Perhaps we need to think about the issue of crime with a new perspective.
There is a biblical saying that calls us to seek justice. Not justice for some but justice for all. However, here in Iowa, that’s simply not the case. While some can afford high-end attorneys so many others are forced to use public defenders who are often over worked and underpaid. Where is the justice in that? And, when we add racial profiling and heavy-handed tactics when dealing with everything from a traffic stop to a family disturbance it doesn’t help.
Perhaps what we should be doing is understanding that social service is the work of trained professionals and while we honor the men and women in the police department, they are woefully unable to deal with many desperate individuals. And then, when we look at the number of people of color who are incarcerated vs. the percentage of the population…well, something is clearly out whack. The lack of equal justice is not a reason to come to Iowa but, perhaps, to flee.
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