Policing the police: How to make them accountable for overstepping bounds, or acting above the limits of what the law warrants

My thoughts on such are: they’re needed to keep order to a degree, & to keep chaos & anarchy in check. However, not all are bad, but not all are good either. So, the key of the matter is to weed out the bad ones who stain the rest. Those that believe that they’re above the letter of the law – & because they are protected by the badge – that they can do whatever they feel on their whims (disregarding justice). What we are witnessing right now (history in the making), is a change that’s long overdue.

GOD WILLING, we see positive change soon before more unnecessary lives are taken to soon.

I remember my police brutality moment, where I was choked (literally), for not incriminating myself of a situation, & that was after being maced in the face, knocked down to the ground & handcuffed. This was all because I laughed at one of the two officers, dude put his hands around my throat and literally choked me, up to the moment I was about to pass out.

I was fortunate enough that his partner came back to where we were and stopped him (good cop/bad cop). The one who choked me, he does not need to be in a position of an authoritative figure. It’s individuals like this that black the eyes of the rest. To you, cops, you know your colleagues better than we do. You’re aware of who stains what you stand for, and who stands for real justice. Every brother, ain’t really a brother, unless he proves such. So, the way I view such, y’all that claim to stand for right (justice & equality), need to take center stage and do what you swore to do, “TO PROTECT & SERVE” (not your personal agenda, but the community’s agenda).

How many more sacrifices is it going to take for true change to come? Enough is enough. Me, personally, I’m sick & tired, of being sick & tired. It’s getting to that ‘I don’t care’ (attitude) point. Stop killing us! It’s happening so frequently that I’ve lost count. Seems like every other day, another soul is on ice. Change is overdue. Push til you can’t no more (cause/effect), talking is good, but only gets you so far. Action is the vehicle & a means, hopefully to a end. Stay strong & focus my people, if you seek to be equal. My blackness is not a crime! LET ME LIVE!

Sincerely, D. Moyler #1119539, Virginia

American Growing Pains

The United States of America… an idea grander in scale than any nation before it. Unlike most other countries proceeding its coming, it was conceived deeply in an idea, rather than monarchical heritage or empirical legacy… The American concept is rooted in daring, unimaginable goals that most older nations fear to venture. But the struggle of a pioneer is that of the unknown… we, as a nation have no blueprint. We have no model. Even a child who learns to walk has a parent to mock, as it takes on a task it has never done before, and still it does not succeed without undergoing great difficulty at first… standing, bracing, falling a number of times… these are its growing pains.

Our country in its infancy has no parent. It is self created and unable to model what has come before it. Most of its being still resides in the realm of idea. Slowly, it moves into existence through the gates of the evolving human heart and mind, as they can better identify what it means to be human. The journey from what our country was, onto what it is now, has already challenged the understanding of humankind and its very definition of what humanity is. This shifting of perspective did not come with flowery grace or comfort. No true growth can take hold in such unchallenging conditions. It has come with great troubles, great struggles to stand, great falls; but they are all important to the growth of our nation, and the growth of humanity as a whole.

The great confusion and fear, giving way to the tremendous violence that has ensnared our country for centuries, is a product of the growing pains associated with the next stage of our nation’s development. It is not because humankind is inherently evil, no, it is because humankind is inherently fearful. But as the test of time has exposed the world of fact, we are always more fearful than we should be, and always braver than we expect. So, I welcome the growing pains, as they are evidence of the great transformation my beloved country is taking on…

Everyone who believes that the ideas of freedom, justice, and equality were intended as an absolute for every single person born or sworn to America do not let the unrest of the protest shake, deter, or discourage you…

What has been shown by great leaders before us is that the power of love and truth will withstand any measures taken by its opposition… keep your head up… and see the beautiful future that lays before you…

–Q. Patterson

POLICE REFORM: Communities

The prospect of police reform has recently become a new topic of debate on the national stage. This movement was sparked by the outrage the George Floyd video caused. The world watched in horror as a Black man was murdered by a White cop who kept his knee on his neck for 8:46. Law enforcement has the authority to deprive American citizens of their life and liberty. After George Floyd, America must now question should anyone be given such a right?

In my book, APOTHEOSIS LORD SERIOUS HAKIM ALLAH’S HABEAS CORPUS APPEAL, I predicted that the problem of police brutality would never be solved until the police were held accountable to the communities that they patrol. Who is policing the police? Who do they answer to? If it is not the community that they serve, then why do you expect them not to abuse their power? Especially, when White cops patrolling impoverished Black communities have an ‘us vs. them’ mentality every time they put on their uniform. They do not see the members of my community as their fellow neighbors. They do not have enough respect for us as their fellow citizens to respect our rights. When they arrest us, we are not promised to live long enough to even make it to a courtroom to have our day in court. Too often, White police officers play the role of judge, jury, and executioner for the unarmed Black man.

So, I think society needs to take the power out of the police union’s hands and give the power of oversight of the American police force back to the communities that these officers patrol. They need to make filing a complaint against an offending officers easier. Citizens should be able to file complaints online. They shouldn’t be required to drive down to the station, because some of them don’t even have cars.

I also want to see state legislatures to pass laws that will keep track of how many people are shot by police. The FBI keeps track of all crime, however, they do not keep track of how many unarmed Black men are being killed by police. And they also need to make laws that specifically define what excessive force is, and when it is appropriate to use. When the laws are too ambiguous, this is what allows offending officers to avoid being held accountable.

I think all officers on the scene should also be required to intervene when another officer is using excessive force. With these changes, the police can be better regulated and controlled. Peace.

– Lord Serious Hakim Allah / J. Boughton Jr., Chesapeake, VA #1404741

Take a Stand for What’s Right

It is a tragedy that many lives have been taken in the same way that George Floyd’s life was taken. In fact, it’s by the very ones who have the responsibility of protecting the lives of everyone in society. This is not an issue that has only occured once or twice, but has happened so often throughout the past, that it has a pattern of resurfacing whenever the time is right. Although these officers are the ones who are to blame for the lives that were taken, we as a society have opened the doors for things like this to happen. I’m not saying that we do not deserve better treatment, but what I am saying is that if we took responsibility for our own well being and the well being of those around us rather than waiting for someone to give us what is rightfully ours anyway, law enforcement would only be used when it was appropriate in situations like the ones we face today… where lives are taken by the authorities for no reason at all, the one who committed the murder would be facing the same punishment any civilian would face for the exact same crimes.

The only thing that I see fit for the times that we live in is that everyone gain their independence. What I mean by this is each and every one of us is in a much better position to carry out justice by educating ourselves and encouraging others. We shouldn’t continue to depend on the same ones who are threatening our livelihood day after day for protection. Everyone who decides to take a stand for what is right, prevents things like this from happening again.

My name is Shaveek Pittman and I am currently behind the walls of LVCC Lawrenceville, Va and I hope that all who read this are encouraged to keep striving for a brighter future.

– Shaveek Pittman

The Blind Indifference

Racism… I wasn’t brought up deliberately to hate another race of people. Sure my grandmother had a lot of animosity directed to the race of people who aimed water hoses and sicked attack dogs on her purely because she recognized and fought for her identity as nothing less than a human being, but she didn’t propagate such lessons of hate.

My mother came up in a time (mid 70s-80s) where the blatancy of racism was considered taboo and uncool, so racism took a more subtle approach and found less need to make spectacles because the concept of racism was inculcated deep into the social system. It suffused its ethereal existence in prejudice and stereotypes that painted one race superior to another. This form of idealism sunk into the minds of pro-Jim Crow generations and served to maintain the grip of white superiority in the battlefield of the mind on a level subconscious and virtually invisible to the masses of Americans.

By my generation’s coming, racism was still projected in its most overt form, as an egregious, flagrant prejudice where most Americans – black, white, and other – would not believe that it existed beyond alt right racist organizations such as the KKK and neo Nazis, but such was its greatest achievement. Just as the old saying goes, racism’s (like the devil) greatest trick was to make people believe it did not exist.

It took more for me than most to believe that racism was prominent amongst Americans. Most unknowingly partaking in the vile and divisive culture of racism. Myself, in my ignorance, included. But now, the Age of Information has dawned, shining a light so bright that the dark subversive culture of racism can no longer leech off the mind of the Free People. People who are now armed with a knowledge and a weapon undefeatable in a war where fear stoking and ignorance is the primary strategy of its enemy. This weapon is Truth.

The only way to ensure that we, Free People, continue to press the enemy back in our unending fight for the America’s soul is to continue to have the ugly conversations. To continue to sound the horn on watch against threats standing in oppostion to the ideal of equality. Continue to believe in the cause and its eminent ascension…

Know that the struggle for equality, in its truest form, is unceasing.

In this struggle, vigilance is key. Vigilance is mindful awareness.

In this struggle, vigilance allows no enemy to gain ground.

In this struggle, ignorance is blindness…

In this struggle, blindness to a very real enemy is lethal.

– Q, June 2020

Keep on Marching

How much longer do we have to march the streets in protest?

Our words can be seen from space, but we’re still not being heard.

We are still being killed in public, beaten in public and our young generations are being harassed and/or arrested for petty crimes just to have them in the system instead of being given a warning or a citation.

It took a deadly virus (I call a blessing in disguise, even though I’ve lost family and friends) to remove the blind fold from our eyes and now we can see all the injustice world wide.

— I believe the President is trying so desperately hard to reopen businesses to put the blind fold back on us, so we can no longer see the injustice and continued brutality from the police, to get the people back to work to stop the protest of the Black Lives Matter movement. —

Keep on marching as long as you can until we are heard; do not let them put the blinds fold back on. Black Lives Matter!

– Brandon Henry #1493358
Woodbridge, Va

Reflecting on Juneteenth

In response to the cries of their citizens for racial justice, Virginia has proposed that the tradition of Juneteenth, commemorating the emancipation of Black Americans from slavery, should be recognized as a state holiday. The governor of Virginia, Dr. Ralph Northam brought on Virginia Beach native, Pharrell Williams to help introduce the proposal. Ironically, the idea is for the holiday to be a paid vacation day…

Gathering a consensus, many do not trust this proposal, seeing it as pandering to blacks as a means to calm protest. Others see it as a significant symbol in the struggle for change. I, myself take a more centered point of view…

The removal of confederate monuments, symbols of America’s less than perfect past and the implementation of holidays such as Juneteenth, to honor a very important step in the future of a more perfect union – and in what was the capital of the Confederacy leading the way! Is this not a message that the country is finally hearing its peoples calls for change? Could be…

I asked an older black man for his take on it. He had some advice that I believe is important for younger generations who are desperately seeking change… He said that they should not be satisfied with mere peace treaties. He has seen throughout generations where his people accept concessions and ease their stances. He urged they should not stop their protest until they KNOW (not assume), that a suitable standard for cultivating true social/economical equality is achieved. They should understand and have intelligible demands. To me, he was saying only they, the people, have the power to make sure that Juneteenth is not just degraded into another political maneuver and a very cruel reminder of a government’s deliberate attempts to hold back a people based on their racial identity. Instead, they should make sure it actually marks a turning in the culture of how America treats race…

All in all, I admire Virginia’s proposal to make Juneteenth a state holiday. I believe it to be a courageous move. It sets a standard for our nation. It also shows the consciousness and transformative power of a state that’s willing to not only recognize its fault, but stands to correct them.

I am a Virginia native, and I’m proud to see the present mind of Virginia overcoming its leading role in the history of American slavery. Hopefully, our nation as a whole can emulate this mindset, and take diligent steps to correct the great wrongs made in its less-than-perfect past.

I do believe in the ideal America. I believe that all of its principles are achievable, and I will fight constantly to ensure that I do everything I can to realize those truths.

Happy Juneteenth to all.

–Q, 6/19/20

Prompt: ‘Criminal Cop’ Justice Reform

The conceptual lines that formed the basis for the childhood game of cops and robbers has been destroyed.

Though many of us knew of the ambiguity associated with criminals and law enforcement projected in mob movies by the depiction of the crooked cop, and ambiguity through the vicious images of cops’ mistreatment of black lives captured during the civil rights movement, the idea hasn’t been accepted on such a mainstream scale as easily as it has today. That’s with good reason I suppose: law enforcement’s intricate roll in the operation of society. Many would love to maintain the illusion of a perfect system (a perfect cop), rather than accept the fact that the system is finite and many people lose their lives at the present of its inconsistencies. So the back draft of the collective societal thought passes the blame on to the less essential. They will say: “Why are the cops killing black people? They must be doing something wrong…” But the presence of social media, free of expert commentators, leaves no room for harsh realities to be ignore any longer. The truth is becoming clearer – the ones sent to serve and protect have done so, not so much with communities in mind, but serving in the further corruption of their departments and unions, protecting shady cops from prosecution for their crimes of mishandling lives in their charge.

The term ‘criminal justice reform’ has taken on a new skin… in the matter of less than a year. This reform is now focused on the policing of cops… a funny idea if I should say so myself. The administrators of policy and law still have to administer laws, even if they’re new ones, right? That thought itself gives me goosebumps… as I’m not sure exactly how to ‘police’ police better. Honestly, I thought the implementation of the body cams would suffice for effective policing of police, and yet others have lost their lives with mysteriously no body cam footage of the account… only civil bystanders armed with phone mounted cameras, capturing truths that would of otherwise been buried in mounds of disinformation and political jargon – aimed at furthering the decades old agenda of being “tough on crime…”

Writing Prompt Assignment:
What further can we do as a society to make sure that lives like George Floyd’s aren’t taken without healthy fear of prosecution?

Write your experiences with criminal cops. Write your ideas (if any) for changing the way cop are held to the letter of the law. Write between 2-5 paragraphs, if possible.

Make sure you add your name and any other information you might want people to know about you.

– Q. Patterson, Creator, Organizer, Writer, VADOC #1392272

Editor’s Note: If you or someone you know (incarcerated or formerly incarcerated) wants to write on this prompt this month and be featured on BrillianceBehindBars.com, send an email to yourlovedoneq@gmail.com with the essay and bio to review, or we can add inmate numbers to our Brilliance Behind Bars JPay to allow them to contact us directly.

2020: The Seed of Freedom

The halfway point has arrived, establishing this year as the tilling: the cracking of the ground and ingrained systemic racism – granting some air to the fertile soil of change that has desperately been fighting for breath.

A pandemic – resembling a biblical pestilence; and protest – resembling a spiritual famine… what is this? The exodus? Who knows what powers are at work. But what is known (and is clear) are the frustrations baring down on the souls of the free… and now those souls seek the surface…

The pandemic has given time to those who were too engulfed in their own daily struggles to see the lifetime national collective struggle of our country and our world. Protests, like the pandemic, have reached beyond seas and touch minds and hearts of blacks, whites, and all colors of multiple nationalities that believe in the ideals of equality and freedom perpetuated and woefully being contradicted by our country. Those contradictions stand to tear the free world apart. But ever-resilient is the spirit of mankind, and even more pervasive is the spirit of freedom that drives man to fight.

To fight from chains onto an identity.
To fight from poverty onto prosperity.

We must not forget, injustice festers in a state of complacency. Forever vigilant, is the eye of the one who fights for freedom. The energy for the movement towards true change is robust, but momentous. We cannot allow the visions of truth and justice to flee once this one ceiling gives way. And when I say we, I say ALL who believe, faithfully, that justice and equality are more substantial than empty undertones hinting to a state unattainable by the human family.

Some people profess: “well if the pandemic didn’t hit, then this wouldn’t be as intense,” or “If we had a different president, we wouldn’t be going through this.” All could be true. Even so, I myself believe that even when others like to disregard it in these tragic times, everything happens for a reason. Even the struggling is purposeful. Us, as a nation having to endure Trump, having to suffer through coronavirus, and the tragic loss of George Floyd, each egregious event holds its stake in the change to come.

I spoke with my mother one day and expressed my depression, seeing the early stage of the protests turning violent. My mother thought I was depressed because the people were violent. I told her it wasn’t that the people were violent, it was because the people they felt HAD to be violent in order to be heard… that tension over what is clearly a mistreatment of human rights was ignored to the point of explosion… My mother then reminded me that ‘change takes time, and the more monumental the change, the more time it it’ll take…’ She said her grandmother was a slave, her mother lived through civil rights, and she endured the social injustices of the 70’s. Now, our generation, and its youth, masses of whites, blacks, Asians; the modern make of America, take to the streets to push even harder towards equality’s inevitable fruition.

The seed of freedom has been sown in every lasts one of us.

Even in their most hopeless conditions, our ancestors nurtured that seed for generations, and for the generations to come. Now, that seed has pushed beyond the dirt. It has pushed beyond the unknown and hypothetical. To greet and take in the sun and its light… to take in its truth.

We NOW know. The idea of freedom and equality are no longer ambiguous or relegated to some seemingly special privileged class of people. No. It is known now that freedom is an inalienable right of every one human being ingrained in the soil of all who are blessed to take part in the life. So no, I am not distraught by the fighting. Because those who fight, are fighting for what is theirs…

May the souls of every person be aflame with the fires of freedom.

May every tear and drop of blood not be in vain, nor let the blood cool over illusions of freedom.

Continue to fight with every bit of your life, because the world of tomorrow is authored by the heroes of today…

Forever my love and strength to the movement,
Q. Patterson

Cover Photo from B.L. Patterson, Q’s brother

Uncertainty (FEAR/COVID-19)

I know the purpose of this writing prompt was to shine the spotlight on how the incarcerated individual is coping with his fears and the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. I’m sure others will leave you all thoroughly informed on how this virus has been effecting the day to day operations in prison. Therefore, my approach will address a fear the prisoner and the free citizen both share in common. And that is the uncertainty surrounding the job market and our ability to provide for ourselves in the post-Coronavirus world.

The April jobs report shows that 20.5 million jobs have been lost. This has pushed U.S. unemployment to its highest levels since the Great Depression, and it has virtually wiped out all of the jobs recovered since the 2008 Great Recession.

I wonder what will our new normal be when the smoke clears? Will local small businesses recover, and if not then how will this effect the economy in my community? How will corporate America respond? Will they downsize the number of laborers and other minimal skill positions that people like me need? And if so, then what employment opportunities will be available to me when I am released from prison?

I expect that the post-COVID-19 world will look something like this:

When you go to retail stores and fast food restaurants there will be less cashiers and more self-serve/self-checkout lines where patrons can use touch screens and credit cards.

Within factories, manufacturing plants, and warehouses all over America the automated machines will outnumber the people on the floor. And trucking companies and delivery services will replace drivers with autonomous vehicles and drones. Even janitorial positions will be effected by industrial robots that sweep and mop floors.

I fear that any job that can be performed more efficiently and cheaply using artificial intelligence, corporate America will replace even more of their human employees with robots. I know that it is the essential workers in these minimal skills jobs who are the most expendable. I know that it is the essential workers in these minimal skills positions who were the most exposed and some of the most vulnerable. And I know that corporate America is cold blooded enough not to give a damn about whether these minimal skills people can keep food on their table, or pay their rent to keep a roof over their heads. All corporate America cares about is their bottom line.

There are stores and companies that have already invested in this type of technology. Anyone with eyes can see that this is where the future is heading. The only reason this trend hasn’t become a full fledge transition into automation yet, is because the technology is still too expansive. However, as the necessities of the society drives demand and innovation, more technological advancements will be discovered. Today’s time consuming and expensive methods will be replaced by cheaper and quicker methods. It is crisis like this pandemic that drive this sort of entrepreneurial spirit. Thus my fears are inevitable.

In my book, APOTHEOSIS LORD SERIOUS HAKIM ALLAH’S HABEAS CORPUS APPEAL, I suggest that learning the skill of computer coding will provide job security for people like me. This is a skill that is in high demand. Since most companies will be using AI and robots. They all will be in need of humans to secure their networks, run diagnostics on their machines, and perform trouble shooting when glitches occur. Learning the skill of computer coding will make you an indispensable asset to society. I hope this encourages you to look into new career opportunities. Unfortunately for me, the Virginia Department of Corrections does not provide this sort of training to those within its’ custody. (Smdh). Peace!

– Lord Serious Hakim Allah / J. Boughton Jr., Chesapeake, VA #1404741

Lord Serious Hakim Allah is the author of the controversial book APOTHEOSIS LORD SERIOUS HAKIM ALLAH’S HABEAS CORPUS APPEAL available now on Amazon.com for $10.00 plus s/h. It is a must read.