What I See

A ten-year-old boy walks into his living room. He lets out a sigh. He contemplates the large, comfortable recliner for a moment, then walks over to the chair and sits down in it. His father walks into the room a moment later.

"Get out of my chair," he says.

"I just sat down," says the boy. "Give me a minute."

"Do as I say!" the man shouts as he takes a couple of steps, closes his fist, cocks his arm, and punches the boy in the eye.

"No!" yells a girl sitting in the chair next to them.

"Oh, you want some, too?" the man says, then punches her as well.

She ducks enough to avoid the worst of it and scrambles away, then sees her father grab the boy and toss him from the chair. She helps him stand and run from the room, his eye bloody and already swelling shut.

The man is their father. It is his chair. There is a rule in the house that no one may sit in the chair except him. Both children know the rule. The boy knew he was breaking the rule when he sat in his dad's chair, and he knew his dad would be upset.

Even so, the dad's response was far out of proportion to the infringement. Some would say it was out of proportion with any infringement. It was an overreaction, it was excessive, and it was indiscriminate in including the sister who broke no rules at all and just happened to be there.

That scenario is what I currently see playing out across the country at many protests against police brutality and racial injustice. I see police responding to protesters in ways that are overreactions, excessive, and indiscriminate.

Clearly, I don't see everything. I only have an incomplete perspective. I've been pretty glued to my social media feeds, which are full of information in support of the protesters, as well as to news sources I consider neutral to left-leaning. And I check those news sources themselves, not just what shows up in my feeds. I haven't attempted to do comprehensive research. I haven't actively sought perspectives from the right--though I do see a few. I don't know what the police are thinking or their goals. I'm also not black, and will never know that perspective. But I'm decently informed, an information savvy librarian, and feel I can generally trust what I see to be an accurate part of the whole truth.

This is what I see.

I see a president saying the police reaction should be stronger. That he wants to add the military to their response. That he wants to "dominate" the protesters. "Total domination."

I see that president use tear gas to clear lawful protesters from an area he wants to use for a photo opportunity so that it looks the way he wants. I see an Episcopal bishop respond with outrage.

I see so many others in respected positions responding to all these events with outrage as well. Too many to list. I see, for example, the director of my local, nationally respected art museum apologize that the local police used the museum's parking lot as a staging ground without his knowledge, prohibiting future use. "It is exactly the opposite of what the museum stands for."

Most of all, I see a feed overflowing with first-hand accounts and videos of protesters who have been mistreated by police. Protesters standing their ground while police charge them with fists, tear gas, canisters, and rubber bullets. Multiple people who have lost their eyes to those bullets, who were no threat to anyone's safety when they were shot.

I see people watching from their porches who get shot at with bullets and canisters when they don't immediately respond to orders to go inside.

Over and over again, I see people who may, yes, not be immediately responding to orders and words, who may be somewhere they shouldn't, who may be violating curfew--and many more who are guilty of nothing at all--who are met with overwhelming, indiscriminate, violent aggression from police.

I see history books about the Children's March in Birmingham in 1963, when all of the adults were jailed for protesting peacefully so the young people took over. Their peaceful protests were met with overwhelming, indiscriminate, violent aggression from police. Fire hoses and attack dogs. And how, for one of the first times, journalists were able to capture images and stories to share nationally. How the nation was outraged by the behavior of the police and government officials, and how that outrage was one of the turning points in the Civil Rights Movement.

I see journalists covering current protests being targeted by police. Being shot at and tear gassed and chased from demonstrations. Even when clearly identified and lawfully allowed. I see them being singled out and removed or punished. I see lack of a clear narrative emerging because it has been so difficult to effectively cover the events.

I see police in much of the coverage having a punitive intent. It begins with a desire to control, and when people refuse to be controlled it becomes a desire to punish. A desire to hurt. To dominate. Impatience and frustration that people won't just do what they want turning into preemptive aggression.

I see news reports that have been around for a long time that white supremacists have strategically worked to infiltrate law enforcement agencies. I see police at demonstrations flash white power signs. I see black protesters being treated more harshly than white.

I see far too many people turning away so they don't have to see.

I don't see enough. I know there is more to the picture, that there are other sides to the story. but I believe these things I have seen to be true.

I see the analogy I began with isn't entirely accurate. Police don't have the same relationship with black citizens that parents have with children. It's not quite the right dynamic. Parents have authority, the right to make rules and punish, and the expectation to nurture and teach and provide. Police have authority to enforce rules--but not to make them or to punish transgressors--and the expectation to serve and protect the public good. More importantly, children "belong to" their parents in a way far different than the relationship between black Americans and police. I see that.

But I think the power dynamics and history are close enough for the analogy to be a helpful picture. No, more than inaccurate, the scene is incomplete. I also see what happened before that moment played out.

I see a father who has always abused his family. The boy has known ten years of anger and aggression and pain. No real nurturing or teaching or protecting, just enough providing to get by. Mostly he's had to look after himself. His mom died years ago from wounds caused by his father, who was never charged or held accountable. Earlier today his dad woke up in a bad mood and his brother was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The boy had to take his brother to the hospital, and just arrived home to give his sister an update.

A ten-year-old boy walks into his house. He is angry. Tired of always ducking and avoiding and doing anything it takes to pacify his father's abuse. He's fed up. He wants to do something to fight back, but knows that anything he tries will end in more pain. Still. He goes looking for his sister.

He walks into his living room. He lets out a sigh. He contemplates the large, comfortable recliner for a moment, then walks over to the chair and sits down in it. His father walks into the room a moment later.

"Get out of my chair," he says.

"I just sat down," says the boy. "Give me a minute."

"Do as I say!" the man shouts as he takes a couple of steps, closes his fist, cocks his arm, and punches the boy in the eye.

"No!" yells a girl sitting in the chair next to them.

"Oh, you want some, too?" the man says, then punches her as well.

She ducks enough to avoid the worst of it and scrambles away, then sees her father grab the boy and toss him from the chair. She helps him stand and run from the room, his eye bloody and already swelling shut.

The man is their father. It is his chair. There is a rule in the house that no one may sit in the chair except him. Both children know the rule. The boy knew he was breaking the rule when he sat in his dad's chair, and he knew his dad would be upset.

Even so, the dad's response was far out of proportion to the infringement. Some would say it was out of proportion with any infringement. It was an overreaction, it was excessive, and it was indiscriminate in including the sister who broke no rules at all and just happened to be there.

This is what I see currently happening in our country.