Dallas Police Chief: "We're Hiring"

Following the killing of cops in Dallas, Police Chief David Brown, a black man, said this about the Black Lives Matter protestors:

"We’re hiring.  Get out of that protest line and put in an application. We'll put you in your neighborhood and help you resolve some of those problems."

What he is really referring to is the fact that we have too few black police officers.  As a result, we have too many white officers policing high crime black neighborhoods.   Obviously, this increases the odds of a white cop shooting a black suspect, and also feeds into complaints by blacks that white cops are likely to harass them with things like traffic stops.

For example, in Ferguson, Missouri, the community is 67% black.  Yet, the police force is made up of 50 white officers and just 3 black officers. In Abilene, Texas, the population is 39.3% black with a police force that is 3.1% black.  The imbalance is also true in Baton Rouge; the scene of another recent incident of a black man being killed by a white police officer.

Basically, Chief Brown understands that community policing will get better in this country,  if the police departments across America better reflect the demographics of the communities they serve.  Black Lives Matter would serve blacks better by becoming part of the solution instead of worsening the problem.  But then, not too many people want a job where you go to work everyday wearing a bulletproof vest.  Just shows how dangerous the job really is.

References:

Dallas police chief to protestors: "We're hiring": http://www.fox4news.com/news/172844863-story

New FBI Crime Figures Confirm: Black Towns Most Dangerous, White Areas Safest: http://newobserveronline.com/new-fbi-crime-figures-confirm-black-towns-dangerous-white-areas-safest/

The New Racial Makeup of U.S. Police Departments: http://www.newsweek.com/racial-makeup-police-departments-331130

Ferguson, Mo., has 50 white police officers, three black officers, NBC's Mitchell claims: http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2014/aug/17/andrea-mitchell/ferguson-police-department-has-50-white-officers-t/

Police Department Race and Ethnicity Demographic Data: http://www.governing.com/gov-data/safety-justice/police-department-officer-demographics-minority-representation.html

Baton Rouge: A majority-black city with a majority-white police force: http://www.wwltv.com/news/local/baton-rouge-police-for-whiter-than-city/265447114