Colorblind Justice

I am a Black woman. I am the sort of Black woman who leans heavily on the sisterhood of other Black women. I believe that knowing Black women is the closest one can get to the Divine. That said, I do not support Jackie Lacey for Los Angeles County District Attorney. I do not come by this decision frivolously without contemplation. I have been a deputy public defender in Los Angeles County for nearly 18 years. Even before I was officially hired with the office, I was on the path to becoming an attorney and, in my mind, single handedly saving my people! Thankfully, I have met so many warriors along the way that I have never felt alone. But I have often been discouraged. The criminal justice system is a rabid beast that feeds on the bodies of BIPOC. It chews up the poor and mentally ill and those with substance use issues.

Jackie Lacey has been the leader of the DA’s office for the last 8 years and she is currently in a heavily contested race against George Gascon to have a third term. I strongly support George Gascon for DA, but this article is not about why he is the better choice. I felt compelled to write this after seeing a post on facebook where a Black woman asked her followers if she was really doing the right thing by voting against a Black woman. She pondered over the internet whether Lacey learned her lesson after Black Lives Matter protestors assembled weekly outside of her office. She had blind faith in the color of Lacey’s skin. Additionally, Ms. Lacey herself consistently begins debates by reminding the public that she is African American and from the Crenshaw District of Los Angeles. It is the subliminal pull on race loyalty. Being Black is family and Jackie Lacey is calling on all of us in Los Angeles to ignore her record. But Zora Neal Hurston told us, “all my skinfolk ain’t kinfolk.”

Jackie Lacey has sent an alarming 23 people to California’s death row. 22 of them were Black or Brown. She has disproportionately sought adult consequences for children as young as 14 years old for Black and Brown youth. On a daily basis Black men and women are escorted through courthouses across the county shackled and handcuffed reminiscent of enslaved people on an auction block. Many of these people have not been convicted of any crime but cannot afford California’s exorbitant bail and face their charges incarcerated. The LA DA’s office always charges the highest possible crime triggering higher bails and severe collateral consequences. Los Angeles County is the largest county in the country. It is the largest contributor to mass incarceration in this country. The jails and prisons are packed with Black souls and Jackie Lacey is leading the charge. To truly love Black people and be part of this antiracism movement, we must elect a candidate who recognizes that victims and defendants are one immersed group who trade titles throughout a lifetime. It is time for true justice and not blind allegiance. Jackie Lacey must go!