Ray on the “Race, Prosperity, and Inclusion Initiative” at Brookings
Fred Dews, reporting for the Brookings, accounts how unarmed black males are not receiving the same guarantee of the right to life than other individuals in society. The Race, Prosperity, and Inclusion Initiative recently hosted a moderated discussion at the Brookings Institution, to examine light the legal, academic, and advocacy points of view of different experts concerning the cycle of police force against black males. What is known is that black males are more likely to be killed by police officers than their relative share of the population.
Faculty Associate, Rashawn Ray, highlighted that there had been a slight decrease in police shootings until the late 1990s, when police officers began to use deadly force against black males once again. Additionally, police-on-civilian shootings did not correlate with an increase in violent crime rates. Current regulations “give officers a lot of discretion to make a justification for who they perceive to be engaging in a felony,” Dr. Ray said.