COLUMBUS, Ind. — Columbus Human Rights Director Aida Ramirez offered an outsider’s view of the wave of negative national media attention about police treatment of minorities in the past few years.
She spoke Friday afternoon at the Black History Month Zoom panel discussion “Engaging Law Enforcement: Moving Forward” when one person mentioned that he struggled to understand national media’s emphasis on police abuses. Ramirez responded by saying she understood such a focus these days.
“For decades, black and brown folks were not believed (about police improprieties),” Ramirez said. “It took video to be the backup (for truth) and the support for those black and brown folks. I think that is really an important aspect to remember.
” … The bad is really bad — and it’s been really bad for decades. It’s been bad over and over again for the same types of people. And it wasn’t until cameras were shoved into people’s faces and video was then put online and went viral that others have finally said, ‘Oh! That really DID happen.'”
Ramirez, herself a minority as a Latino woman, was one of the panelists at the event organized by the Columbus/Bartholomew County Area chapter of the NAACP as part of Black History Month. Chapter president Pastor Johnnie Edwards moderated the 80-minute discussion. Besides Ramirez, panelists were Columbus Police Chief Michael Richardson; Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Chris Lane; Columbus City Council member Jerone Wood; and Indiana State Police Capt. Ruben Marte.
For more on this story, see Saturday’s Republic.
