First off,?I am deeply saddened by the deaths of the two NYPD officers at the hands of a cold blooded murderer. My prayers go out to their families and friends. All of us here at liberalamerica.org send our condolences. This was not the act of someone who wanted to make a difference — it was the act of a sadistic killer.
I am not anti-police. I am anti- police brutality. I am very pro-justice and pro- public safety. I have respect for the men and woman of law enforcement who do the job without brutality and do it to protect everyone. I know there are still cops out there who do the job honestly,?respectfully, and with the sole intention of keeping us safe.
With that said, I am deeply disturbed that many right-wingers and police unions are exploiting this?an opportunity to use the deaths of these officers to justify police brutality, racism, and throw even more salt in the wounds of the families of countless victims of police violence. It was not Bill de Blasio or Al Sharpton?who incited this murder. Nobody incited it. These were simply the acts of a sick man who also brutally attacked his girlfriend prior to the murders.
Black Lives Matter is not about violence of any kind whether its committed by a cop or against a cop. Let me make this crystal clear. We refuse to let right-wingers use the murders of these men to dismiss our cause. It is not only disrespectful to the movement but disrespectful to the families of these officers. The PBA should be ashamed of themselves for exploiting the deaths of these officers for political gain. That is is just plain sick.?The fight for justice and police accountability will continue as well as non-violent protests all over America no matter what. Its going to take a lot more than using fallen officers as political fodder to stop a movement that stands on the right side of history. We can’t breath. Black lives still matter. RIP Eric Garner and RIP Officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos.
David Christopher is a veteran, proud liberal, and a New Jersey native. He served as an Infantryman in the U.S. Army and is a PTS and MST survivor. David is a devout Episcopal, a feminist, sex positive, and a strong supporter of LGBT rights. The only strong hatreds he has are toward the Boston Red Sox, the New England Patriots, and The New York Rangers.
