Patrick Reed, a public and government affairs manager for the secretary of Washington state, got caught sending a racist meme to a colleague making fun of Black and Mexican people, according to KIRO 7 Seattle. Residents of Sumner, where Reed is a council member, were disturbed by the image.
Reed’s colleague sent him a message a month ago celebrating that he’d been excused from jury duty. In response, Reed attached an image of a shirtless white man with a mullet in front of a red pickup truck (this CAN’T be going anywhere good). The caption of the image read, “If they’re in court, they’re guilty…especially if they’re Black or Mexican.” Residents responded to the picture calling it “unprofessional” and “concerning” and one said he will reconsider voting for him again when he’s up for reelection.
Now, with the exception of one man of color, most of the reactions were from white people. But us? We expected nothing less than a government official being exposed for being racist. However, if one state official holds these beliefs about Black people, imagine how the court officials think when a person of color enters the courtroom.
As one could assume, the state’s prison population is overrepresented by people of color. In 2010, there were 2,000 more Black people in prison than white or Hispanic people, per Prison Policy. The report also found that as white incarceration rates went down Black incarceration rates increased.
When people believe Black or Hispanic people are more prone to being criminals, that’s exactly what leads to them being convicted at a higher rate, given exaggerated sentences, and denied their ability to defend themselves.
Source: KIRO 7
