Community Voices Reflect on the 2023 Civil Rights Agenda: Pressing Issues for the Civil Rights Movement
Progress Denied
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was the most important voice of the American civil rights movement. He was extremely instrumental in fighting for equal rights for all. He was famous for using nonviolent resistance to overcome injustice, and he never got tired of trying to end the segregation laws (laws that prevented African American citizens from entering certain places, such as restaurants, hotels, and public schools). As we prepare to commemorate and celebrate his birthday once again, it seems as though many of the very important issues and principles that he fought and died for are still pressing issues and problems that we continue to fight for today.
Where is the progress? If we carefully examine today’s society, it appears that we are going back in time. Many of the ideas, lessons and approaches that Dr. King preached and taught about are being overshadowed by the desecration and decline of our society.
According to Corgi (2020), racism and discrimination of African-Americans in the United States of America have been a major issue that began way back during the colonial and slavery era. One would think that after such a long period of fighting for human rights and the changes made in the constitution to make life better and equal for African Americans, discrimination would be outdated. Corgi (2020) goes on to state that racism is clearly seen in more of modern socioeconomic inequality, which is in the education system, employment and politics, and in some cases, housing. Racism against African Americans is typically rooted in the fact that some White people perceive themselves to be superior.
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. often spoke about institutional and systemic racism, saying that true racial equality cannot be reached without “radical” structural changes in society. “Justice for black people will not flow into this society merely from court decisions nor from fountains of political oratory. White America must recognize that justice for African Americans cannot be achieved without radical changes in the structure of our society,” King wrote in an essay published in 1969 titled “A Testament of Hope.” (Henton, 2022).
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. fought the same systemic racism that we continue to face in today’s society. The question remains, how many people must die? How many laws must be passed? Every year during several Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. celebrations and events, there will be countless amounts of messages delivered on his messages and philosophies on hope and overcoming racism.
And year after year we can attest to the fact that nothing changes and often if we examine very carefully, things are in fact worse! Society must look deep within its heart to examine why progress in regards to systematic racism cannot be eliminated. What causes this society to continue to deny the obvious? The suffering and oppression continue to perpetuate and infect our society with the disease of racism.
According to Bleich, Findling, Casey, Blendon, Benson, Steel, Fisher, Sayde and Miller (2019), the extent of reported discrimination across several areas of life suggests a broad pattern of discrimination against Blacks in America, beyond isolated experiences. Black-white disparities exist on nearly all dimensions of experiences with public and private institutions, including health care and the police. Evidence of systemic discrimination suggests a need for more active institutional interventions to address racism in policy and practice.
Therefore, as we prepare to celebrate the life, legacy, sacrifice, and dreams of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., we need to examine our hearts, minds and souls to determine if things have changed since his death. This society has been plagued with hate, racism and oppression. These issues have continually caused hurt, pain as well as a failure to move forward as a society that values and honors all citizens. Will this be another year of progress denied?
Policing and the Criminal Justice System
As a Millennial, social media plays a significant presence in my life. It has personally served me in various ways — from being a tool of affirmation around topics, a way to keep in touch with loved ones, a distraction, etc.. I’ve also experienced and participated in its use to teach tough lessons.
Over the past decade or so, I’ve noticed a cautioning trend regarding the use of Martin Luther King Jr.’s quotes on the annual commemoration and federal holiday honoring his legacy. “Do, don’t just quote,” and “A day on, not a day off,” are some of the most familiar. Sharing MLK’s quotes, especially his more socially agreeable statements, is simply not enough to honor his life's work and martyrdom on behalf of civil rights. Interestingly enough, MLK’s following quote from A Time to Break the Silence (speech), convicted my choice of naming policing and the criminal justice system as the most pressing civil rights issue of 2023. In it, he stated, “A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.”
In the 21 months I’ve been an alder, passionate calls for both an increase and decrease in funding to the Madison Police Department (MPD) budget have been frequent. MPD’s 2022 operating budget was approximately $80M. MPD’s 2023 operating budget is now closer to $85M. Over the past decade, MPD’s budget has hovered between 23-24% of the City’s Operating Budget and consistently receives more funding than any other city department. (2022, Understanding Madison’s Police Budget, Pro Dane publication). Advocates for increases (in both funding and the amount of officers) argue that crime is on the steady rise, and that Madison is no longer a safe city. They also state that while the number of calls for service has not been increasing, the complexity of those calls and of crime-solving, generally, has changed. (2021 WSJ article “Facing possibility of another violent summer, Madison police rolling out crime reduction strategies”).
Advocates for decreases argue that a budget which reflects the actual needs of people (i.e. increased funding towards affordable housing and comprehensive community programs) would prioritize community safety for all, instead of favoring state violence in the form of policing.
According to recent MPD data, “Incidents of gunfire and car thefts are declining, a sign that the city is turning back some of its most concerning types of crime. Critically, gunfire decreased by 21 percent compared to the average levels of the past five years.” MPD Chief Shon Barnes stated, “I do want to tell our community that we do have a safe city. We’re trending in the right direction. We’re never going to see the decreases that we want to see if we’re just thinking about apprehension.”
That last sentence from the City’s top executive in law enforcement hits the nail on the head: we must focus more on prevention and getting at the root causes of crime, rather than on punishment and increasing the number of officers. Some of these prevention efforts include the rolling out of a public health approach to violence, creation of a Community Justice Center, and the CARES (Community Alternative Response Emergency Services) program, which have seen positive outcomes in keeping people out of jail, while also preventing crime.
Just this week at a community forum, Dane County Circuit Court Judge and WI Supreme Court justice candidate Everett Mitchell asserted our community needs to invest more money into the mental health system. He stated, 'It is painful to see our criminal justice system be used as mental health treatment.” Lance Wiersma, administrator for the Department of Corrections Division of Community Corrections, has even stated, “If we can help people change their behavior in the community versus in a jail or prison setting, that’s the goal.”
Still, the United States continues to report the world’s highest racial disparities within incarceration rates. Atrociously, a higher percentage of Wisconsin’s black population is currently serving time in the correctional system than any other state, according to a 2021 nationwide survey. Those numbers put Wisconsin’s incarceration rate for Blacks 10 times higher than those of whites. These disparities continue to point at longstanding failures to end systemic racism linked to the legacies of slavery and abusive structures of power — namely policing and incarceration. Despite extensive calls for reforms to these systems and reducing overreliance on policing, police budgets have not shrunk. Congress hasn’t even addressed heavily watered-down reforms proposed in the Justice in Policing Act. And in Madison, our actions demonstrate a continued reliance on MPD to apply prevention and community-oriented approaches, while still maintaining the power to detain and arrest.
MLK Jr., delivered the aforementioned quote on April 4, 1967. This urge to action will turn 56 years old on this year's general election date (April 4, 2023). Will Madison let another 56 years of the same thing go by? I must maintain hope and take action to demonstrate we will not.