The Blood of a Black Man in Dallas

The Blood of a Black Man in Dallas April 24, 2015

killer

 

Over a hundred times, the family of Jason Harrison reached out to Dallas police for help getting him to Parkland Memorial Hospital. Suffering from severe mental illness, Jason was often out of his mind. On June 14 of last year, police arrived at the Harrison residence. The body camera of one of the officers captured what happened next. Jason’s mother Shirley came to the door and declared, “Oh, he’s just off the chain. You can hear him, talking about chopping up people.” When asked whom she was talking about, Shirley replied, “My son, bipolar, schizo.” Seconds later, Jason appeared at the door with a small screwdriver and was told by officers to put it down. Refusing, Jason made a movement toward the officers. Less than five seconds after the initial encounter, Dallas police pumped five lethal bullets into Jason’s body. As Jason’s blood rolled down the driveway, the officers can be heard nervously trying to figure out what to do next. There seems to be little remorse or grief for what has happened. I guess we can’t blame the officers…as they were just acting out what we know to be true…the spilt blood of a black man is nothing to get too upset about here in Dallas.

 

One of the police incident reports reveal that Shirley Harrison exclaimed shortly after the shooting, “They could have just shot him in the leg.” Why would they have shot him in the leg? Police view a problematic black man in Dallas as something to be exterminated not helped. Yesterday, the Dallas County District Attorney’s office announced that there would be no indictment in the case. For now, the blood of black men will continue to roll down driveways, streets and sidewalks with impunity. However, God is not mocked. The judgment is coming. Those police who continue to spill the blood of black men will be held accountable…for black blood matters just as much as any other blood to God.

 

Amen.

 

*Originally posted at Hope for Peace and Justice


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