In The Possessive Investment In Whiteness, George Lipsitz explains how the “the language of liberal individualism” is used to obscure “systemic, collective, and coordinated behavior” (40) which perpetuates racial injustice in the modern world through its focus on individual action and (mis)behavior. Relics of this larger, hidden, systematic behavior which lead to the beating of Rodney King and the acquittal of the four policemen who beat him persist to this day. Greg Meyer is a “use of force expert” who testified during the Rodney King trial, and according to his website he “has been engaged in more than 200 cases involving shootings, TASERs, arrest-related deaths, and other police procedure matters”.
Meyer still serves as an expert witness today, being paid to testify “for the defense of officers and agencies” (aele.org). He recently testified in a case involving a man shot by the police, and speaking from his position of expertise, Meyer claimed that the officers were not at fault, were simply following policy, did not use excessive force, and that the policy (not the officers’ individual action) is to blame. If you research Meyer on the internet, you can find various news article of him testifying in defense of policemen who were accused of using excessive force on civilians. The fact that Meyer today earns a wage spouting the same opinion which lead to the acquittal of the four LAPD officers in the King case is representative of the fact that these larger, bureaucratic forms of oppression have a legacy which has endured since 1992 and continue to lead to the acquittal of police officers who engage in acts of violence.
- John Campos
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