The following official statement was submitted by Bobby Brown, South Orange Community Police Collaborative Committee Chairperson:
CPC Statement in response to the insurrection at the US Capitol
One week ago today, a pro-Trump mob was able to gain entry to the US Capitol building and wreak havoc on our democracy. While investigations will continue as officials ponder how such a tragic event occurred, the Community Police Collaborative (CPC) strongly urges our community and its South Orange Police Department to be proactive in response.
In addition to the basic questions that the investigations will ask about the operational failures that occurred, we must be proactive in questioning the disparate treatment on full display of the insurrectionists compared to the predominantly Black and Brown protestors just a few months ago. Was the heightened tolerance because the insurrectionists were overwhelmingly White? Do our systems in America feel less threatened by White bodies than Black bodies? Why is it that Black bodies simply marching and chanting “Black Lives Matter” called for drastically more protection than White bodies in riot gear carrying confederate flags ascending aggressively upon the Capitol?
The fault lies with the mob and with Trump and his supporters who incited the mob to violence. However, we also firmly advise police departments and the communities they serve to proactively examine themselves, acknowledge that unequal treatment is the result of bias and of the racist history of our country, and then commit wholeheartedly to doing better.
The world is watching. Our community is watching. The CPC stands in solidarity with other groups working towards a future in which community trust in policing is improved. Real progress demands that we proactively root out and eliminate white supremacy in all its forms.
We offer our condolences to the families of the innocent people who lost their lives and our thoughts go out to everyone traumatized by the senseless acts of violence on that day.
–The CPC Committee
