A Black Baby is Shot Dead while in His Mother's Lap. The Mississippi DA Calls it Justified. A State's History of Racism Demands Transparency

From slavery and Jim Crow to lynching and modern questions of police accountability, Mississippi's racial history cannot be separated from the public's demand for justice in the killing of one-year-old Kohen Wiley.

October 20, 2026

A one-year-old Black child is dead. A police officer has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing. The Mississippi attorney general says the shooting was justified. And the child's family and the public still have not been given access to all the evidence needed to independently evaluate that conclusion.

For many Americans, the circumstances surrounding Kohen Wiley's death are horrifying. For those familiar with Mississippi's history, they also raise a painful question: How much confidence should Black families have in a system whose institutions were built, in part, through generations of racial discrimination and unequal justice?

That question deserves a serious answer.

On October 19, Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch announced that her office would not bring criminal charges against the officer involved in Kohen's death. The child was shot in a Walmart parking lot in Senatobia on June 14, 2026, during a police encounter that began with an allegation of shoplifting.

The decision came despite lingering questions about the shooting, the evidence reviewed and the investigative process. Reporting by The New York Times and Mississippi Today indicated that witnesses, including Kohen's mother, had said they were not interviewed by investigators. The family had not been shown the body-camera footage, and authorities had not publicly explained all the evidence supporting their decision.

The public is being asked to accept a conclusion without being shown the full basis for it.

In Mississippi, where the historical record includes slavery, legally enforced segregation, voter suppression, racial terror and generations of unequal treatment under the law, that demand for trust cannot be separated from history.

Kohen's death does not, by itself, prove that racism motivated the shooting. But Mississippi's history makes transparency, independent scrutiny and equal accountability especially important.

Mississippi's history is not ancient history

Mississippi's racial history is not a vague reference to a troubled past. It is a documented record of laws and institutions that systematically denied Black people freedom, political power and equal protection.

Following the Civil War, Mississippi lawmakers enacted Black Codes in 1865 that restricted the freedom of formerly enslaved people. These laws used criminal penalties and other restrictions to control Black labor and behavior, attempting to preserve elements of the old racial order despite emancipation. The Mississippi Department of Archives and History documents these measures in its historical account of Reconstruction.

In 1890, Mississippi rewrote its constitution to suppress Black political participation. Poll taxes, literacy tests and other voting restrictions helped disenfranchise Black citizens for decades. The Mississippi Civil Rights Museum documents the dramatic collapse in Black voter registration following the changes.

Then there was racial terror.

From 1877 to 1950, Mississippi ranked first in several categories of recorded lynching, including the number of victims and cases in which perpetrators escaped arrest or conviction, according to the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum. These were not simply isolated crimes committed by individuals. Lynching operated within a broader system of racial intimidation that often depended on the failure of authorities to protect Black victims or prosecute white perpetrators.

During the civil rights movement, Black Mississippians risked their lives to challenge segregation, voter suppression and official resistance to equal rights. Activists and ordinary citizens faced intimidation and violence as they demanded protections that should have been theirs as American citizens.

The names of Emmett Till, Medgar Evers and countless lesser-known victims remain part of that history.

The past does not establish the facts of every present-day police encounter. Nor should today's residents be judged solely by the actions of people who lived generations ago.

But history does explain why Black communities may view claims of official innocence with skepticism when evidence remains unavailable and accountability appears uncertain.

Trust cannot be demanded simply because an official has spoken. It must be earned through a process that people can examine.

A shoplifting allegation ended in a child's death

According to published reporting, officers responded to an allegation that a woman had stolen diapers and baby clothes from Walmart. Two Black women, Vellesiya Wiley and Latoya Ferrell, were in a vehicle in the parking lot. Kohen was in his mother's arms in the front passenger seat.

At least five officers were visible on foot in bystander video recorded around the encounter. The vehicle attempted to leave its parking space, and an officer opened fire, killing Kohen.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation initially said officers fired when the vehicle moved toward an officer and nearly struck him. The publicly available video has not clearly shown the moments when the shots were fired.

Wiley has denied taking merchandise and said she believed Ferrell had paid for her items at self-checkout.

The crucial facts remain questions for a thorough examination: Where were the officers standing? What was the vehicle doing when shots were fired? What warnings were given? What threat did officers perceive? Were alternatives available? And what evidence supports the conclusion that deadly force was justified?

These questions should not be answered by speculation, either in defense of the officer or against him. They should be answered with evidence.

A police officer's responsibility to protect the public includes making decisions that preserve life whenever possible. When deadly force results in the death of a child, the public has every reason to demand a detailed explanation.

A department already facing questions about racism

The concerns surrounding Kohen's death are intensified by investigative reporting about the Senatobia Police Department itself.

The New York Times, Mississippi Today and Verite News reported that former police chief Harold Vanderford routinely used racist slurs in private text messages with a colleague. The city fired him in September.

The reporting also documented allegations that officer Hunter Foster had directed racially offensive language toward coworkers, including a Black officer. Foster had been placed on leave during the investigation into Kohen's death. His attorney described the decision not to prosecute as expected and overdue.

These reports do not prove that racism motivated the shooting. They do, however, raise legitimate questions about departmental culture, supervision, disciplinary decisions and whether earlier warning signs were adequately addressed.

When a police department has documented problems involving racist conduct, the public is entitled to ask whether those problems were taken seriously and whether the institution's leadership created an environment in which every resident could expect equal treatment.

That is not an attack on every officer. It is a demand that public institutions take responsibility for their own conduct.

A department's credibility depends on more than its statements about itself. It depends on the evidence, the quality of its investigations and its willingness to correct misconduct.

Who holds the people in power accountable?

Attorney General Lynn Fitch's decision not to bring criminal charges is not the same as a civil court finding that no wrongdoing occurred. Nor does it settle every question about departmental policy, investigative procedures or possible civil liability.

The family, represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, has called for the release of the footage. The demand is reasonable: if the evidence supports the state's conclusion, officials should explain what can be disclosed and why any remaining material must be withheld.

Legitimate privacy protections and legal restrictions must be respected. But officials should identify the legal basis for withholding records and release nonexempt material wherever possible.

The family should not have to learn about a major decision concerning their child's death through social media. And the public should not have to rely on brief official statements to understand why a fatal use of force was deemed justified.

The question is particularly significant in Mississippi, where historical examples of racial violence were compounded by the failure of authorities to protect victims and hold perpetrators accountable.

The appropriate response is not to presume that every present-day official is acting in bad faith. It is to demand safeguards that make accountability less dependent on personal discretion, institutional loyalty or public pressure.

What citizens can do: A concrete plan for accountability

Anger is understandable. But if Kohen's death is to lead to meaningful change, public concern must become sustained, organized action.

The following steps offer a practical starting point for Mississippi residents and supporters around the country.

1. Demand the release of the evidence

Contact the Mississippi Attorney General's Office and the City of Senatobia. Ask for a detailed explanation of the decision not to prosecute and the release of all records that can lawfully be made public.

Request:

• Body-camera and dash-camera footage from involved officers.

• Relevant Walmart surveillance recordings.

• Incident reports, dispatch records and a timeline of the encounter.

• A description of the forensic evidence and witness statements considered.

• Clarification of whether Kohen's mother and other eyewitnesses were interviewed.

• An explanation of the factual and legal basis for finding the use of force justified.

Ask officials to preserve all relevant recordings and documents. If records are withheld, request a written explanation identifying the legal basis.

Start with the Mississippi Attorney General's Office and the City of Senatobia.

2. Organize a public-records campaign

Mississippi residents, journalists and advocacy organizations can pursue accessible government records through the state's public-records process.

Requests should be specific and focused. Ask for relevant use-of-force policies, investigative records, training materials, dispatch logs and communications, subject to applicable legal restrictions.

If a request is denied, seek the reason in writing and consider consulting a Mississippi public-records attorney or civil-liberties organization.

Citizens outside Mississippi can help by supporting journalists, sharing verified records and helping fund lawful efforts to obtain public information.

The goal is to establish a reliable public record, not to circulate rumors about what unreleased footage might show.

3. Ask federal authorities to examine possible civil-rights violations

The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division investigates certain allegations involving law enforcement and federal civil-rights violations.

Concerned citizens can submit information through the Civil Rights Division's complaint portal.

A useful complaint should identify specific conduct, dates, witnesses, records and any evidence suggesting a violation of federal law. If there is evidence of a broader pattern, document individual incidents accurately and explain the connections that warrant further examination.

A complaint does not guarantee an investigation or prosecution. Federal authorities must determine whether the evidence and applicable law justify further action.

Still, federal review is an important avenue to consider when citizens believe state or local processes have failed to address credible civil-rights concerns.

4. Demand independent investigations and stronger police oversight

Contact state legislators and ask them to support reforms that reduce conflicts of interest and improve transparency in fatal police shootings.

Proposals could include independent investigations, mandatory documentation of witness interviews, public summaries of investigative findings, regular audits of departments with documented misconduct, and clear policies on shooting at moving vehicles.

Citizens should also ask how departments handle substantiated racist conduct by officers and supervisors. Policies mean little without consistent enforcement and public reporting.

Organize community meetings, submit testimony, ask for legislative hearings and track whether elected officials take action.

5. Examine the justice system beyond one police department

If the concern is systemic racism, the inquiry cannot end with one shooting or one police chief.

Citizens should seek reliable data on racial disparities in arrests, charging decisions, bail, sentencing, police stops and the handling of complaints against law enforcement.

They can ask state agencies and lawmakers to publish data in formats that permit meaningful comparisons and independent analysis.

Where specific judicial misconduct is suspected, complaints can be submitted to Mississippi's Commission on Judicial Performance. The commission is not an appeals court; legal challenges to rulings must follow the appropriate court procedures.

It is important to distinguish a documented disparity from proof that a particular individual acted with discriminatory intent. Both systemic patterns and individual misconduct deserve scrutiny, but they require different evidence and remedies.

6. Use economic and civic pressure strategically

Peaceful demonstrations, public meetings, vigils, petitions and coordinated letter-writing campaigns can keep Kohen's case in the public eye.

Community organizations, clergy, civil-rights advocates and professional associations can call for transparency and independent oversight. Consumers can make their own purchasing decisions and explain their reasons. Businesses and institutions can be asked to support specific reforms.

Any boycott should have a clear target, stated demands and measurable objectives. Harassment, threats, doxxing and attacks on people's families are unacceptable and undermine a credible campaign.

The purpose is to maintain pressure for answers and reform, not to punish people without evidence.

7. Keep the case in the news

Share reputable reporting. Follow developments from the family's attorneys and local investigative journalists. Encourage news organizations to pursue unanswered questions and explain the outcome of any records requests.

Write to editors. Ask elected officials for written responses. Track whether the city releases evidence, whether independent reviews occur and whether policies change.

Support civil-rights organizations and investigative journalism financially if possible. Volunteer, help distribute verified information or organize local discussions about police accountability.

Most of all, keep the family's demand for answers at the center of the campaign.

SEND A message to Mississippi officials

Subject: Demand Transparency and Accountability in the Death of Kohen Wiley

To Attorney General Lynn Fitch, the Senatobia City Council and the appropriate state officials:

I am writing to demand transparency and accountability in the fatal police shooting of one-year-old Kohen Kartier Wiley.

Your office has announced that criminal charges will not be filed and that the use of force was justified. Yet serious questions remain about the evidence supporting that decision, the handling of witness interviews and the absence of publicly available body-camera footage.

Mississippi's documented history of racial discrimination, racial violence and unequal justice makes it especially important that this investigation withstand independent scrutiny.

I urge you to:

1. Release all footage and investigative records that can lawfully be made public.

2. Explain what evidence was reviewed and how the decision not to prosecute was reached.

3. Clarify whether Kohen's mother and other eyewitnesses were interviewed.

4. Preserve all evidence and records relevant to the shooting.

5. Support independent oversight and meaningful review of police conduct.

A child's death demands more than a brief statement. The public needs evidence, a clear explanation and confidence that the investigation was thorough and impartial.

Please provide a written response explaining what steps will be taken to address these concerns.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

Mississippi's past must not dictate its future

Kohen Wiley cannot be brought back. His family must live with a loss that no investigation, lawsuit or policy reform can undo.

But the public can insist that his death not be followed by silence and unanswered questions.

Mississippi's history shows what can happen when racial prejudice becomes embedded in laws, institutions and the administration of justice. It also shows that ordinary people, working together, can challenge those systems. Black Mississippians who fought for civil rights did not wait for powerful institutions to grant them permission to demand equality. They organized, documented abuses, brought legal challenges, mobilized voters and drew national attention to injustice.

That history offers a lesson for today: change requires more than outrage. It requires persistence, evidence, organization and public accountability.

Kohen's case must be judged on the facts of the shooting. But those responsible for investigating it must also recognize the public's legitimate interest in an impartial and transparent process.

Release the evidence. Explain the decision. Investigate credible civil-rights concerns. Reform systems that fail to protect the public equally.

A child's life should never become another unanswered question in a state's long history of racial injustice.

Kohen's family deserves answers. Mississippi's residents deserve a justice system worthy of their trust. And citizens have every right to insist that public officials prove, through their actions, that equal justice is more than a promise.

Family Files Wrongful Death Suit on Behalf of Former Fremont Police Captain Fred Bobbitt

By Sandra Varner (BlackPressUSA)

The family of the late Fremont Police Captain Fred “Freddie” Bobbitt filed a wrongful death lawsuit in the Alameda County Superior Court against the City of Fremont on Monday. At a press conference, Bobbitt’s survivors announced they were seeking unspecified economic and noneconomic damages.

According to Bay City News, city officials expressed their ‘deepest sympathy” for the family “during this difficult time” but are not commenting further because of the lawsuit.

Ray Bobbitt, Fred Bobbitt’s brother, said the underlying purpose of the lawsuit was to address underlying corruption and retaliation by the City of Fremont for the sake of themselves but also for other families who have faced similar circumstances.

Bobbitt was 54 years old when he passed away unexpectedly on Feb. 21, 2022. Beloved by many, he was honored by the Fremont Police Department, elected officials, and the community during a 2,000-person memorial service, followed by a 4-mile-long law enforcement funeral procession.

The complaint alleges that the retaliation Bobbitt endured, which began with the actions of former Fremont City Manager Mark Danaj and former Fremont Police Chief Kim Petersen, and which current City officials continued after the departures of Petersen and Danaj, including, among others, current Fremont Mayor Lily Mei, was responsible for Bobbitt’s death.

The retaliation began after an incident in 2019 when Captain Bobbitt corrected Danaj on his mischaracterization of the Fremont Police Department and the police union. In September of 2020, Danaj and other city officials attempted to push Bobbitt to resign from the Police Department by offering him his full pension, plus a cash payout.

After Bobbitt refused to resign, Danaj and other city officials had Bobbitt removed as commander of patrol, reassigned to an undefined administrative position, and had him placed on a Performance Improvement Plan, although Bobbitt had never been the subject of any type of complaint or disciplinary action during his over 30 years of service.

Bobbitt filed a grievance against the City of Fremont and, in an arbitration ruling issued in December 2021, it was found that there was clear and convincing evidence that city officials engaged in retaliation against Bobbitt.

The arbitrator ruled that Bobbitt was to be made whole by being immediately reinstated as the commander of patrol, rescinding the Performance Improvement Plan, acknowledging that the Performance Improvement Plan was premised upon unfounded allegations, and expunging all adverse comments in Bobbitt’s personnel file.

Despite the arbitrator’s ruling, Bobbitt was never made whole.

Additionally, following the arbitration ruling, Bobbitt requested mediation with the city regarding his retaliation complaint, which the city denied.

The complaint alleges that current city officials’ disregard of the arbitrator’s ruling, the ongoing retaliation, the city’s refusal to mediate Bobbitt’s retaliation complaint, and the betrayal by individuals who Bobbitt trusted and supported, as well as the institution he valued, caused serious and severe emotional distress that was a substantial factor in causing Bobbitt’s death.

A statement from Bobbitt’s family says: “Captain Fred ‘Freddie’ Bobbitt was a man of high integrity. He said he was willing to sacrifice retaliation for doing the right thing, including confronting government corruption at its highest levels. Captain Bobbitt believed that high-ranking public officials should be held to a higher standard due to the public trust of their positions. We will continue his fight by pushing for accountability in hopes that no other committed first responder suffers in the manner Fred did. We are also planning to testify before government bodies on the need to fight government corruption in … municipalities while highlighting the impact it has on honest employees and how it affects the community’s trust.”

Bay City News contributed to this report.

The post Family Files Wrongful Death Suit on Behalf of Former Fremont Police Captain Fred Bobbitt first appeared on Post News Group. This article originally appeared in Post News Group.

Study Shows Police Killings in U.S. Have Been Widely Undercounted

NNPA NEWSWIRE — After the May 25, 2020 killing of George Floyd by former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, there were protests in the streets around the U.S. The moment brought forward even more analysis over police violence. Over the last five years several high-profile killings of African Americans in the U.S. have been caught on camera and forced legislatures to re-evaluate policing policies.

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Contributor

Police killings in the United States have been massively undercounted according to a study by the University of Washington. The study was published on September 27 in the Lancet, peer-reviewed medical journal.

Researchers compared data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) federal database alongside data from three groups tracking deaths in police custody and news reports. The study demonstrated the disproportionate impact of police killings on Black people in America.

Last summer, after the May 25, 2020 killing of George Floyd by former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, there were protests in the streets around the U.S. The moment brought forward even more analysis over police violence. Over the last five years several high-profile killings of African Americans in the U.S. have been caught on camera and forced legislatures to re-evaluate policing policies.

The study in part read that, “across all races and states in the USA, we estimate 30,800 deaths from police violence between 1980 and 2018; this represents 17,100 more deaths than reported by the NVSS. Over this time period, the age-standardized mortality rate due to police violence was highest in non-Hispanic Black people, followed by Hispanic people of any race. This variation is further affected by the decedent’s sex and shows large discrepancies between states.”

Talks around details on language in the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in Congress ended in late September after a dispute between Republican Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) over what Scott defined as “defunding police.”

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) told NNPA on September 30 that he has not given up on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and is looking for a way to revive the conversation and move the legislation forward.

“I am not giving up and I’ve gone over it with my staff and asked: What are our options?” Sen. Booker told NNPA.

The study was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist and the host of the podcast BURKEFILE. She is a political analyst who appears regularly on #RolandMartinUnfiltered. She may be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

Details of Lynching Death of Ronald Greene in 2019 By Louisiana Police, Just Came to Light in 2021

Ronald Greene was a motorist who was being chased by the nortoriously corrupt and violent Louisiana Police when he tried to escape. He eventually pulled over and was tased multiple times, profanities shouted at him, dragged out of the vehicle, kicked, handcuffed and dragged, face down across the pavement, to his death.  

During this lynching, he tried to apeal to the humanity of the officers who included Master Trooper Kory York, by stating that he was sorry, and that he was their brother. That appeal fell on deaf ears.

After his death, the family was told that Greene died in a car accident fleeing from police. That was a blatant lie. The car was inspected and did not show signs of it being in a crash; no blood inside the car, no airbags deployed or major vehicle body damage.

Louisiana police and the District Attorney refused to release bodycam footage of the incident and simply swept yet another murder under the rug.  Officers involved in the lynching were caught on tape joking about how they have assaulted and "beat the shit out of" other black civillians.

So how did this come to light?  February, 2021, the Associated Press reported on the story, and through sheer determination, forced the videotapes of the incident to be released to them, late May, 2021, through the Freedom of Information Act.  They footage was so disturbing that they only released a few minutes of the 45 minutes (or so) that they received.

From the Associated Press, via the Advocate:  York, who turned his own body camera off on his way to the scene, is seen on other body-cam footage yanking Greene's shackles and repeatedly using profanity toward Greene before he died in custody.

"You're gonna lay on your f---ing belly like I told you!" the trooper says at one point, according to the police records.

York was suspended without pay for 50 hours following an internal investigation that also led to the termination of another trooper, Chris Hollingsworth, who died in a single-car crash after learning he had been fired over his role in the incident. The AP last year published a 27-second audio clip from Hollingsworth's body camera in which he can be heard telling a colleague, "I beat the ever-living f--- out of" Greene before he "all of a sudden he just went limp."

The family of Greene are demanding charges be brought against the officers involved and the department who covered it up.

Startling Deathbed Confession: Police Had a Hand in the Assination of Malcolm X

The Assassination of Malcolm X: Ex-Undercover Officer Admits Role in FBI & Police Conspiracy (Democracy Now!)

According to Democracy Now!: The FBI and New York Police Department are facing renewed calls to open their records into the assassination of Malcolm X, after the release of a deathbed confession of a former undercover NYPD officer who admitted to being part of a conspiracy targeting Malcolm. 

In the confession, Raymond Wood, who died last year, admitted he entrapped two members of Malcolm’s security team in another crime — a plot to blow up the Statue of Liberty — just days before the assassination. This left the Black civil rights leader vulnerable at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem, where he was fatally shot on February 21, 1965. 

Raymond Wood’s cousin Reggie Wood, who released the confession last week at a press conference, tells Democracy Now! his cousin’s involvement in the plot haunted him for much of his life. “Ray was told by his handlers not to repeat anything that he had seen or heard, or he would join Malcolm,” says Reggie Wood. 

“He trusted me enough to reveal this information and asked me not to say anything until he passed away, but at the same time not to allow him to take it to his grave.”

George Floyd Justice in Policing Act:

According to Black Press USA:  The U.S. House of Representatives are moving forward with the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2021.

The bold, comprehensive approach to hold police accountable, change law enforcement culture, empower communities, and build trust between law enforcement and our communities, seeks to address systemic racism and bias to help save lives.

During the last Congress, the George Floyd Justice In Policing Act was passed by a bipartisan vote of 236 to 181.

Every House Democrat and three Republicans voted in support of the bill, Representatives Fred Upton (R-MI), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), and Will Hurd (R-TX).

Under the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, for the first time ever, federal law would:

• ban chokeholds

• end racial and religious profiling

• eliminate qualified immunity for law enforcement

• establish a national standard for the operation of police departments

• mandate data collection on police encounters

• reprogram existing funds to invest in transformative community-based policing programs and

• streamline federal law to prosecute excessive force and establish independent prosecutors for police investigations

Louisiana Trooper Kory York Finally Suspended For The In-custody Brutalization and Murder of Motorist Ronald Greene

According to Black Press USA: Two years ago, Louisiana State Police Master Trooper Kory York shackled and dragged a handcuffed Ronald Greene, a Black man, on his stomach and violently arrested him following a chase in the city of Monroe.

Greene later died while in custody.

This week, authorities announced they had suspended York and acknowledged that Greene “was mistreated.”

The admission came after Greene’s family viewed graphic body camera footage of the arrest that included York using a barrage of expletives as he detained the Black motorist.

York and other troopers were seen on the video choking and beating Greene.

They repeatedly used stun guns on Greene and dragged him face-down across the concrete pavement, Greene’s family attorney told the Associated Press.

The news service reported that State Police have repeatedly refused to release the body camera footage publicly.

“The agency has been tight-lipped about Greene’s death and initially blamed the man’s fatal injuries on a car crash outside Monroe,” the report noted.

York shut off his body camera, but other cameras captured him pulling at Greene’s shackles and repeatedly directing profanity towards him.

“You’re gonna lay on your [expletive, expletive, expletive, expletive, expletive, expletive] belly like I told you!” York yelled at one point, according to the police records.

COMMENTARY: America’s Policing and Political Practices Inextricably Linked to KKK and White Supremacy

From NNPA Newswire/Black Press USA: Several scholars told the Black Press that the United States, its police forces, and politicians now face a solemn question, “from the Klan to White supremacy, where does America go from here?”

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent / @StacyBrownMedia

Dr. Richard M. Cooper, the co-coordinator of African American Studies and faculty in the Social Work department at Widener University, said there is a hidden assumption in the statement, ‘comprehensive thoughts on the most recent rise of White supremacy.”

The statement assumes a “rise” as an undefined indicator or measure of an increase in White supremacy over an unnoted period, Dr. Cooper submitted.

“For me, White supremacy is expressed in part, as overt White racism as a constant. It is omnipresent,” he continued.

“White supremacy exists in the institutional structures and the social systems of the United States. It has since and even before the birth of the United States.”

With the recent guilty verdicts in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis Police Officer convicted of killing George Floyd; many opine that America is finally facing its day of racial reckoning.

Some say the murders of African American men and women and other individuals of color are reminders of how White America and its police force have routinely either prevented or undermined the quest for freedom, justice, and equality.

Several scholars told the Black Press that the United States, its police forces, and politicians now face a solemn question, “from the Klan to White supremacy, where does America go from here?”

“The original Klan and dozens of similar organizations rose after the end of slavery in direct response to the expanded rights of Black Americans,” offered Dr. William Horne, a postdoctoral fellow at Villanova University studying White supremacy in the education system and White backlash movements.

“These racist paramilitary organizations worked to roll back their Black neighbors’ newly won rights to bodily security, education, and voting, boasting membership of their communities’ police, firemen, veterans, and wealthy White elites,” remarked Dr. Horne, who co-founded and edits The Activist History Review.

Today’s White supremacist radicals in the Republican Party parrot the rhetoric of “White genocide” used by the early Klan and affiliates while promoting the tactics of voter suppression, intimidation, paramilitary displays, and insurrectionary violence pioneered by the same racist reactionaries, Dr. Horne concluded.

“White power, White control, and White terrorism do not vary by political party and do not vary by White people’s voting patterns. Emphasizing Ku Klux Klan, White conservatives, and White Republicans allows White liberals and White Democrats to pretend to not be daily contributors to and benefactors of centuries of White abuse that encompasses all ethnicities, cultures, religions, and nations of origin that intentionally assimilated into racial Whiteness by controlling and abusing Indigenous, African-Black people, Asians, non-White Hispanics, and non-White Latinx,” said Dr. Kimya Nuru Dennis, an activist, sociologist and criminologist.

Dr. Dennis is also an educator and researcher, and founder of 365 Diversity.

“The Klan represented a large percentage of White people generations ago – masked and unmasked. With the decline in Klan membership, and the recent increase in versions of White supremacist organization memberships, this highlights how White terrorism is the core of the stolen and enslaved Western Hemisphere and parts of the world,” Dr. Dennis determined.

“This is the foundation of local and national governments, police and law enforcement agencies, medical and health systems, K-12 schools and colleges-universities, workforce development and employment, and family services.

Dr. Dennis continued:  “Therefore, the question of where we go from here requires no longer pretending the main problem is formal organizations like KKK and no longer allowing outspoken-when-convenient-White-liberals to be declared ‘White ally.’”

“When White people are allowed to smile and be comfortable in racial justice training, courses, protests, and discussions, that means the focus is 100 percent on keeping White people in power and not advancing African-Black people, Indigenous people, Asian diaspora people, non-White Hispanic people, and non-White Latinx/a/o people.”

The idea of Euro-American White superiority traces back to the “age of enlightenment” that posited that the rational scientific progress made by the European powers gave them the position of superiority and empowered them to rule over the world, added Dr. Vishakha N. Desai, senior advisor for global affairs to the President of Columbia University.

“Thus, the idea of White supremacy and privilege connects colonialist practices abroad and racism at home,” stated Dr. Desai, who also chairs the university’s Committee on Global Thought and is the author of the forthcoming book “World as Family: A Journey of Multi-Rooted Belongings.”

“This is a broad generalization, and it must be stated that there have always been alternative points of view and actions. But the ideas of White superiority and the ‘scientific progress’ have been intertwined for three centuries, if not more.

“If we are to create a more inclusive society, we have to first create an idea of mutual respect and humility.”