feature: why is it so often called a suicide when a person of color dies in police custody? #sandrabland

On Friday, Sandra Bland from Chicago, Illinois, was arrested during a traffic stop and 3 days later the Prairie View A&M University graduate (who was in Texas to start a new job) was found dead in a Texas jail cell – a case that has many screaming “foul play” and which many believe is another life lost in an epidemic of police brutality against black people in America. The office of Waller County Sheriff Glenn Smith (an officer who was reportedly fired as police chief in Hempstead, Texas, after racism allegations were made against him) stated in a press release that Bland was found “not breathing from what appears to be self-inflicted asphyxiation”; and an autopsy found her cause of death to be suicide by hanging, with the use of a trash bag. However, Bland’s family are refuting this claim of suicide; and like many, believe that Sandra died at the hands of Texas police. This bullshit has to stop! As stated in the title of this post, why is it so often called a suicide when a person of color dies in police custody? CLICK HERE to sign the Change.org petition to help get this young black woman the justice she deserves. RIP #SayHerName

By Alexander Aplerku, AFROPUNK Contributor

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