On Feb. 19 the UNM Black Student Union held a conference titled “Do You Know Your Rights?”, an event held in conjunction with Black History Month featuring a panel of African American police officers answering various questions about law enforcement issues and the difficulties of being both an African American and a police officer, or being “black and blue.”
“For me, being a black law enforcement officer is one of the most challenging things I’ve ever faced in my life,” said officer Dajun Clark. “Just for the simple fact that when we walk into a room we don’t get the benefit of the doubt, and that’s one of the major things that I’ve noticed.”
According to the National Institute of Justice website, minorities are more likely than whites to view law enforcement with suspicion and distrust due to reports that the police disproportionately single them out because of their race or ethnicity.
“The way you get treated by your own people is what shocks me most,” NM State Police officer Anwar Sanders said. “If you pull over a black man, you’ll get comments like ‘Why’d you choose that side?’ or ‘How could you do that?’ And coming from the kind of community I come from, sometimes I’m not friends with people anymore because I’m a cop.”
In 2014 Sanders wrote an open letter to African Americans protesting against police across the U.S. in which he addressed his pride for his community’s unity, but also his concern for the double life he leads as a law enforcement officer and as an African American male.
Sanders’ letter states that while in uniform he is a peacekeeper and a protector of the people with the ability to save lives, but when he takes off the badge he assumes another identity — a polar opposite identity, where “white women who clutch their bags” and convenience store clerks who follow him through the store are common social interactions.
“It’s just hard to sit in silence and not have a voice,” Sanders said in an interview with CNN. “Especially when it offers such a real, authentic point of view that some white officers or other minority officers cannot emulate.”
The conference presented questions like “Why is community policing important?” and “What are the challenges of being ‘black and blue’ in society?”
In addition to these questions, the conference also provided an opportunity for the officers to give advice to young African Americans about how to act when they encounter law enforcers.
“My advice to anybody would be ‘give us a chance to explain ourselves,’” Rio Rancho Police officer Jason Bowie said. “A lot of the time when we contact people they don’t know the reason they’re being contacted.”
Bowie continued to explain that law enforcement becomes more wary of individuals who behave in an apprehensive manner toward police.
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“When you start taking off running and I got a third party call telling me you may be breaking into a house or a car and you look suspicious, I have the right to investigate,” he said.
According to NIJ.gov, media also influence perceptions of law enforcement. The site states that “frequent exposure to media reports of police abuse or corruption is a strong predictor of perceptions of misconduct and supports the belief that it is common.”
Sanders’ letter suggests ways to help relations between the African American community and law enforcement, such as verbal engagement on a personal level to improve interactions, and to recruit more officers from the African American community.
“We have to listen to the community and their concerns and obviously we have some problems that maybe we’re overseeing,” APD officer Tyrone Chambers said. “I think meetings like this are positive. It’s a first step.”
Fin Martinez is a freelance reporter at the Daily Lobo. He can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @FinMartinez.
