Analysis & Opinions - The Atlantic

Why Memphis Is Different

| Jan. 28, 2023

Because of the sheer prevalence of police brutality in America, public officials have gotten better at managing the shock.

As multiple video recordings of the fatal police beating of Tyre Nichols in Memphis were released to the public on Friday night, the nation prepared for the reaction. Peaceful protests can easily turn into violent ones, especially in a country that is rightly outraged about the ongoing police brutality against Black men. It has become a familiar call and response: Police misconduct leads to more harm in or for the communities that were targeted by the misconduct in the first place.

But as Friday night unfolded, the protests remained peaceful; news reports showed Americans in various cities righteously and nonviolently demanding justice. We have witnessed many peaceful protests in response to police violence before, but there was one noticeable difference this time around: Rollout of the video footage seemed highly choreographed.

By the time protesters were chanting in the streets, the five officers who had beaten Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, had already been charged with second-degree murder. By the time the video footage of the attack was released, the anger and dismay had already been predicted; law-enforcement and political leaders had issued statements preparing the public for some of the worst police violence this nation has seen. The Memphis police chief likened Nichols's beating to that of Rodney King in 1991. These officials were right: The footage was brutal, at times unbearable, with Nichols appearing not to resist the officers as they repeatedly struck him. All of this reveals the sad fact that, because of the sheer number of times Americans have now confronted videos of police officers killing Black citizens, public officials have gotten better at managing the shock....

 

Want to Read More?

The full text of this publication is available via The Atlantic.
Read Full Article
For more information on this publication: Belfer Communications Office
For Academic Citation: Kayyem, Juliette.“Why Memphis Is Different.” The Atlantic, January 28, 2023.

The Author

Juliette Kayyem Headshot

Juliette Kayyem

  • Member of the Board, Belfer Center
  • Belfer Senior Lecturer in International Security, Harvard Kennedy School
  • Faculty Director, Homeland Security Project
  • Faculty Affiliate, Middle East Initiative
Expertise:
Recommended
In the Spotlight
RSS
The U.S. and Canada must work together on Arctic climate challenges that have global impacts, from intensifying wildfires and thawing permafrost to endangered Indigenous subsistence and a changing Arctic Ocean, write John P. Holdren and Fran Ulmer.
We’re going to need every tool in the toolkit, including CCUS, to solve the climate crisis, argues Mohammed Al-Juaied. CCUS projects are already burying millions of tons of CO2 each year, but that’s a drop in the bucket compared to what’s needed, he says.
When the Boston Marathon bombing took place 10 years ago, the City’s detailed disaster preparedness plan kicked in and helped save numerous lives, Juliette Kayyem and other experts said in a recent discussion of lessons learned in the wake of the tragedy.
Most Viewed

Tags