What the hell happened to Sandra Bland?
Last Saturday, mourners gathered to lay Sandra Bland to rest, as questions about the circumstances of her death continued to rise.
On July 10, the life of an innocent civilian would change forever as the excessive and outrageous behavior of a sworn officer crossed the boundary of what is right, exacerbating a situation which left the officer deep in the wrong. Three days after her arrest, Bland was found hanging from a noose made from a plastic bag in her Texas jail cell. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
Below is the video of Bland’s encounter with law enforcement. Watch the true face of police brutality manifest itself.
Bland was arrested after failing to use a turn signal. During the traffic stop, the 28-year-old woman is clearly annoyed by a state trooper in Waller County, Texas, who required her to halt the home commute. The officer perceives her attitude as a slight to his authority. He presses and pokes until his actions physically cross the threshold of legality. Sandra is then pulled from her car and delivered to the police station, after which point no footage has been released to the public. She cooperates with officers as they become combative. It’s funny that the officer who repeatedly instigated further conflict with Bland asks her to put out her cigarette. This just must be good old-fashioned Texan chivalry as the officer can later be heard threatening to “light you up” with a taser pointed at Bland.
What happened after the arrest is nothing more than speculation at this time. The only witness to her plight who is not a biased member of the law enforcement and who might provide context for an innocent person's death is fellow inmate Alexandria Pyle. Pyle told CNN that Bland had grown despondent inside her cell after failing to make contact with her family. "She wasn't eating, and when I did talk to her, she was just crying and crying, and all I could say was they could not hold you forever," said Pyle.
What could have led this independent young woman to become so despondent and devoid of hope that she would choose to end her own life? "This is someone who had two job offers. Someone who just talked to her family and knew that help and rescue was on the way,” said Rev. Theresa Dear, according to the "Times," who is an associate minister at DuPage and had known Bland since she started attending the church as a young girl. “This is someone who knew the Lord, and was extremely close with her church family and her sisters, her biological family. None of that adds up to taking one's life or suicide." And she’s right. Some abuse must have taken place in order to keep Bland silent. Once the abuse started, there was only one way out of the clutch of law enforcement. Sadly for Bland, her exit came with a body bag.
Bland is remembered by her peers as a smart, outspoken woman who served on church committee. Her family has reiterated their adamant belief their daughter did not commit suicide.
Above, LaVaughn Mosley, an old friend of Sandra's, told reporters he hadn't noticed the message and two missed calls Bland had placed from jail. He now describes her voicemail as "haunting and chilling."
In a world where we’re told that violent crime is at an all-time low, it can become quite disheartening when every day the public is shown countless stories of avoidable tragedy through mass media outlets. While July has already seen three mass shootings, the mystery of Sandra Bland leaves a sour taste in my mouth as I try to hold my belief that everything is as it should be. How many more innocent lives will be taken by those who we believe are there to protect us before the we the people rise and take back what is ours from the those who wish to control us? We can be the generation that fulfills the dreams of peace and love which blossomed throughout the 60s and beyond. The counterculture is more alive today than ever before. The Powers that Be can no longer hold us back from the truth. If Sandra Bland was fated to become a martyr in this revolution for true freedom, we must refuse that her death be forgotten in vain.
