via Flickr
Former mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg wants you to know he’s sorry… for stop-and-frisk. Many of us know it well: the systematic targeting of Black people to be stopped by police and treated like we’ve committed a crime - no matter what.
He liked it then, but he’s “sorry” now.
Bloomberg apologized at a Black church (of course) in Brooklyn saying, “I want you to know that I realize back then I was wrong.” He also said he “can’t change history,” but there’s something more sinister about this apology. Why is it happening now?
Bloomberg is now running for president! So, of course, he wants Black people’s support. Many are asking, “Is the apology sincere if he actually just needs something from us?”
Good question, especially since neither stop-and-frisk nor other forms of police brutality have completely gone away.
At its height, NYPD recorded almost 685,724 stops in one year! And those are just the ones that were reported. This was a horrible system that terrorized and STILL harms Black communities today. It would likely still be just as bad if it hadn’t been challenged in court.
Actions speak louder than words. If the former mayor actually cared, it wouldn’t have taken this long to get an apology. Can we expect to see Mr. Bloomberg at the next rally against police brutality or will he support the families of victims?
Let’s wait and see.