I am still trying to figure out what happened to Sandra Bland. I know what the police in Texas say happened, but you will have to excuse me if I don't believe it.You see, I happen to be a black man in America, and I have been paying close attention to what has been happening to people of color when they come in contact with law enforcement over the past few months.
So anyway, while we are still trying to figure out what happened to Sandra Bland, the sad and horrific story of Kindra Darnell Chapman (in picture) got my attention.
Here is how the story was told by a "main stream" website which is run by a major newspaper in the state of Alabama:
"An 18-year-old girl hanged herself in the Homewood City Jail Tuesday night.
The Jefferson County Coroner's Office identified the inmate as Kindra Darnell Chapman. Chapman was booked in the jail at 6:22 p.m., on a first-degree robbery charge. Homewood police said she robbed another person of a cell phone in the 1600 block of Lakeshore Court.
Jailers last saw her alive at 6:30 p.m. She was found unresponsive at 7:50 p.m. Authorities said she used a bed sheet to hang herself.
Chapman was taken to Brookwood Medical Center where she was pronounced dead.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available." [Source]
Yes, and I am sure that we will get the truth from law enforcement in Alabama.
My first thought about this incident was that we have been down this road before.
Remember Sheneque Proctor? She was also 18 when she was found dead in an Alabama jail cell.
Being hung in a jail cell should not be a right of passage for young women of color in Alabama. Sadly it seems that it might not be such a stretch to say that it is.
#IfIDieInPoliceCustody is currently trending on black twitter.
Because if we don't bring attention to these cases, no one else will.
