The Nashville Police Department was right to fire a hateful cop

After the shootings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge, La. and Philando Castile in Falcon Heights, Minn., many Americans are mourning their deaths and protesting police brutality against people of color.

Now former Nashville Metro police officer Anthony Venable had a different reaction, though. He wrote in a Facebook conversation about Philando Castile (who was shot four times by police while reaching for his wallet to pull out his driver’s license),”Yeah. I would have done 5.”

The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) quickly decommissioned Venable, who defended the post as being sarcastic.

As a Nashville native, I have to say I’m relieved. The fact that the MNPD did not defend this officer’s actions is great news. However, it shouldn’t be something that amazes me as much as it does.

We expect our officers to serve and protect. It is a solemn duty to carry the badge and gun and promise your community that you will do everything in your power to keep them safe.

But that’s just what should be. What we have now is a broken system in which people of color have to constantly be on guard because there are officers in this world who do not value their lives. So much so that the officers who do believe in protecting everyone are not unable to undo the damage that hateful, irresponsible officers have done.

And this is why it should be standard procedure for an officer to be decommissioned or appropriately reprimanded whenever they act in a way that shows that they do not respect the people that they are given the responsibility to protect.

But why is one little Facebook comment so significant? The act of making the comment in and of itself may not have caused any harm, but it is symptomatic of a larger issue: the idea that police officers can act as the judge, jury, and executioner of anyone they approach. When Venable said “I would have done 5,” what he was really saying was, “I will exert my power in an abusive way because it makes me feel powerful.” Or, if he was being “sarcastic” as he claims, it’s saying, “I do not take my job or human life seriously.”

And his job should be taken seriously. We want the police to be our guardians – the people we turn to when we are in danger. The people who we can depend on when we are worried about the safety of friends and family. But for many people of color, it’s just the opposite – the police is a force that they have to walk on eggshells with, fearing to live everyday life with the freedom that America promises all of its citizens.

Racism and excessive use of force are major problems with America’s police. The MNPD saw the first signs of it and acted accordingly. Just like all police forces should.

Sadly, this was not the case in Baton Rouge, where Officers Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II (who shot Alton Sterling) has previous complaints of “use of force.” An article in the Advocate goes into detail about how the complaints about these officers were often met with a slap on the wrist (if that). The warning signs were there: these men were not fully suitable for the job.

Problems with the police force are numerous and complex, but one thing is for certain: we need to hold our officers to a higher standard. We should not tolerate hateful words or actions from those who are meant to protect us. And I’m glad that, in this case, the MNPD did not.