We Need Political Solutions to End Police Violence
Daunte Wright’s death is yet another infuriating case of police brutality — and Biden’s response feels like politics as usual
Update 6/7/22: Level has a new home. You can read this article and other new articles by visiting LEVELMAN.com.
On Monday, mere minutes into my second pandemic birthday, we were all painfully reminded that turning a year older in America is a luxury that no Black man is guaranteed.
As former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s trial moved through its third week, another Black man’s life was stolen by law enforcement just 10 miles north of the city. His name was Daunte Wright. He was shot on Sunday night by Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter — a reported 26-year veteran of the department — during a traffic stop. He was only 20 years old.
In a news conference held on Monday, Brooklyn Center police chief Tim Gannon said Potter mistakenly grabbed her firearm instead of her Taser, characterizing the shooting as an “accidental discharge.”
That turn of phrase is dehumanizing in a way that incites nothing short of pure rage — salt poured onto an open wound. These types of state-sanctioned oppressors have a noted knack for torturing us in every…
