Bet you thought that The Fierce Urgency of Now was just the cool title of an acclaimed book by Princeton Professor Julian Zelser that hit the streets in 2015. Nope – not by a longshot. In fact, those words were spoken by none other than civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, in a speech on April 4, 1967 for a gathering of Clergy and Laymen Concerned about Vietnam, held in Riverside Church that evening in New York City.
“We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there "is" such a thing as being too late. This is no time for apathy or complacency. This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”
Today our nation finds itself in a similar position of frustration caused by too-frequent terror attacks on U.S. soil, and rescue operations held in foreign lands to save underprivileged and abused populations in desperate situations. Not that helping others is wrong – it’s what we do. It’s just that meanwhile Americans are suffering from poverty, job loss, and the inequality that comes from piling blame on those not really responsible for those undercurrents – African Americans and our officers in blue.
Whether the effects of social injustice are due to police carrying the burden of keeping the peace in low-income, high-crime communities – or an overall lack of respect for basic human rights – there is one common thread emerging from the recent volatile events between cops and black lives that matter in this oh-so-hot summer of 2016: patience has run its course and we need to acknowledge the problems and find some solutions, now.
President Obama’s been telling us over the past few weeks, “We’re better than this.” He returned early from peacekeeping talks overseas to offer a speech of consolation to the nation at the July 12th memorial for 5 policemen from Dallas – slain in an alarming ambush by a lone assailant with multiple weapons, a history of mental instability and too much hatred.
“While assigned to protect and keep orderly the peaceful protest and response to the killings of Alton Sterling of Baton Rouge and Philando Castile of Minnesota” – even amidst signs with angry words and shouted obscenities – these brave men “were upholding the constitutional rights of this country.”
The following night, CNN’s Don Lemmon was inspired to ‘start a conversation’ at a town meeting with attendees expressing an ingrained fear of police brutality and cops wondering why their jobs were part of the problem.
It was an interesting mix of black, white and blue. One Caucasian retired police chief insisted there wasn’t an issue, that police do what it takes to stay safe while enforcing the law. Another answered the question of, “How do I stay safe when stopped by police?” with “Keep your hands on the wheel.” That sparked indignation at why blacks had to ‘perform’ by a different set of rules, and a great divide opened up and swallowed the moment.
Just when it seemed there was no common ground to be had, one black police officer rose and gave a heartrending apology to a mother grieving that her 12-year old son would eventually fall victim to biased cultural backlash and not come home one day. He held her in a hug until her sobs subsided, and the room was still, and thoughtful. The town hall lasted one and a half hours, and it was just a drop in the bucket – but there was a conversation.
When police can feel secure in their safety as they go about performing their duties of protecting our citizenry; when they are provided with advanced situation awareness technology; and they are paid wages commensurate with their responsibilities – it will allow them to focus on being the best they can be, at one career.
Perhaps when parents of color can raise proud children with paths to the future, without worrying that they will be singled out or persecuted because they are feared by those who misunderstand their experience; when all Americans can learn from what makes them different and rejoice in what they have in common – our nation will benefit in ways we have always thought were unattainable.
KOVA Corporation has always been about communication, and expert application of systems and software. We specialize in public safety software, from mobile call recording to physical security management – giving actionable information to public, government and enterprise organizations which they may use for effective emergency response, investigations and analysis.
