judy b.

Sat, 05 Nov 2005 22:50:08 -0800

H Brown (and perhaps Jackson West, too) misses the point behind the drive to seat a Latino or Latina on the Police Commission: assuring that the makeup of this leadership body reflects the citizenry it governs. A racially balanced Police Commission would be a move toward showing that those in charge respect the individuals and communities in their charge. It is an established fact that people of color, particularly African Americans and Latinos, are arrested more frequently than Caucasians, even though people from these communities do not commit more crimes than whites; they are simply more likely to be suspected, watched, or arrested—often wrongly. Appointing a Latino or Latina to the Police Commission would be a step toward counterbalancing the SFPD's record of treating people of color more harshly than it treats whites. To those who still cringe and cry "Identity politics!" I say: All politics is identity politics. All politics is personal at its core because all policy affects people. My interest in diversity is not about my politics nearly as much as it is about my people: my friends and kin, the people I love and care for and admire, people whose suffering of injustice I take very personally. To me, diversity is about individuals making an earnest effort to import some measure of justice into a system that is clearly and measurably unjust.

sfmike

Sat, 05 Nov 2005 09:28:39 -0800

Wonderful interview. You certainly captured the "h" essence.

SFist: Bay Blogger Thursday

judy b.

sfmike