Last week, news outlet WGRZ reported on the rise of shootings in Lockport, New York. With a mug shot of the man suspected in some of the shootings, one particular phrase in the police report was quickly noted as offensive and insensitive.
The mug shot of 19 year old Shamir Allen was described as “negro” next to the line describing complexion. Next to negro read “DA.” According to Lockport Police, the acronym means dark.
“This right here is insulting, it is disrespecting, it is inaccurate and it’s a word that should have gone away at least since the 1960s. In the 1960s, it became very inappropriate to call someone a negro,” said Erie County Legislator Betty Jean Grant, an African American leader in Buffalo, New York.
Wanting to better understand the backlash that followed, Mark Sanders, Lockport PD’s Community Policing Aide took to their Facebook page to poll fans about the offensiveness of the term.
To be expected, the crowdsourced response was a resounding ‘don’t ever use that word.’
According to Lockport Police, officers in the department use a specific type of computer software to describe the complexion of suspects. When officers go to the complexion tab, there are about 12 options to choose from, and amongst the descriptions are the options of light, medium and dark, in addition to “light Negro” and “dark Negro.” The system is rarely updated.
Lockport Police say they will conduct diversity training in the next couple of weeks to explain to officers why the word Negro is unacceptable.
In the future, in addition to race, all suspects will be listed with a light, medium or dark complexion.
Image credit: Lockport Police; Unite4Humanity