On the recordFebruary 6, 2023
It is with great honor that I rise today to coanchor this CBC Special Order hour. It is the first of the 118th Congress and my first in this body. We have a problem, America, a big problem. The problem is the rampant disregard for Black life at the hands of law enforcement. For too many years now we have seen snuff videos--death at the hands of police--of our Black men and women and our Black boys and girls. These videos become dissected, the victim in death is persecuted as a way to justify excessive force, and it goes on and on and on. The more this happens, the more desensitized we become, and as a culture, we enter into a culture of deflection: deflecting accountability, deflecting truth, and deflecting uncomfortable conversations about the value of Black life. Why are we always looking for the perfect victim in these circumstances? If they were perfect--if any of us were--they wouldn't be victims. They also probably wouldn't be victims if they weren't Black. We certainly spend a lot of time victim blaming, deflecting, and not talking about the kind of public safety all of us should have and how we reimagine it in a way that makes it safe for everyone. It is sad to say but police shootings in Black communities have become as American as baseball. In baseball, Mr. Speaker, you have something called balk. Pitchers commit balks, and the lower the balk number, the better your success.…
