When news of Alton Sterling’s killing at the hands of Baton Rouge police spread … and then the next day killing of Philando Castile here in Falcon Heights – again at the hands of police – Rep. Keith Ellison took them personal.
Ellison, who represents Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, said when he heard the news he thought: “That could have been one of my three sons.” In fact, in the wake of the uprising following the killing of Jamar Clark at the hands of Minneapolis police officers, it almost was one of his sons.
“My son came face-to-face with an officer pointing a riot gun at his head,” said Ellison, discussing the freighting incident involving his son, Jeremiah Ellison, who was protesting the killing of Clark. “That was a deeply disturbing moment for me.”
Thankfully, Ellison’s son survived his encounter with police. Countless others have not. And because of the all too common killings of Black, Brown and Native people at the hands of police, Ellison is calling for change. But the legislator admits the change he seeks won’t come easy.
“We didn’t get here overnight,” said Ellison, who looked visibly tormented when discussing the issue. “This is a problem with a lot of history. It sparked the riots of the 1960s; then we had Rodney King and it continues today. But it seems it’s a problem no one really wants to solve. I mean these things happen (issues of police brutality) and we may get a civilian review board to hold police accountable, but the second you take your eye off the problem, the board somehow goes away and it’s business as usual.”
Ellison said he knows it is not all police that are committing acts of brutality … and in many cases … homicide, but he said the actions of few have soiled the entire image of law enforcement when it comes to communities of color; and in particular, poorer communities of color.
“Most police go to work to help people. I truly believe that,” said Ellison. “But at the same time, in economically disadvantage neighborhoods we continue to have these instances of abuse of power. We don’t see that in Kenwood (an exclusive neighborhood of Minneapolis) or in Edina … unless it’s against a Black person, who they don’t think has the means to be in those areas.”
Ellison said Castile’s stop was most likely solely based on Castile’s skin color. Falcon Heights is a city that is more than 90 percent white.
“I think the officer thought he could pull Philando over and it wouldn’t matter at all. No one would care,” said Ellison. “People perceived as lower income bear the brunt of this.”
Legislatively, Ellison is calling for Congress to pass his co-sponsored Police Accountability Act along with other legislation concerning body cameras, prompt release of any video footage of alleged brutality and uniformed training guidelines for law enforcement.
Ellison said he will be drumming up support for legislation this week during the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.
