Samuel Sharpe Jr., age 43, a Black and homeless man was experiencing a mental health crisis in the King Park area of Milwaukee on July 16 when five police officers descended on him, shooting and killing him.
These police officers – dispatched from out of state from Columbus, Ohio for the Republican National Convention – were patrolling outside of the security zone when they came across Sharpe and another man in a dispute.
No action was taken by police to de-escalate the situation before firing multiple rounds into Sharpe.
Police officers from 63 departments across 24 states and Washington D.C. have joined 44 Wisconsin police agencies in Milwaukee this week for the Republican National Convention.
Milwaukee residents have been vocal in their opposition to the massive militarization of the city, raising questions about the safety issues this could cause for those who live here.
Tuesday’s theme at the RNC was “Make America Safe Once Again.”
While this slogan undoubtedly served as a dog whistle against poor and working-class Black and brown people who have historically been victims of Trump’s racist lies, this disgusting incident reminds us that it is the police that make America unsafe, not the people.
Time and time again, police shoot and kill with impunity and are given a free pass by the racist court system. Rarely are killer cops brought to justice under this system.
Community takes to the streets
Only hours following the killing of Samuel Sharpe by Columbus police officers, community members, and activists rallied in King Park for Samuel Sharpe.
“You have a cop that comes from out of town that knows nothing about our neighborhood, knows nothing about what’s going on, and then you kill him [Samuel Sharpe]? Make it make sense,” commented one lifelong King Park resident to Liberation News.
Before taking to the streets, numerous speakers gave comments on the killing of Sharpe, the dehumanization of Milwaukee’s growing houseless population, and the systemic white supremacy that marks Black people for police violence. Sharpe’s sister Angelique Sharpe, speaking on this systemic violence against Black men by the police, said to the crowd,”They treat their lives like they’re disposable.”
After comments, Milwaukeeans took to the streets marching down Vliet St and around the community surrounding King Park. Not long after starting, they paused for a moment of silence at the spot where Sharpe was slain, his blood still staining the street. The place where Sharpe was killed was close to the houseless encampment where he and others lived in tents. Marchers made a circuit around the area where other encampments of houseless people were.
End the War on Black America
The high incidence of police violence against Black people is a feature not a bug of the American system. The growing number of people becoming unhoused is also a built-in feature of the American system. American capitalism is reinforced by and reinforces police violence as they work to protect the property and profits of the rich.
From the period of chattel slavery to current times, American policing has violently targeted African Americans. Every day all over the U.S. police kill and brutalize people. Private security are also deputized to do the same, as exemplified by the killing of D’Vontaye Mitchell by Hyatt Regency Hotel security Milwaukee only a week-and-half before Samuel Sharpe’s death.
To abolish the racist police system and end its violence, we must get to the root of the issue. Capitalism places property and profits over people. To end the war on Black America, we must end capitalism.
