Tag Archives: police killings

Before examining the context of our fiery protests, let us first turn to some events abroad that are relevant to the use and abuse of power. “For now, each party’s biggest strength is the weakness of the opponent.” Does this statement resonate? It is in fact a conclusion drawn last …

Public trust and confidence in the capacity of our country’s institutions and high offices to make full disclosure and to observe due process of law has again been shaken. Compromising due process is a potential catalyst for wider social unrest because of the way in which the authorities manipulate the …

Our national anthem urges us to have “boundless faith in our destiny”. It affirms that “here every creed and race find an equal place” and “may God bless our Nation”.  Do these lofty words meet reality? Do these words apply to the people of Laventille, or are they to be …

Former Pro League stand-out Akeem ‘Battery’ Benjamin was one of two men shot dead today during an alleged confrontation with police officers at the out-of-commission Flavourite Ice Cream compound at Boundary Road in San Juan. The second deceased man remains unidentified while a TTPS release said North Eastern Division Task …

As a child, I learned a saying, ‘Don’t wait until night comes to light a candle to see what you could see in the day’! By this, my mother meant, ‘Don’t wait for a problem to come upon you when it could have been prevented long beforehand’. As a purveyor …

The following letter to the editor was submitted to Wired868 by Kirk Waithe, the political leader of the Nationwide Organisation of We the People (NOW): It’s been six months since Andrew ‘Solo’ Morris was brutally beaten by officers of the Special Operations Response Team (SORT)—a unit within the Police Service …

A discerning reader, well experienced in the issue of diversity, responded with appreciation to last week’s column dealing with police profiling of a certain socio-economic class. The message asserted that we should say Akiel Chambers’ name when we say the names of Duante Wright and other fatally-profiled victims currently in …

Daunte (pronounced Dante) Wright, aged 20, is the latest black man to be killed by a white police officer in the United States. The matter that first drew the attention of the police to him was minor. A questionable explanation has been given for the shooting of Daunte. The police …

‘[…] In this latest video, plainclothes police officers are seen dumping one body in the back of the marked police SUV, and then dragging the other body and unceremoniously dumping that body on top of the other. How in heavens name can any wounded suspect survive a journey to the …

The revelation that Joel Balcon had been charged with 70 criminal counts remains a scandalous indictment of this country. But where in the system is the blame to fall?  In the Express of 4 February, Anna Ramdass reported an interview with an unidentified attorney who said he had previously represented …

When Trinidad and Tobago is boiling over with trouble and nonsense, as it is currently, my Freeport compere says to me ‘topic, topic, topic’. So where to focus this week’s column? Should I comment further on the Tobago House of Assembly (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to break the six-six electoral …

Distressingly amid the national uproar over our women’s ill-treatment and murders, we gravitate to accepting a ‘macho’ solution that wreaks violence upon those who threaten us.  We should reflect on how likely this path would take us to our desired goal of safety for all, particularly our women. Will we …