Part 5 of my series on Race, Crime, and Policing
William K. Black
August 5, 2016 Bloomington, MN
I explained in my two prior columns the blood libels against “whites” as a race and law enforcement officers (LEOs) made by the sociologist Michael Eric Dyson. Dyson was particularly vitriolic in complaining that whites refused to “condemn” LEOs who shot blacks until they knew whether the LEOs had acted criminally or even improperly. Dyson portrays this adherence to due process and the rule of law by whites as an outrageous moral failure. This column explains two famous incidents that played critical roles in shaping our society’s view that we should celebrate the moral courage required to maintain respect for due process in circumstances where much of the public is baying for its destruction.