On July 6th 2016, Philando Castile, the black cafeteria worker, was shot and killed by police in Minnesota after telling the officer that he had a legal firearm. The story gained national attention because Castile's girlfriend, Diamond Reynolds, livestreamed the immediate aftermath of the tragedy on Facebook. According to Fox News, Jeronimo Yanez, pulled Castile over because he thought Castile "Looked like one of two men who had robbed a nearby convenience store a few days earlier." So Yanez approached Castile expecting to see a criminal, a belief that certainly affected his later actions.
According the same Fox News article, When Yanez approached Castile's vehicle, Castile peacefully handed Yanez his driver's license, then stated "Sir, I have to tell you, I do have a firearm on me." Castile had a license for the firearm and was reaching for it when Yanez yelled, "don't pull it out," and immediately fired seven shots into the car, killing Castile in front of his grilfriend and four-year-old daughter. Castile's last words were, "I wasn't reaching for it."
Yanez was later charged with second-degree manslaughter, and the lesser charge of endangering Castile's daughter and girlfriend. Last Friday, Officer Yanez was acquitted on all charges. Despite the fact that Castile was a law-abiding citizen, who was simply being honest with the police officer, it would appear that our justice system believes Yanez did nothing wrong. So if Yanez is not culpable for Castile's death, who is? Did Castile deserve to die for exercising his Second Amendment rights?
The truth of the matter is that the Shooting of Philando Castile is either about race, or it is about gun rights. If the story were about gun rights, the one group we would expect to be the most vociferous supporters of Castile and his family is the National Rifle Association. After all, Castile lost his life because he was legally carrying a firearm in a state in whiich according to Quartz Media, almost half of its households own firearms. Yet the NRA, an organization that consistently releases statements condemning "radical Islam" or "Mental health issues" and touting the importance of the Second Amendment after every mass shooting, has been ominously silent about Castile's death and the resulting verdict.
The NRA, which according to its website is "America's foremost defender of Second Amendment rights," has said nothing to defend Castile's Second Amendment rights, a fact that brings us to option number two: the Shooting of Philando Castile was about race. Castile was not for killed carrying a firearm. He was killed for being black while carrying the firearm. According to Fox News, during his interaction with Castile, Yanez was terrified "and thinking of his wife and baby daughter in the split-second before he fired." Castille was simply an American citizen who was cooperating with the police officer. What was there to be afraid of? In addition, Yanez and Fox News were showed such concern for Yanez's wife and daughter, but said nothing about Castile's girlfriend and baby daughter, who were in the car when Castile died. Did they not deserve to go home with the person they loved? Did they deserve to watch him die because he followed the law?
Castile's shooting brings to the forefront the pattern in America's justice system that suggests that the lives of black Americans do not matter as much as those of white Americans. If Castile had been white, the NRA would have rallied around him, raising funds for his family and lobbying for legislation that would prevent police officers like Yanez from walking free. But Castile was black, so the NRA did and continues to do nothing. Apparently, the Second Amendment right only applies to white Americans.
It would appear that we live in a country in which if you are black and you follow the law, you can be shot and killed by police, while the officer gets off scot free, and the organizations that are supposed to defend your rights remain completely silent. Philando Castile deserved justice, and that fact that he received no such thing from our so-called justice system is exactly why we need movements like Black Lives Matter.
