Tyreek Hill, Florida’s Police Record, and the NFL
Originally posted at Writings by Abraham Marquez and Republished with permission by Abraham Marquez.
The National Football League (NFL) is the only sport that “owns” a day of the week. It is the dominant force in U.S. television sports. It draws millions of views every Sunday, regardless of economic background, culture, or ethnicity. The 2023 season grew its viewership from the 2022 season. The league’s key Week 1 games have maintained a “must-see” enthusiasm after a record-breaking match between the 49ers and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. The game drew an audience of 123.4 million eyeballs glued to the screen.
In Week 1, when Miami Dolphins Wide Receiver Tyreek Hill was going to the stadium to check in for work. After all, football players are unionized workers who have a boss. There are 2,423 active and associate members of the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and 8,751 former player members. The NFLPA is the union representing the National Football League players.
The union is designed to improve the working conditions of NFL players, both on and off the field. Whether the union successfully meets the workers’ needs is another topic for another discussion.
The union has not released a statement about Tyreek Hill’s brutal arrest.
On August 26th, 2016, Colin Kaepernick, then San Francisco 49ers quarterback, was noticed for his peaceful protest of kneeling during the national anthem. His explanation of his protest was easy to understand: the oppression of Black people in the U.S. and racial inequality. His movement also occurred during a presidential campaign in which Hillary Clinton was against Donald Trump. Eight years apart, all presidential candidates have not addressed or proposed a policy to curb police brutality.
On Sunday, the Miami Police Department showed the world what a New York University (NYU) study taught us, and that is that Black people are routinely pulled over by police more than any other race.
Tyreek Hill is another example of the issue Colin Kaepernick highlighted nearly eight years ago.
What If It Was Not Tyreek Hill
In an interview, Tyreek Hill responded to a reporter about Sunday’s encounter with the police by saying, “What if I was not Tyreek Hill.” Unfortunately, for Black people, Tyreek’s experience is nothing new. It is what they have endured for centuries living in the United States. In 2020, new research conducted by NYU assistant professor Ravi Shroff and his associates at Stanford Open Policing Project found evidence that Black people are stopped by the police more than any other race. The report showed that Black drivers were pulled over 20 percent more than white drivers, compared to their share of the residential population. They examined a database of almost 100 million traffic stops across the country.
In addition, their analysis showed that once they were stopped, “Black drivers were searched about 1.5 to 2 times as often as white drivers, while they were less likely to be carrying drugs, guns, or other illegal contraband compared to their white peers,” the report stated. Shroff also examined the discrepancy in when Black drivers were stopped after or before sunset. The report said, “Black drivers made up a smaller share of those stopped at night when it’s more difficult to discern the race of a driver, which suggests that racial bias may influence stop decisions.” Across the country, the report shows a five to ten percent decrease in Black drivers being stopped by the police at night.
From 2017 to 2022, Florida’s police department ranked third in the nation in use of force reports, with 107,222. California was first with 186,869, and Texas was second with 134,521. Florida also ranks second with police shootings with 970, landing in second again to California with 1,685. The Sunshine State is in first place with the use of a taser by the police 19,108 times and second with the use of baton/impact weapons behind California again with 11,816. These numbers are from 2017-2022.
This year, the police have killed 936 people across the country. That is 46 more people compared to the first nine months of 2023. Of the 936 people killed, 226 were Black people, and 158 were Latino/a people. In addition, Black people are 2.9 times more likely to be killed by the police than white people.
Driving While Black
In an interview, Tyreek discussed a tradition passed down in Black and brown families about “the talk.” The advice given to young people by their elders tells them that when the police pull them over, keep their hands in sight, avoid any quick or sudden movements, turn their cars off, and place the keys on the dashboard to signal the officer that they will not drive off. Sadly, this “talk” is common in the Black and brown community.
Tyreek’s reaction to how the police treated him when he was pulled over is understandable, considering the facts laid out. People were quick to say that Tyreek did not deserve compassion because of his hideous past of child and spousal abuse. Yes, that conduct is unacceptable; people can work on those issues and improve. People can change. But Tyreek Hill cannot change the fact he is a Black man in the United States.
