Just before 9 pm Central time last night in Dallas, Texas, at least two snipers began shooting at police from two "separate elevated positions" during a peaceful protest organized in response to the recent shooting deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana, and Philando Castille in Minnesota, by police. Five law enforcement officers were killed and seven injured. Two civilians were also injured.
Three alleged suspects are in custody, two men and one woman. A fourth suspect, identified as Micah Xavier Johnson, was killed. Police spent hours negotiating with Johnson, and have said that Johnson told hostage negotiators “that he was angry about recent fatal shootings of black men by police elsewhere in the United States and that he wanted to kill white people, especially police officers.” Johnson was killed, according to this ABC news report, by “an explosive strapped to a police robot.”
Dallas Police Chief David Brown stated at a prayer vigil this morning that “through our investigation of some of the suspects, it's revealed to us that this was a well-planned, well-thought out, evil tragedy by these suspects. And we won't rest until we bring everyone involved to justice.”
The protest which was intended to be peaceful, was organized by the Next Generation Action Network. The group issued a statement after the incident, denouncing the shootings. Interestingly, one of the early suspects Thursday night was the younger brother of one of the organizers of the protest. A photo of the man on the street carrying a rifle was tweeted by the Dallas police during the incident.
Apparently, a little known group called the Black Power Political Organization, has claimed credit for the attacks on Facebook, in spite of the fact that the police claim Johnson told negotiators that he was not part of any organization. The group has allegedly also promised more attacks in the coming days in their Facebook post.
Of course, it comes as no surprise that the suggestion of increasing gun control is immediately brought up.
President Obama, speaking from Warsaw, Poland, expressed condolences and stated that the “federal government will provide whatever assistance Dallas may need as it deals with this tremendous tragedy.” Obama added, “we also know when people are armed with powerful weapons, unfortunately, it makes attacks like these more deadly and more tragic. In the days ahead, we will have to consider those realities as well.”
Attorney General Loretta Lynch, in an address to the nation, “stressed the need for action over violence in the United States.” She also stated, “after the events of this week, Americans across our country are feeling a sense of helplessness, of uncertainty and fear. These feelings are understandable, and they are justified, but the answer must not be violence. The answer is never violence.”
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Katie Aguilera, Newsbud-BFP Columnist, is an independent researcher, author, and activist who resides in Bend, Oregon. She studied Outdoor Recreation Leadership and spent many years working in the field of wilderness therapy and as a river guide. She writes at the blog Seeking Redress.