A LOOK INTO AFRICAN AMERICAN AND POLICE RELATIONS

The police and African American community relations have been one that has been on edge for many, many years. Some may not know, but it traces back to slavery when Slave masters used slave patrols or slave catchers to catch their runaway slaves; they were a form of police. The more contemporary issues became prominent during the civil rights era and the actions of police departments everywhere. This is what most of my research consisted of this week on the History Makers digital archive. I wanted better to understand the tension between the black community and police and gain some insight into black police officers’ relationships with the white community and white officers. This led me to the interviews of Judge Gregory Mathis, Howard Saffold, and the Honorable Bernard Parks. All three of their interviews help narrow down some core problems between the two communities.

The Honorable Judge Gregory Mathis

Former circuit judge Gregory Mathis and star of the show “Judge Mathis” talked about what he witnessed with police in his community, “They rode four at a time, and they had shotguns, and they would regularly jump out and brutalize kids and adults for little to no suspicion of criminal activity.” He particularly notes, “That it turned really bad in the [housing projects]. It turned really dangerous. A lot of break-ins, a lot of break-ins, a lot of armed robberies, a lot of killings.” Instead of protecting the community, the police contributed to this negative environment. Mathis says, “You’ve got police acting hostile, and so, when they act hostile and create a hostile situation, in the community, they have to defend themselves against hostility, but it’s hostility that you’ve created.” Judge Mathis's interview gives us a first-hand account of the type of policing seen throughout many communities.

Howard Saffold

When listening to Judge Mathis's interview, I could not help but think about how black officers felt about this behavior. Howard Saffold, a former cop and criminal justice activist who spoke on the perspective of being one of the few black cops in a precinct and community, “They didn’t tell me that white people had a certain attitude towards black police officers….my biggest resentment came from white officers, not the white community. My biggest resentment was from what I consider cowardly white guys, who would say things over the air, without identifying themselves, and do things to your mailbox or locker without identifying themselves.”  He would then go on to explain where he believed the beginning of the tense relationship between African Americans and police began, “It was like the 60s introduced a whole new wave of policing…but it didn’t get pronounced until the 60s, for me. — from my vantage point, these people are manufacturing attitudes towards the black community in the minds of these young white officers.” From these two points, Saffold mentioned what it was like as a regular beat cop and how he saw the shift in policing in the 60s to what it is today.

The Honorable Bernard Parks

A fellow police officer also gave his perspective, but from an executive standpoint. The Honorable Bernard Parks discussed the police reactions to community complaints, “….What I found early on was that police department misinterpreted minority communities complaints. They often viewed if you’re complaining, that you were anti-police….it took a long time for police departments to understand …that when people have a complaint, it wasn’t that they were anti-police or pro-police, they had a complaint.” Similarly to Howard Saffold, he mentioned how tensions grew even more during the 60s, particularly in the south, “particularly black community, was unwillingly to say I’m gonna give you my whole support…from down south and saw how the police department was an extension of the larger government.” Parks was not only able to give insight on how police departments handle complaints against their fellow officers but also supported Saffold’s statements that African American and Police Departments’ relationships took a turn around the 60s in the south.

After the events of the summer of 2020, any growth I think that was made between black communities, and police officially took three steps back. What I think is even more depressing about the situation is that some police officers genuinely don’t see a problem in their overly aggressive tactics towards African Americans. Judge Gregory Mathis stated something in his interview that perfectly sums up how police need to interact with African American communities between keeping the peace and establishing a relationship, “It’s a perfect balance.”

Sources:

The Honorable Bernard Parks (The HistoryMakers A2004.237), interviewed by Larry Crowe, November 19, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 2, story 13, The Honorable Bernard Parks comments on tensions between police and the black community in Los Angeles, California

Howard Saffold (The HistoryMakers A2002.091), interviewed by Larry Crowe, June 5, 2002, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 3, Howard Saffold discusses the relationship of white policemen to the black community

The Honorable Gregory Mathis (The HistoryMakers A2005.055), interviewed by Larry Crowe, February 25, 2005, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 2, story 8, The Honorable Gregory Mathis remembers the negative relationship between police and the community.

Featured Image: Rayford, Sean. Protest Breaks Out in Charlotte After Police Shooting. 2016, Getty Images, Seattle Washington