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Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates - Ta-Nehisi Coates is a senior editor for The Atlantic, where he writes about culture, politics, and social issues for TheAtlantic.com and the magazine. He is the author of the memoir The Beautiful Struggle. More

Born in 1975, the product of two beautiful parents. Raised in West Baltimore—not quite The Wire, but sometimes ill all the same. Studied at the Mecca for some years in the mid-’90s. Emerged with a purpose, if not a degree. Slowly migrated up the East Coast with a baby and my beloved, until I reached the shores of Harlem. Wrote some stuff along the way.

Don't Know How I Missed This...

By Ta-Nehisi Coates
Dec 22 2009, 9:00 AM ET Comment

But yeah, don't pull out a gun during a snowball fight--even if you're a cop. I should add that it takes a particular arrogance to throw a snowball at a dude with a gat--cop or not. Still, the more I see these cases, the more I become convinced that there's an appallingly low standard for those who are licensed to kill on our behalf. Maybe, given the type of people who want to be cops, this is as good as it gets. I don't know.

The fact that "there are only a handful of bad cops" cuts no ice with me. If only a "handful of McDonald's are spitting in your food" your not going to McDonalds. Likewise, I don't even ask the cops for directions. Better to take my chance with a dude on the street. At least if he decides to shoot me, he stands a chance of being prosecuted.



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