On May 5, three young Black men—Brian Hall, Pete Hopkins, and Dwayne Dyches— were pulled over by Philadelphia police officers. The men were pulled from their vehicle and viciously beat and kicked by the cops for several minutes.
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The beating has sparked outrage in Philadelphia and across the country. A number of civil rights commentators have remarked that this was “worse than Rodney King,” referring to the infamous beating that set off a rebellion in Los Angeles in 1992.
The police claim the three men, plus a fourth person not in the car, had just been involved in a triple shooting close to where they were pulled over. However, the story has the smell of a cover-up. No gun was found, and police now say the unidentified fourth shooter never existed.
Whatever the reason given, the police not only beat these men but also immediately arrested them. All three are facing charges of attempted murder plus other related counts.
While two of the three beating victims are held in jail, not one police officer has been arrested. Four officers have been fired. As always in these cases, the police are conducting an internal “investigation.”
After making some brief, ostensibly regretful remarks, the police commissioner and the mayor have done little else. They have not raised a call for these officers to be arrested and have been content to use token administrative punishments, like firings or demotions.
This case perfectly exemplifies the double standard used for police crimes—be it the case of Sean Bell in New York, DeOnte Rawlings in D.C., Gary King in Oakland and Anita Gay in Berkeley. In countless cases across the country, cops are never brought to justice for crimes committed against members of oppressed communities.
Officers not only regularly escape criminal prosecution for abuse and murder, but also they usually retain their jobs. On the other hand, in the same Black and Latino communities where police brutality is prevalent, millions of people, particularly young men, are given outrageously long sentences for any so-called “crime” they may commit.
Why do police go unpunished?
The police are subject to special treatment for their key role protecting the interests of rulers of society. The police are part of what Marxists call the state—the armed apparatus used to enforce the rule of a dominant grouping or class in a society.
U.S. society was founded by wealthy slave owners and merchants. Despite the fact that there are elections, a plutocratic society ensures that mainstream politics is controlled by the super rich. Bankers, oil bosses, weapons manufacturers and other industrial and financial interests fund electoral campaigns and control access to the mass media.
Working-class people, especially from oppressed communities, are often driven into deep poverty and desperation. Lacking options, the poor at times resort to illicit activity in order to make a living. The capitalists—after creating the very conditions that bring about crime—employ the police to protect their persons, property and neighborhoods.
Hurricane Katrina was no natural disaster—the government had the knowledge and resources to prevent the breaking of the levees. It let workers and the poor to fend for themselves rather than conducting a planned evacuation effort. However, it conducted a large scale police operation, giving cops permission to shoot to kill in order to protect private property from the people who were trying to get the necessities they needed to survive the disaster.
Such is the class nature of the capitalist state. The police, part and parcel of the institutions used by the rich to control society, get preferential treatment from judges and governments.
What is next in the struggle
The first hearing for the attempted murder cases against Hopkins, Hall and Dyches was pushed back to early July after several witnesses to the supposed shooting failed to appear. Supporters of the men, including their families, demonstrated at a May 16 hearing. Family members and supporters protested again on May 21 at the district attorney’s office.
Hopkins’ lawyer has said the officers should be charged with aggravated assault. The families of the three men are planning to file a complaint with the Justice Department.
The public outcry at the outrageous nature of the beating and the trumped-up murder charges have already forced the Philadelphia police to try to put the issue to bed with quick punishments for some officers.
The people of Philadelphia have seen through the state’s smokescreen. People around the country should also take up the cases of Dyches, Hall and Hopkins. None of the police officers involved in the abuse should escape criminal charges and criminal convictions.
