And I say that as a former young-stupid-man myself. Oh, you want to know who I’m answering?
Former President Barack Obama in an important FB posting sharing his knowledge of how governmental mechanisms work, which, the younger you are, the more important it is to your future to read. But here’s where I wonder if he’s forgotten his own youth:
It’s mayors and county executives that appoint most police chiefs and negotiate collective bargaining agreements with police unions. It’s district attorneys and state’s attorneys that decide whether or not to investigate and ultimately charge those involved in police misconduct. Those are all elected positions. In some places, police review boards with the power to monitor police conduct are elected as well. Unfortunately, voter turnout in these local races is usually pitifully low, especially among young people – which makes no sense given the direct impact these offices have on social justice issues, not to mention the fact that who wins and who loses those seats is often determined by just a few thousand, or even a few hundred, votes.
Young people – let’s say up their late twenties – haven’t got their brains fully wired, yet. Simple neurological fact. So expecting them to think about the obscure nuances of governmental mechanism, irrespective of race or class, is in many cases foolish.
This is not to say that the case is lost for young folks. There are several common approaches to rectifying the problem of the youth being non-voters, all leaning on utilizing groups the young should be respecting – parental organizations, church organizations, heritage organizations. I do not believe they should instruct how to vote, i.e., give a name, but rather they should emphasize how the governmental mechanisms work for the locality. For example, if there is a Police Review Board with some actual authority, this should be emphasized as to how the Board can, over time, ferret out the bad cops, and therefore those who the youth vote for should be chosen for their anti-racism views, although of course competency, anti-corruption, and other elements come into play.
But – having been a young, stupid person once myself – I think education and social pressure is a necessary part of reforming law enforcement. If this is a voting matter, grab the young by the ears, tell them how it works, instill that sense of shared responsibility and reasonable expectations – and yell at them if they say they’ve got better things to do.
