The death of Freddie Gray and the protests and riots which followed in Baltimore have once again been presented in terms of a local police department declaring war on African-Americans.

And yet three of the six Baltimore police officers charged in connection with Gray’s death are African-American. 

The death of Freddie Gray isn’t a question of black and white. Rather it is a question of the gray area of power. 

As Abraham Lincoln put it, “If you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” We would be hard pressed to find a class of people who are bestowed with more power than police officers. Most police officers utilize this power responsibly. But when police officers who don’t exercise this power responsibly it can result in the unnecessary loss of life. While Freddie Gray did have a criminal record, the last I checked making eye contact with a police officer isn’t illegal in this country, much less warranted the loss of his life. 

But if the media and left-wing politicians insist on making this a matter of race then we will not get to the heart of the matter. Then again getting to the heart of the matter is the last thing the media and left-wing politicians want. Sadly, they are content to cry for racism in the hope of getting more money for programs that don’t work. Then again the media and left-wing politicians would rather search for easy answers than ask the difficult questions.