Opinion Analysis by Hala Al Taher, Staff Writer 

October 13th, 2020

The so-called “land of the free” is a land in which many rightful citizens suffer from ill mistreatment simply due to the color of their skin. Although African-American citizens serve their country in the military, police, and other fundamental parts of the the system to secure justice, they are not granted equal rights in practice, only in theory. A heartbreaking crime was committed in March of 2020 on a black woman, a medical worker named Breonna Taylor.  Referring to the murder as a dirty crime would be an understatement, but the justice system’s response to the murder undermines the value of Breonna Taylor’s life. 

Breonna Taylor’s case was taken as a representation of the worth of Black people’s lives in the eyes of the police and the United States government. The case inspired public human rights demonstrations across the country. Citizens took the streets to express their frustration with the systematic racism in their institutions. Living in the US means different things to a white male than it does to a black woman like Breonna Taylor. In other terms, white males are evidently superior in the US. That statement is alarming taking into consideration that the US is characterised as a socially developed country, and the sole major power in the unipolar international system we live in today.

On March 13th, 2020, a search warrant was issued by the Louisville Metro Police Department officers. To be more specific, three officers—Jonathon Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove—executed the search warrant of her apartment in Kentucky. 26-year old Breonna Taylor’s apartment was raided for drug investigation purposes. The warrant issued was a no-knock search warrant, meaning the officers were granted permission to enter her home without notice and definitely without knocking. Mr. Hanikson, and the two other officers entered her apartment at a time where her and her partner, Kenneth Walker, were allegedly asleep. They aggressively utilised a batter ram to enter her home. Mr. Walker, a licensed gun holder, and the officers fired shots back and forth. Ms. Taylor passed away as she was shot eight times. Following her death, her partner was detained for the attempt of murder of a police officer. Furthermore, it should be noted that Mr. Walker explained that he only held his gun because the police did not announce that they were the ones knocking the door.

Furthermore, Breonna Taylor’s family filed a lawsuit against the three officers. The charges included were excessive use of force, wrongful death, and gross negligence. 

Ms. Taylor’s apartment was suspected to be a location for receiving and sending drugs. The assumption stemmed from suspicion of Breonna Taylor’s ex-boyfriend’s involvement with a gang that lives ten miles away from Ms. Taylor. During the raid of her apartment, the officers fired shots at her, thus exacerbating her death. At her apartment, Mr. Hanikson fired approximately ten rounds of shots ‘obliviously’. His actions defeat the sole purpose of a police department’s duty to ensure the protection of citizens.

The Mayor Greg Fischer claimed that Mr. Hanikson’s police badge will be taken away and the two other police officers involved were placed on administrative leave. However, according to ABC news, the officers were still working at the police department. Recently, it’s been announced that the officer who shot Breonna Taylor did not plead guilty to the charges against him regarding her murder. The case of Breonna Taylor has ignited nation-wide frustration and anger as it was a solid depiction of the systematic racism within the US. 

The lack of immediate and proportional response to the murder of Breonna Taylor raises a couple of significant questions: would we have witnessed the same response if the victim was white? Would the crime have even initially taken place if the victim was a white citizen rather than an African American one? Most importantly, would a home in Beverly Hills or a different area have been raided in the same manner? The United States is described as the ‘melting pot’ in which citizens from different backgrounds are tolerated and form a common identity. However, the unfortunate reality proves otherwise.