Recorded Live: The Panel Returns to Discuss the Horrific Death of Tyre Nichols and the Uniqueness of the Upcoming Super Bowl

2023-02-05

The tragic death of Tyre Nichols represents another body blow. Our hearts go out to his family. The Panel is back to help us try to digest another murder of an unarmed Black Man at the hands of the police. On a lighter note, we will also discuss the upcoming Super Bowl and what will make it historic Mapping Police Violence database, in 2020, Black people accounted for 24% of those killed by police despite making up just 13% of the U.S. population. The same database found that Black people were 3 times as likely as...

Mapping Police Violence database, in 2020, Black people accounted for 24% of those killed by police despite making up just 13% of the U.S. population. The same database found that Black people were 3 times as likely as white people to be killed by police. These statistics highlight the need for systemic change and reforms in American policing to address racial disparities and reduce police violence.

The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, also known as HR 1280, is a comprehensive police reform bill introduced in the U.S. Congress in June 2020. It aims to address systemic issues within American policing and promote accountability and transparency in law enforcement. The bill includes provisions such as banning chokeholds, ending qualified immunity for police officers, creating a national database of police misconduct, and limiting the transfer of military equipment to law enforcement agencies. The bill was introduced in response to the murder of George Floyd and the widespread protests calling for reforms in American policing.

Why It has not Become law?

The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act has not become law yet because it has not passed both houses of the U.S. Congress and been signed into law by the President. Despite widespread public support and being passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in March 2021, the bill has not advanced in the Senate. The bill faces opposition from some Republican lawmakers and law enforcement groups who argue that it would undermine the ability of police officers to perform their duties effectively. The bill's future remains uncertain, but proponents continue to push for its passage and implementation as a key step towards systemic change in American policing.

There’s the ongoing existence of “qualified immunity,” the legal doctrine that makes police untouchable by lawsuits when they violate people’s rights. Local activists have called for the use of a 2020 ordinance that tracks and makes public data about police activities, the total removal of police from traffic enforcement and ending the use of unmarked cars and plainclothes police, and the disbanding of specialized police units like SCORPION, which was responsible for Nichols’s death (this last demand has been met).

Panel Members

Gene Edwards

Male District Leader (D)

79th AD, The Bronx, NY

Fb: Gene Anthony Edwards Jr.

Ig: teamgene

Steven A.Smith, ATL, GA

Educator,second chance business funding, credit specialist

Fb:@steven

CHRISTOPHER SWINEY, NJ

RETIRED NY SANITATION WORKER, AND CEO OF JOHNNYRUTH’S CATERING

FB: CHRISTOPHER SWINEY