Minneapolis, MN –Black Lives Matters Minneapolis issued a statement, June 7, in response to police abuse at a pool party of Black youth in McKinney, TX. Videos of the incident are receiving wide circulation on social media.

The statement reads in part, “The egregious conduct by police at the #McKinney pool party is emblematic of the broader concerns being raised about systemic patterns of abuse towards African Americans at the hands of law enforcement. While it is easy to single out one officer as a ‘bad apple’ the reality is that this is a problem of a police culture in this country that too often tolerates abuse, biased policing and a blue code of silence when such incidents take place. The video also illustrates that there are two systems of policing in this country – one for whites and one for Blacks. Black people experience disproportionate rates of police contact, abuse, harassment, arrests and even death at the hands of law enforcement. Black girls and women are not exempt from police abuse and mistreatment.”

Black Lives Matter Minneapolis participant Brianna Wilson, states “As a young person growing up in North Minneapolis, one of my first interactions with suited police officers was at the end of my high school homecoming dance where they maced us, young men and women, as a way of dispersing the crowd. This was my first, but unfortunately not my last time being maced by cops. My friends who went to predominantly white suburban schools did not have similar experiences.”

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