Shades of a brutal past

Two states, Alabama and Mississippi which were sites of key battles during the Civil Rights Movement, commanded the news the other day; one of the incidents was caught on camera and the other, should have been videoed.

The brawl in Montgomery has been widely viewed and it shows a Black man, a black co-captain of a tourist vessel, being assaulted by several white men. Apparently, the Black man was doing what he normally does on the pier to ensure private boats are out of the way of landing tourist vessels.

Footage of the incident shows a white man assailing the captain, knocking him down, and then he’s joined by other whites who proceed to beat the Black man. Soon, others enter the fray, either trying to stop the fracas or help the two men fighting.

Four of the white men are being charged with active warrants.

In Jackson, Mississippi, six white officers devised a scheme to cover up several acts of brutality against two Black men.

Without a warrant, the officers burst into the home of Michael Corey Jenkins, handcuffed him and his friend, Eddie Terrell Parker, and then began physically, sexually, and psychologically abusing them. All of this occurred after they avoided being detected by security cameras.

The officers poured alcohol, chocolate syrup, and milk over their faces and then forced them to strip naked and shower together in order to conceal the mess. Their plan to torture them without leaving any evidence went awry when one of them shot Jenkins in the mouth. He miraculously survived.

All of the officers pleaded guilty to a list of federal charges and the state attorney general also announced charges, including assault, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.

These incidents cannot be seen as indicative of what’s happening in the States, but they are terrible reminders of a horrific and deadly past. Let’s hope that, unlike too many instances in the past, the white men in the melee and the officers in their cover-up scheme receive the full extent of the law.