A Few Heroes in an Ugly Saga!

A 17 year old gets gunned down by a Chicago Cop, and a dash-cam video (see previous post) is finally released. And then all this latent ugliness and bias comes out. Arguments about racism, Good Cops vs. Bad Cops, Good Kids vs. Bad Kids.

Your lying eyes see what looks like cold-blooded murder, but then you are surprised that your fellow citizens can't agree that murdering a young black kid, even if he was up to no good, is not a good thing. It's hard to believe that there are "sides" to that argument. I even read a post where someone said the kid "got what he deserved."

So yes, racism, ugliness, bias, stupidity, willful ignorance is rampant among us. The video just kind of brings all that out into the light of day.

Now the story became a story of a video, and "will the people riot." But there's actually another pretty amazing story within the story, that's even more interesting.  None of this would be in the public conversation without an "Anonymous Tipster," and "an Activist/Journalist" named Jamie Kalven.

Someone within the Chicago City Administration saw the video and realized it did not confirm the story told by the Cops on the scene. In fact, of course, it totally contradicted the story told by those Cops. That kid did not rush the Cops with a knife, he was in the distance sort of tacking away from the Cops. No way was that killer-Cop threatened, or fearing for his life.  Not believable!

And the City Administration and the Chicago Police Department wanted to bury that video. They did all they could to assure that it would not see the light of day. Luckily, the Activist/Journalist, once he was tipped off, decided to fight to get it released. And luckily a Cook County Judge agreed that it should be released.

So yes, there are some "heroes" in this terribly ugly saga: an Anonymous Tipster, and Activist/Journalist, and a Judge.  A few good people. People not happy with the cover story, not happy that the truth was buried. 

The difference between living in a totally corrupt place, and a maybe not quite so corrupt place? A few good people with the idea that the truth should be brought into the light of day. So yes, a Cop who committed a crime, and people of power and influence trying to hide that fact. You wonder if the perpetrators, the man who killed, those who knew the truth,  and those who lied and covered it up, will be held to account?