Yesterday (Feb. 24), NYPD commissioner, Bill Bratton spoke at The Greater Allen A.M.E. Cathedral of New York for a Black History Month event. At the event, Bratton says that police and police enforcement have been involved in the “worst parts of Black History.
Bratton is recorded saying that while police have played an important role in maintaining civil rights and the freedom of speech, “many of the worst parts of black history would have been impossible without police, too,” reported DNA Info.
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“Slavery, our country’s original sin, sat on a foundation codified by laws and enforced by police,” he added, “by slave catchers.”
The phrase “slave catchers” reportedly ruffled a few feathers because it was not included in the written version of the remarks. However, the NYPD spokesperson said the written edits were the prepared remarks, and not a transcript of Bratton’s speech that was released.
Bratton’s sentiments were also felt by FBI director James Comey, who spoke on issues of the relationship between the police and communities of color two weeks prior at Georgetown University in Washington. – Cook T.P.