I was listening to my local New York public radio station after the governor and mayor called for a suspension of protests. The on-air panel, which regularly discusses news and events mused about their agreement, and then began to discuss their belief that black people needed new and different, "responsible" leadership. Need I mention this is a panel comprised of all white people, who are liberals. One panelist suggested Brooklyn Borough President, Eric Adams, as a likely candidate. Adams, a former police officer, (who is also being castigated by the Patrolman's lobby) was far more preferable—in their opinion—than Rev. Al Sharpton.

I fired off an angry email to the station, and then took a deep breath.

This is not about Rev. Al. This is not about "leaders" who some white folks get to approve or disapprove. Throughout our long and troubled history in this nation there have been those who have been dubbed leaders (many who were murdered as a result) but there has never been a time when the entire black community has been of one mind or voice about who are the current spokespeople—for us.

What I do know is that movement leadership currently is organic, and linked loosely via Twitter and other tools, aptly demonstrated by sites like the thisisthemovement newsletter. Al Jazeera America recently featured some of the young black women taking leadership activist roles in #BlackLivesMatter.

On their website, at #BlackLivesMatter, you can read some of their herstory.



I [Alicia Garza] created #BlackLivesMatter with Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi, two of my sisters, as a call to action for Black people after 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was post-humously placed on trial for his own murder and the killer, George Zimmerman, was not held accountable for the crime he committed. It was a response to the anti-Black racism that permeates our society and also, unfortunately, our movements. Black Lives Matter is an ideological and political intervention in a world where Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. It is an affirmation of Black folks’ contributions to this society, our humanity, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression.



New York, NY — Activists issued a scathing statement this afternoon in response to recent attempts by the NYPD to silence the efforts of citizens seeking justice for victims of police violence. The letter, drafted by Ferguson Action, and cosigned by over a dozen grassroots organizations takes aim at PBA president Patrick Lynch and Commissioner Bratton for their reckless attempts to conflate constitutionally protected protest activities with the tragic murders of officers Ramos and Liu: “The events of this weekend are tragic. “We renew our condolences to the families and friends of those injured and killed this weekend. As those who stand with the victims of police violence, we know all too well the deep sense of loss that a community feels when they lose a loved one. They are in our thoughts and prayers as we continue our movement for justice. “This is not a time for political grandstanding and punditry. Unfortunately, we continue to see elected officials and police leadership twist this tragedy into an opportunity for them to silence the cries for justice from families who have lost their loved ones to police violence. Our families matter, too. “Those exercising their First Amendment rights to secure a justice system that works for ALL are being thrown under the bus by police departments and their union leaders who want to skirt their responsibility to our communities. “This weekend, Patrick Lynch used his role as the President of the largest police union in New York to essentially declare war on Black communities. This is unacceptable and should be condemned. Under his leadership, the police union has resisted nearly every positive criminal justice reform— including the end of discriminatory stop and frisk practices, protecting the Miranda rights of those arrested, and inviting community input in the creation of policies that govern the police."

Patrick J. Lynch, New York PBA head.

One person offering clear directives to the cops: Patrick Lynch, their union president, who asked them to sign an emotionally manipulative letter banning de Blasio from their hypothetical future funeral, and who actually said on Saturday night that there was “blood on their hands [of] those that incited violence on the street under the guise of protest … [blood] on the steps of city hall, in the office of the mayor”. Yes, the cops blamed the protesters. (So did Rudy Giuliani, but don’t get me started on him.) Even more chilling, the police union purportedly declared in a widely shared statement that the NYPD has “become a ‘wartime’ police department. We will act accordingly.”

Patrick Lynch is the 51-year-old president of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, the largest and most influential union of the New York City Police Department. You might recognize his name: Over the weekend, Lynch blamed Bill de Blasio for the Saturday deaths of two Brooklyn cops who were murdered by a lone gunman from Georgia. “That blood on the hands,” he said at a press conference, “starts on the steps of City Hall, in the office of the mayor.” To understand why he would say something so wrong and inflammatory, you need to delve into Lynch’s long, checkered history of issuing similarly insane statements. His public declarations over the past 15 years are essentially pro-police agitprop: Cops can do no wrong, while victims of their state-sanctioned violence always had it coming. They are also a deep well of masculine anxiety, hurt feelings, and barely disguised racism.

Here are some of Lynch’s greatest hits. Please consult them whenever he opens his mouth in the future.

It has been activists, like these women, who have blasted the calls for taking time off from struggle in a press release.The loudest mouth heard out of New York City, and the most vile, excoriating the mayor, and the protestors has been that of Patrick J. Lynch (such an apt surname), head of the NYC police union.Steven W. Thrasher pointed out in The Guardian JK Trotter, in this piece in Gawker , minced no words:Well worth the read for those who are unaware of this history. In case some of you may think that Lynch is only the vocal adversary of black folks, the list reminds us he was a staunch defender of the rookie cop, Patrick Pogan, who was caught on video (that went viral) attacking a bike rider from Critical Mass

Pogan lied on his police report, claiming the cyclist had attacked him which the video disproves. Lynch rallied support for Pogan and though he resigned from the force he wound up getting no jail time for assault.

A commenter on Youtube pointed out, "Cop resigned, and while convicted of a felony received no punishment, not even community service. (keep in mind that he LIED on the police report and charged the cyclist with assaulting a police officer and WITHOUT this video, the bicyclist would have most likely been doing time)."

The Gawker piece gives the Lynch response:

July 2010: Lynch defended a cop who was videotaped shoving a bicyclist off his bike by calling the victim an “anarchist”: The anarchists were looking for a confrontation with police and found it in an rookie officer trying to do his job the best way he knew how. The conditional discharge doesn’t mitigate the fact that New York City has one less police officer today who could have served the city well.

Saint Solomon, at The New York Amsterdam News also reminds us of his history in "The Patrick Lynch syndrome":



Unfortunately, power corrupts. In 1999, when the PBA was tainted with corruption, depravity and immorality, Lynch was elected president. Subsequently, the road that was paved with good intentions led him to being the poster boy of the largest scandal-ridden police union in the world. Consequently, instead of heeding his 1984 sworn testimony to protect and serve the citizens of New York City, he now propagates justifications for illegal activities committed by some of the more than 50,000 NYPD officers, past and present, who are members of the PBA. His new post oversees employees who administer fear, distrust and envy for control purposes. As a result, since Lynch has taken office, more than 200 New Yorkers, many of them children, have been murdered by the NYPD:

In 1999, Jatrek Hewitt, 17; in 2000, Malcolm Burno, 17; in 2001, Richard Hatcher, 18; in 2002, Kedrian Edwards, 19; in 2003, Allen Newsome, 17; in 2004, Rashawn Moody, 18; in 2005, Virginia Verdee, 12; in 2006, Mingo Mason, 18; in 2007, Shirley Fontane,18; in 2008, Darryl Battle, 20; in 2009, Dawshawn Vasconcello, 18; in 2010, Zachary Bingert, 21; in 2011, Tyre Chisholm, 22; in 2012, Antwaine White, 17; in 2013, Shaaliver Douse,14, to name just some. However, in more recent news, when questioned about the high-profile 2014 murder of Eric Garner, Lynch insensitively stated that had Mr. Garner not resisted the lawful order of police officers, he would not have found himself the victim of a homicide. To this writer, that sounds like a foreboding threat as well as a futuristic warning. But this attitude does not surprise me, because Lynch also stood with the 16 officers who were arraigned at State Supreme Court in the Bronx during the 2011 ticket fixing scandal. Several police officers were also indicted for illegal drugs, grand larceny and corruption. Lynch and a few other criminally content cops even formed a cordon in the courtroom to block camera operators and other media personnel from exercising the freedom of the press.

The blue wall Lynch defends isn't always solid, especially for those who are "black in blue." Vyan reported in his article, "Off-Duty Black NYPD Officers say they've been Profiled, Harassed and Assaulted Too ," and I find it interesting that Lynch led no outcry in support of the findings of the 2010 Task Force Report on Police-on-Police Shootings.

Those deaths, are what give officers of color cause to be uneasy.

John Jay professor Delores Jones-Brown cited a 2010 New York State Task Force report on police-on-police shootings - the first such inquiry of its kind - that found that in the previous 15 years, officers of color had suffered the highest fatalities in encounters with police officers who mistook them for criminals.

A grand jury in Manhattan voted not to indict a plainclothes officer who shot and killed another officer he mistook for a criminal on a rainy street in East Harlem, the Manhattan district attorney, Robert M. Morgenthau, announced on Thursday.

Those of us following these incidents were not surprised at the results. The NY Times reported on the results on the killing of officer Omar J. Edwards:Funny how dark people get mistaken for criminals a lot. Except it isn't funny, because it can get you killed. There are no time-outs when death is involved. No sorry, or apology brings back the dead. Civil suits, win or lose, do not compensate.

As long as black lives don't matter to the majority, we will continue to demonstrate.

No time for time-outs.