Azadi Charles Sampson, Fenway High, Boston, 2018
My Uncle Mike began inviting me and my cousins to a group called Breakfast IV Brothers. He told me that every second Saturday of the month they meet. It was a group of Black men and boys who met for free breakfast and conversation. They were from all walks of life and specifically addressed problems that affected Black people such as poverty, health, crime, and education. He thought that we could really learn a lot from talking to a range of Black men. I was not excited about waking up early on a Saturday, but I enjoyed the time with my uncle and my cousins.
Saturday morning came, and my cousin Carlton picked me up. We followed my uncle’s car to the community center. I was a little nervous because I did not know what to expect. The first thing I noticed when we walked in was that there was a lot of Black men. There were also a few familiar faces of kids I knew from throughout Boston. They joined hands and a young Black man in a sweatsuit blessed the food. This made me feel comfortable. We all fixed plates and were instructed to sit with strangers. Then we were asked to talk about what jobs and talents we held. We were asked how we could help build a stronger community.
I noticed that one of the men sitting at the table had a criminal record while another was a police officer. They seemed to be focused on me and not one another. The conversation was all about helping me as an individual grow and network within my community. Both encouraged me to seek opportunities that other youth of color might not be exposed to.
As time went on, I continued to go to the breakfasts with my uncle and my cousins. I didn’t mind waking up, I even began to get excited for those Saturday mornings. The conversations helped me to work out my feelings and fears about going into law enforcement. The group gave me a safe space to talk about what's going on in my community and others like mine all around the country. More importantly, the group showed me that there were police officers who could sit at the table with us and hear our concerns as equal citizens. I spoke with many police officers, and they were honest about the injustice occurring in my society. They understood how real the problem of police brutality was. One man explained to me that they had to go into law enforcement because, “If you are not sitting at the table, then you are on the menu.” He said he had to keep Black people off the menu, even if they hated him for it. I admired that, and after that particular conversation I was sold on becoming a police officer.
After receiving a criminal justice degree, I will enter the criminal justice system and become an officer of the law. I will use all of my experiences as a Black man as motivation to protect the weak and to distribute equal justice under the law. I will be honest about the police brutality happening in the communities that I serve. I think that becoming a part of the system will allow me to make changes from within it.
Equal justice under the law is something that all people are entitled to. This is something that ought to be happening but it’s not. Due to the way our society is structured, if you have no money, power, or political connections, then you are vulnerable. I want to change the world. This means that if I want change, then I must cause the change. In my eyes the best way to do this is to earn the power that enables me to enforce the rules of the justice system fairly. This also means that I have to be willing to be judged by my own people who may have had negative experiences with the police.
