An Inconvenient Cop by Edwin Raymond & Jon Sternfeld

Author:Edwin Raymond & Jon Sternfeld [Raymond, Edwin & Sternfeld, Jon]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2023-10-17T00:00:00+00:00

* * *

—

“How hard is it to get a collar?” Nickson asked. I was standing in his nicely furnished living room, hardwood floors gleaming. “If you’re struggling to get activity, I can show you. I started out in Transit and we used to—”

“No, no, no, Nickson,” I said. “That’s not it. I know about playing in the rooms. Looking through the vents. I’m objecting to the way things are done.”

He took a beat, his face a mix of resignation and pity. “Just play the game, Edwin,” he said.

I’d meet up with Nickson for counsel, or just for the company of someone who knew the job. But we were talking past each other. I shook my head at the same advice I’d heard far too often, from far too many people I respected. Play the game.

“Why are you bringing all this unnecessary stress on yourself?” he asked. “This is what the job is. There’s nothing you can do about it. Just do what you got to do. You want to change things? Fine, but make it to chief—then you can change things.”

Nickson wasn’t even being cynical; he was just looking out for me. He knew my mom, my story, and he wanted the path of least resistance for me. His argument was that life was already stressful and here was one stress I could choose not to bring on myself. But I could no more ignore the big picture than I could walk around with my eyes closed.

Nickson and Jean, like plenty of cops (of all colors) might’ve been initially put off by what the job actually was, but they suppressed that feeling because it did them no good. They got on board because what was the alternative? It’s a battle everyone goes through: How much do I care about myself and how much do I care about others? And is it a zero-sum equation? Can I do the right thing without somehow taking away from myself and mine? It’s a tension in the heart of every citizen.

But I was educated—by my father and my teachers and Black role models—that getting in, making good for ourselves, was just phase 1. Phase 2 was what we did once we were in. I thought of my hero Marcus Garvey, who sparked a revolution regarding Black strength and independence and exceptionalism. A century ago, when he first tried to spread the word to others, they couldn’t hear him. In colonies like his home in Jamaica, they couldn’t grasp what he was saying. He had to go to Harlem to get himself heard. And it was from there that his ideas spread across the Black diaspora and around the world.

Most people don’t join a group to change it. It’s inherently illogical to do so. When you enter an organization, you enter from the bottom and can only rise—and get enough power to change anything—by playing the very game you’re trying to undo. But if you do that, then you become part of the problem. It’s a paradox.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.