by Joseph Page
Since 2020, when George Floyd died at the hands of a cop, many people have questioned the need for law enforcement. His murder and other police brutalities have engendered a rampant hostility towards cops, particularly those with white skin.
But merely eliminating or reducing law enforcement negatively impacts all people, including blacks. It should not be proposed as a solution.
Burlington is a prime example. In November 2023, three Palestinians were shot. The same month, the police station was set ablaze. Retail theft has seen a significant rise. Many other shootings have occurred.
Events like these epitomize why police are essential. With less law enforcement, murder and crime increase rapidly. The well-being and safety of society becomes greatly diminished.
At the root of the matter lies the ultra-left and progressive agenda, which has furthered the notion that police are incessantly violent, seek every opportunity to inflict harm on minorities, and must therefore be removed from their positions. By supporting this, we completely disregard law and order, and perpetrators of crimes are not held accountable.
Black-on-black crime deserves the same correction as any other illegal act. Some may believe that the criminal justice system is inherently discriminatory towards blacks, or other minority groups such as Latinos.
This raises a question worthy of consideration: what factors are driving more blacks to resort to criminal behavior? One answer is a cultural problem prevalent in the black community: a lack of fathers. With no adult male figures to show black youth positive examples of how to accept accountability, or serve as providers for their families, crime becomes fair game. An absence of police is not beneficial to black people.
As a young black Vermont man who holds conservative views, I do not feel oppressed. I recognize that racism exists. I am also aware of the injustices of slavery, and later Jim Crow that were faced by black Americans in this country. But I don’t believe in the current race baiting that has reared its ugly head today.
Furthermore, eradicating cops and branding them all as racist will do nothing to ensure all lives, not only black ones, are protected.
True equality isn’t helped by fewer police in communities of any color. While the police system might benefit from training tailored to de-escalate specific situations, the problems in essence are not racial. If we can shift our focus from race and instead work together to restore trust between communities and police, elect law enforcers and politicians who are staunchly committed to maintaining law and order, and realize the valuable role that police play, we have a better chance of creating positive change.
The author is a Johnson State College graduate and former Burlington resident now living in Montpelier and working for Central Vermont Medical Center.
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Categories: Commentary
One refreshing article…thank you.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Joseph!
Aside from stating that George Floyd died at the hands of the police, I’d say you espouse common sense…A rarity from any outspoken minority these days.
“At the root of the matter lies the ultra-left and progressive agenda”…
Thank you Joseph, for not letting your relatively youthful age get in the way of a common sense conservative and merit-based outlook on how to best run a society.
(You may want to enlighten yourself with the real facts surrounding the death of George Floyd and the trials of the police who he dealt with though)
Rich,
With all due respect, please abstain from commenting on my age. That’s not the crux of what I have written here. This was done in order to share my views on certain current events that have recently taken place. I’ll leave it at that.
Well written Joseph, thank you.
Further, the lies and corruption, and the elite white guilt people is disgusting and wrong. It all creates more problems for the commujity and is not the truth.
This video needs to get into the hands of every American. It is long, but worth the time, the truths, the facts, and absolutes of this case.
This video is the real truth about Minneapolis and Geo. Flyod. These 4 Police Officers did not kill him. The mayor, Jacob Frey, the Prosecutor andvthe woman beater AG Ellison, the Medical Examiner, the Judge, and the then Police Chief (the Chief Liar), and others should be prosecuted, stripped of their jobs, salaries, pensions etc. for their lies, cover-up, and what they cost the 4 Officers and the looted property and the community at large. Share this piece, it’s long but worth the truth.
https://youtu.be/eFPi3EigjFA?si=KVr_u38YbDZh1PYy
If the police did law enforcement all the politicians would be in jail. Give us back the money. Let’s hire our own public security, and teach young students self-defense, firearms handling, and crime prevention. I can’t believe in Vermont I see armed robbery, and the best defense this year was a hot coffee splash. The people need to do better.
“What happened is we’ve created a commodity out of poor people. And as a consequence, there was no incentives to solve problems of the poor because the careers of those serving them were dependent upon having people to serve.
And that’s why in the black community, you’ve seen the families disintegrate over the last 50 years – but a hundred years prior to that – black families were intact.
We have a whole history of a hundred years when black families left slavery, 80 percent of all those black families had a man and a woman raising children. And this family composition continued generation after generation.”
Bob Woodson
An insightful and articulate article. Well, said Joe!
Thank you for the article, Joseph. One thing we must all remember is that it’s not all, or even mostly, about funding police. (Even liberal democrats have abandoned defund the police.) It’s about support, and respect, and allowing them to do their jobs without prosecuting them for every small mistake.
Jack,
accountability is part of this too. Black on black crime is not as widely reported because it doesn’t ‘fit the narrative.’ Let’s unite, yet still utilize race as a means of division…a bit contradictory, that.
Thank you for your fine observations. Homes without fathers or homes without mothers are not always bereft of the need for order and support. Among all ethnic, racial, religious groups family breakdown and criminal behavior need help. A change in the culture, the values, and perhaps outside support systems, would certainly help.
Winnie,
I agree with you in regards to every race having issues. That’s one of the host of matters the media fails to address. That brings me to why I referred specifically to black on black crime here. White against minority becomes front page news, but minority against minority is granted a free pass. That doesn’t count as equality in my book–let alone safety.
Joseph Page, you might be interested in this: https://www.thefallofminneapolis.com/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email