The footage of Tyre Nichols being fatally beaten by Memphis police has haunted me.
Those five officers pepper sprayed, punched, kicked, and beat a defenseless Nichols with a baton. Those who vowed to protect and serve brutally killed the 29-year-old father.
Although I felt compelled to view the videos, I strongly disapproved of the manner in which they were made public. That everyone around the globe was anticipating the release of the horrific videos, treating it like a movie premiere, sickened me.
Five Black Memphis police officers were fired from the department and were given numerous charges following the death of Nichols, including second-degree murder, kidnapping, assault, official misconduct, and official oppression. That a Black man died at the hands of Black police officers was unfathomable to most.
Family members told reporters Nichols went into cardiac arrest and kidney failure due to the vicious beating. The question “Why?” keeps coming back to me. Why was this young, vibrant, creative soul taken so violently by those whose job it was to protect and serve the community? This was an act of terror. As Reverend Al Sharpton said at Nichols’ homecoming services, “You don’t fight crime by becoming a criminal yourself.”
Seeing this unfold in a city I’ve called home for 20 years was different for me. My husband was a Black officer for the Memphis Police Department for nearly 14 years, and I previously worked for another law enforcement agency for close to seven years. As my husband watched the videos, I could hear the sadness in his voice. Watching it hurt. He kept saying they didn’t have to kill him. He questioned the supervision, the training, and wondered if the officers had done it before. He was angry at the narrative the officers were trying to paint of the situation in the video. He wants them held fully accountable for their actions.
While on the force, my husband felt it was his duty to mentor young officers since he was older starting out. He advised them to approach everyone with the same degree of decency and respect, urging them to be careful how they treated citizens since it could come back on them. They wouldn’t be recognized as officers out of uniform or in other jurisdictions, but in or out of uniform the same would apply. He made it clear that he had a family to provide for and an account to God to keep, so he wasn’t going to put his career or freedom in jeopardy. He said some police officers go too far and it’s not worth it. There are some good officers out there. I’ve encountered them. They want to serve their communities and get home safely to their families. Officers like these are willing to sacrifice their lives to protect the public. The conduct of those who have no business being police in the first place has caused a significant loss of public trust of law enforcement. I’ve spoken to former co-workers and other officers since the release of the video. Many are hurt, angry, and appalled by what happened to that young man, especially the Black officers. Some are even questioning if they should continue in law enforcement.
As a mother to adult Black children, it terrifies me that this happened so close to home, literally. Both scenes are not too far from my home. And I can’t help but think it could’ve been one of my sons coming to our house. Or even my husband. I don’t believe I would have the grace of RowVaughn Wells, Nichols’ mother. She shouldn’t have to say her son was a good man. But even if Tyre Nichols had been a known criminal, he still didn’t deserve to be beaten to death. There’s no justification. It would have torn me to pieces if one of my children’s last words were calling for me like Tyre was calling for his mom as he lay there dying.
Were there no rational people around who could have said, “That’s enough”? The only “good” cop on that scene was the SkyCop. The most complete picture of the assault was revealed by that camera. It’s ironic that something constructed with public safety in mind will be instrumental in bringing these ex-cops to justice. Everyone on that scene should be held accountable.
Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins said this prior to last week’s game against the Indiana Pacers: “Sadly, this is reminiscent of George Floyd back in 2020. We were all in Covid. We were all sitting at home and … had more time to think about it. Whereas now, the world’s still going, and I’m worried that people are going to take their focus off of making change, making positive impact in their city, in the country. When everyone’s clamoring for it, we can’t find distractions, we can’t forget, we can’t let this just be an afterthought in two weeks, in a month.”
This can’t be an afterthought. Change has to come, and it has to come within law enforcement. I don’t have all the answers and I don’t claim to. Like law enforcement tells citizens, if you see something, say something. I only wish someone had been there to stand up for Tyre Nichols.
Sharon Brown is a Flyer Grizzlies reporter.