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I haven't seen this tape, nor do I have any desire to see it. But, from the information that I have read and seen on the news, I have formulated my own opinion on the matter. They were both wrong: the police and the deceased.
I have looked at things from the police officers point of view. If a man is resisting arrest, I understand the officers' desire to use force to subdue him. But, I do think that police departments need to thoroughly train officers in ways to subdue a suspect while using the least amount of force possible. Too many officers pull the pistol or night stick and ask questions later. We need more thinkers on the police force and less reactors.
Next, this man should have just laid down on the ground and not resisted. I don't know if his reasons for fighting back were chemically related or just based on frustration. Either way, it would have been best for him to just lay down. But, I have to reject the argument that since black men know that the police are prone to brutality, they should just accept whatever the cops are dishing out. Just because they do it doesn't make it right.
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