them for death.

In December 2019, Washington State Rep. Matt Shea, a Republican, was accused by his own state legislature of secretly taking part in the 2016 six-week Malheur National Wildlife Refuge standoff between law enforcement agencies and members of the so-called “Patriot Movement.” Shea was accused of planning the deadly standoff as well as two other violent incidents over a three-year period.

The Patriot Movement is a notorious coalition of hard-right extremist groups including neo-Nazis and other white supremacists, anti-government sovereign statists, and armed militias. It’s members are responsible for most of the two decades of attacks on police mentioned earlier. Two members of the movement, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, blew up the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995, killing 168 people including many children.

These are the same people Donald Trump referred to as “some fine people” following the 2017 white supremacist demonstrations in Charlottesville, VA.

Shea Not Alone

Shea is not alone in the GOP in his support of the movement. According to Political Research Associates, numerous members of Oregon’s state legislature are either members or supporters of the Patriot Movement. So are many local law enforcement officials, meaning some day cops may be killing cops. In May 2019, the Arizona Republic reported that the Patriot Movement was pushing for more influence in the state’s GOP.

The Patriot Movement has gained renewed momentum from the current pandemic, using stay-at-home orders and business closures as a cause célèbre for their anti-government rhetoric. The corona crisis has also given these terrorists a new weapon. According to a March 2020 FBI intelligence report, white extremists who contract the virus are being encourage to spread it among the population by using spray bottles filled with their bodily fluids. Their primary targets? Jews and police officers.

Look, I have a law enforcement background from the military. Being a cop is hard, dangerous, and sometimes unrewarding work. But if I were a police officer today, I’d be less nervous about dealing with a black guy than I would a white guy. Especially if the white guy had a spray bottle.