Editorial: Reflecting on Sandra Bland tragedy is an opportunity to get better
There are many different ways to look at the Texas traffic stop last July that led to the arrest of Sandra Bland and ultimately her death, all of them to some extent right.
Yes, Bland did herself no favors by reacting angrily to the officer who stopped her for failing to signal a lane change.
Yes, the officer himself behaved in ways that inexorably escalated the tension and emotion.
Yes, police deserve respect and cooperation, and they're under intense scrutiny and pressure to perform a difficult job with grace and skill.
Yes, police are in a position of extraordinary power and have a responsibility to know how to control it even in situations when tempers run hot.
All these reflections are valid, and more like them could be listed. But all such observations notwithstanding, the most productive way to view this regrettable traffic stop and all the sadness that followed is as an opportunity, even for us in the suburbs. An opportunity to learn. An opportunity to do better.
It is not enough to relegate the Bland tragedy to an incident in a small town in Texas. It's really a call for our authorities, our institutions and all of us as individuals to take a step back and reflect on the procedures and behaviors involved when police and citizens interact.
Are traffic stops being made for legitimate safety reasons?
Are authorities appropriately trained to manage the diverse range of reactions they may encounter from citizens, who, let's all acknowledge, are never going to be happy to be pulled over and questioned?
If citizens must be arrested, are accommodations engineered so they can be managed and monitored safely, and are the staff trained and supervised to ensure the monitoring and the safety?
These are all legitimate concerns for any community and any police department at any time. High-profile encounters of recent years from towns as small as Ferguson, Missouri, and as large as New York City, New York, have stirred racial and social tensions that can't be ignored. But the purpose of examining them is not merely to make reflections on society or race, but for us all to improve.
For police in our suburbs, this challenge was in evidence as recently as last weekend, when a 61-year-old white man from Palatine arrested on suspicion of drunken driving promised Riverside police, "This is going to be a memorable night for you," then vomited into a trash can. This, according to police, after calling his arresting officer names and trying to kick out the windows of a squad car.
That police have a difficult job to do every day cannot be denied. That they can and must do it with sensitivity and control cannot be dismissed. The family and friends of Sandra Bland have every right and reason to ask whether she was treated and managed properly in Texas. Our authorities in the suburbs have every obligation to reflect on her story and do everything possible to ensure it will not be repeated here.
Not so we know who to blame when things go wrong, but simply so we know we are helping things get better.