Thank you for this analysis, Nandini! I agree that a 2.5x disparity is troubling enough, and that exaggerating the scale of the problem makes it harder, not easier to address. I did a similar analysis of the Rutgers study last year on my blog: https://postwoke.substack.com/p/on-fear What worries me most is the feedback loop such exaggerations create. Celebrities like Chelsea Handler tweet “why would any person of color ever comply with a police officer when there is a 50/50 shot of getting ‘accidentally’ shot,” a tweet she sent on 4/13/21 that is still up. This kind of thinking INCREASES the likelihood of death at the hands of cops. Wilkerson may be right that radical empathy is needed, but it really needs to happen in both directions to improve understanding, reduce fear, build trust and improve lives.
Thank you for this analysis, Nandini! I agree that a 2.5x disparity is troubling enough, and that exaggerating the scale of the problem makes it harder, not easier to address. I did a similar analysis of the Rutgers study last year on my blog: https://postwoke.substack.com/p/on-fear What worries me most is the feedback loop such exaggerations create. Celebrities like Chelsea Handler tweet “why would any person of color ever comply with a police officer when there is a 50/50 shot of getting ‘accidentally’ shot,” a tweet she sent on 4/13/21 that is still up. This kind of thinking INCREASES the likelihood of death at the hands of cops. Wilkerson may be right that radical empathy is needed, but it really needs to happen in both directions to improve understanding, reduce fear, build trust and improve lives.
Great. Thank You.
I enjoyed her book The Warmth of Other Suns but was not a fan of Caste. Thanks for the analysis.
You have given me hope that your careful analysis of facts will rise from the ash heap of Babel in the current discourse. Thank you.
This is excellent work! Thank you.