It is disheartening to see the phenomenon of hate embraced by so many people who don't understand the origin, meaning, or impact. To grasp the significance, you must first understand what it means. It is an intense, deep-seated emotional response of strong dislike,...
MAJOR BEN’S ARTICLES
Below is a list of articles by Major Ben Brooks that have appeared in the Times Herald.
Daddy, What Time Will You Be Home Tonight?
Every family member asks this question daily. I wonder how many leaders realize the gravity of that question for their officers. When they get up in the morning, they have quiet time with their family before embarking on, hopefully, another routine day at the office....
Leaks
A leak is an unintended hole, crack, or fault that allows a substance- such as a liquid, gas, or light- to escape or enter a container or system. As a child growing up in the rural South, I watched my father build his own home. At that time, he installed a tin roof....
Masks and Officer Safety
As a career law enforcement officer, I am perplexed by the recent debate over officers wearing masks. Everything I learned about law enforcement involved honesty, integrity, and, most of all, transparency. The federal government has a duty to present law enforcement...
Bias Understood
As an international speaker, trainer, and consultant, I have been intrigued by the lack of understanding of various terms, with people using them without knowing their meanings or applications. At one of my National Speakers Association conferences, a presenter shared...
Fear and Bias as a Law Enforcement Blind Spot
Fear – an unpleasant feeling triggered by the perception of danger real or imagined. Origin - past experiences (0-6) History - nomadic days (fight or flight) Survival function - to protect us, triggered by a significant event, i.e., hot, cold, wet, trauma Source: New...
DEI America’s Biggest Blind Spot
In 2016, I took a course with AARP in defensive driving. Having been driving since I was sixteen, I was curious about what the instructor could teach me. I signed up for the course to get a discount on my car insurance. As the instructor went through his orientation,...
DEI, The Latest Bogeyman
DEI is the latest catchphrase that is the catalyst for the present state of the divided states of America. We raise and salute the flag as we recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States of America. As patriotic as that sounds, it is far from our day-to-day...
The Reality of Community Policing
Many police executives approached community-oriented policing with a great deal of skepticism because they didn’t realize the critical role that the community plays in their success. Many felt they could do it on their own. Dr. Lee Brown, a former police commissioner...
A Practical Approach to Addressing School Shootings
After Columbine, over four hundred school shootings were reported in America. Every citizen should be outraged that our society has allowed that to happen. Schools should be the safest place in our community for our students, staff, and teachers. It is challenging to...
Clarence Thomas and Affirmative Action
By Major Ben Brooks
The Supreme Court weighs in on the latest iteration of affirmative action. It is an issue that has divided the country for many years. Much of the division is a lack of historical perspectives. The notion that African-Americans would enjoy a benefit because of the color of their skin grates on a segment of our society that does not understand history. It is incredibly annoying when I hear an African-American justice of the Supreme Court who was a direct beneficiary of affirmative action opine that he does have a clue about diversity which is a precursor to the philosophy of affirmative action.
The University of North Carolina is of particular interest to me. I grew up in North Carolina during the age of segregation. When school counselors gave presentations about potential schools for our college education, the University of North Carolina was not on the list of good colleges. To claim that a preference for admission should not consider the applicant’s race wreaks with hypocrisy.
Affirmative action has always been a poison, mainly when addressing historical exclusion. Ira Katznelson wrote a book titled when affirmative action was white. In the book, he talks about the systemic exclusion of African-Americans in every sphere of life, including housing, the G.I. Bill, and welfare, to name a few. There is an old expression. If your ox is not being gored, there is no problem. However, when it is happening to you, it’s problematic. America had a great comfort for many years with “white only” signs indicating a sense of superiority. That all changed whenever African Americans began to demand inclusion in the American dream.
The Supreme Court, with a decided majority, is seriously contemplating dismantling the system that guaranteed the inclusion of African-Americans in our school of higher education. To have the second African-American male jurist opine that he does not know about diversity is
reprehensible. Dr. Martin Luther King once said the two most dangerous things in America our sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. To be on the highest court and not understand the basic principles of humanity and full participation in our society is reprehensible
I hope that the majority of the Supreme Court will listen intently to the three dissenting voices, who are all female, to glean the seriousness of their actions in disenfranchising a large segment of our society. Demographic changes are a reminder of what the future holds for this country. It is incumbent upon the justices to recognize their opportunity to sustain and maintain our concept of a perfect union