# Controversial encounters between law-enforcement and civilians - the omnibus thread **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 10, 2014, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942 "2014-10-10T07:35:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 113
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2241 "2015-04-30T12:24:07Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > I’m not racist. I’ll bet you have black friends, too. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2242 "2015-04-30T12:27:13Z")
Would it be illegal/unconstitutional for police departments to have a “black officers only” policy for patrolling black majority neighborhoods? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2243 "2015-04-30T12:40:56Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Would it be illegal/unconstitutional for police departments to have a “black officers only” policy for patrolling black majority neighborhoods? Black or white, they need to get back to having cops who walk a beat, on foot. Community policing from the seat of a cruiser is a joke. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2244 "2015-04-30T12:53:49Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > I’m not racist. I’m not sure if you’re a racist or not, but saying “I’m not racist” does nothing to sway me either way. That’s how an unknowing racist would respond. But I can’t read your mind. I do think that you’ve made racist assertions – chiefly that black people who are mistreated after being arrested deserve such mistreatment, and making negative generalizations about millions, most of whom are decent and peaceful individuals. I recognize that there’s a possibility that I hold racist beliefs, and I think it’s wise for everyone to recognize this about themselves. Saying “I’m not racist” provides no information other than one doesn’t believe that they are racist, which describes the vast majority of racists (and non-racists) in human history. I strive to identify and purge any such beliefs if they exist, but I welcome scrutiny of my comments and actions for possible racism. I want to improve myself, and identifying things I’ve stated that might be racist would help me improve myself. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2245 "2015-04-30T13:01:29Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > That’s how an unknowing racist would respond. No such thing. One can’t unknowingly treat people differently because of their skin colour. It’s a conscious action. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2246 "2015-04-30T13:09:02Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > No such thing. One can’t unknowingly treat people differently because of their skin colour. It’s a conscious action. [Complete](https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/between-the-lines/201204/studies-unconscious-bias-racism-not-always-racists) [nonsense](http://www.theguardian.com/news/oliver-burkeman-s-blog/2013/aug/15/racist-sexist-you-are-more). Do you really believe a store owner cannot unknowingly make assumptions about a patron because of skin color? Do you really believe a police officer cannot unknowingly make assumptions about a bystander or citizen because of skin color? Do you really believe unknowing assumptions can’t factor into actions? ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2247 "2015-04-30T13:13:30Z")
> [@Steophan](#): > > No such thing. One can’t unknowingly treat people differently because of their skin colour. It’s a conscious action. This assertion goes far beyond “is false” to “displays startling ignorance.” ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2248 "2015-04-30T13:17:38Z")
It’s kind of amazing that someone can actually believe that not only are there _no unknowing racists_ on earth, but there never have been and can’t possibly be. ---
**Author:** ![FXMastermind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fxmastermind/32/7289_2.png) [@FXMastermind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FXMastermind)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2249 "2015-04-30T14:24:43Z")
Using the logic found online, everybody is racist. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2250 "2015-04-30T15:29:02Z")
“I have no particular love for the idealized ‘worker’ as he appears in the bourgeois Communist’s mind, but when I see an actual flesh-and-blood worker in conflict with his natural enemy, the policeman, I do not have to ask myself which side I am on.” – [George Orwell](http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Orwell#Homage_to_Catalonia_.281938.29) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2251 "2015-04-30T15:50:00Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > “I have no particular love for the idealized ‘worker’ as he appears in the bourgeois Communist’s mind, but when I see an actual flesh-and-blood worker in conflict with his natural enemy, the policeman, I do not have to ask myself which side I am on.” Police are workers too. The policeman is not the enemy of the worker, he’s the worker’s ally against the criminal. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2252 "2015-04-30T15:51:25Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Rioting helped in Ferguson and it helped in Baltimore. It’d be great if we now took the problem seriously without the violence, but we still have a sizeable portion of our society writing off the blacks as being irrational savages getting worked up by outside agitators who have no real complaint against the police. As long as we let such hateful bigots drive our public policy, we’ll have to get used to violent resistance. I’d _love_ to see you pitch that line to someone who lost their home, business, livelihood, job, or all of the above because of those rioters. Tell them it’s a _good_ thing that they’re now broke, unemployed, or homeless, because it will Inspire People To Action and help The Cause. I’m sure it’ll be an easy sell. Or does the way they’ve been lawlessly victimized through no fault of their own not matter because they’re not _the right sort_ of victims? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2253 "2015-04-30T16:11:59Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Police are workers too. > > The policeman is not the enemy of the worker, he’s the worker’s ally against the criminal. This is how it’s supposed to be, but through history it often was not reality. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2254 "2015-04-30T16:17:20Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Police are workers too. > > The policeman is not the enemy of the worker, he’s the worker’s ally against the criminal. Let’s go to the quarry and throw stuff down there! I didn’t know you did comedy, **Smapti**! Hell, I didn’t even know you had a sense of humor! ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2255 "2015-04-30T16:24:30Z")
If we look through American history, whenever most members of a minority have asserted that injustice and unfair treatment were occurring, they’ve been right. Black Americans in 1850 who complained of injustice; Native Americans in the 19th century; black Americans in the Jim Crow South; gay Americans in recent decades; all of them (and many other groups) were right. I tend to think that this pattern isn’t coincidental, and it’s not accidental. If most black people today are saying “X is happening and it’s wrong”, then I think it’s most likely that they’re as correct as black people in 1850, 1900, and 1950 were – X really is happening, and it’s wrong. They’re not lying, and they’re not making it up, for the most part, just like all those groups through American history weren’t either. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2256 "2015-04-30T16:25:44Z")
…so there really _is_ a War on Christmas, you’re saying. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2257 "2015-04-30T16:27:15Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > …so there really _is_ a War on Christmas, you’re saying. Nope. Christians aren’t a minority, and the majority of Christians aren’t saying this. Go ahead and keep looking. And go ahead and disbelieve the majority of black people who are asserting ongoing injustice – that’s _never_, in all of American history, ever been a winning tactic. _The majority of black people have always been right about injustices against black people_. Always. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2258 "2015-04-30T16:38:05Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Nope. Christians aren’t a minority, and the majority of Christians aren’t saying this. [47% isn’t close enough to a majority for you?](http://observer.com/2012/12/poll-shows-almost-half-of-americans-believe-there-is-a-war-on-christmas/) > [@](#): > > _The majority of black people have always been right about injustices against black people_. Always. So the CIA really _did_ invent AIDS in order to kill off the blacks. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2259 "2015-04-30T16:44:19Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > [47% isn’t close enough to a majority for you?](http://observer.com/2012/12/poll-shows-almost-half-of-americans-believe-there-is-a-war-on-christmas/) 47% is not a majority, and it’s not even close to the [cited majorities](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/on-racial-issues-america-is-divided-both-black-and-white-and-red-and-blue/2014/12/26/3d2964c8-8d12-11e4-a085-34e9b9f09a58_story.html) of black people (80-90%) who believe that black people are not treated fairly by law enforcement and the criminal justice system. And, again, Christians aren’t a minority. > [@](#): > > So the CIA really _did_ invent AIDS in order to kill off the blacks. In what universe do a majority (much less 80-90%) of black people believe this? Why do you habitually pull crap out of your ass and assert it as if it’s true? ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2015, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942/2260 "2015-04-30T17:06:06Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > 47% is not a majority, and it’s not even close to the [cited majorities](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/on-racial-issues-america-is-divided-both-black-and-white-and-red-and-blue/2014/12/26/3d2964c8-8d12-11e4-a085-34e9b9f09a58_story.html) of black people (80-90%) who believe that black people are not treated fairly by law enforcement and the criminal justice system. > > And, again, Christians aren’t a minority. > > In what universe do a majority (much less 80-90%) of black people believe this? > > Why do you habitually pull crap out of your ass and assert it as if it’s true? Maybe it’s all he’s got, **iiandyiii**. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942.md?page=112) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/controversial-encounters-between-law-enforcement-and-civilians-the-omnibus-thread/700942.md?page=114)