by Clarence Edwards. “Racial profiling by the police of people of African descent and other minorities is a fact of life in the United States. For politicians, the media and others to continue asserting that these almost daily incidents of questionable and unjustifiable uses of excessive force are simply aberrations and that race plays no role in them is incredulous. Racism has been a systemic feature of this nation’s culture since its inception. Continuing to send white police officers into minority communities with minimalist knowledge about this segment of the nation’s populace and inadequate de-escalation skills is a recipe for disaster.”