FBI director James Comey lives at one of the most elite addresses in Westport — a very white suburb to begin with.
But speaking yesterday at Georgetown University, he addressed race relations in stark terms.
The Washington Post described Comey as a “Teller of Hard Truths,” who called the nation “at a crossroads.” The Post quoted him:
As a society, we can choose to live our everyday lives, raising our families and going to work, hoping someone, somewhere, will do something to ease the tension — to smooth over the conflict. We can turn up the music on the car radio and drive around these problems. Or we can choose to have an open and honest discussion about what our relationship is today — what it should be, what it could be, and what it needs to be — if we took more time to better understand one another.
The Post added, “Comey laid out a number of hard truths on race — a rare move for such a high-profile white law enforcement official, or even a law-enforcement official, period.”
FBI director — and Westport resident — James Comey.
The New York Times said that the “unusually candid” speech was “well received by law enforcement officials.” The Times continued:
Citing the song “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist” from the Broadway show “Avenue Q,” he said police officers of all races viewed black and white men differently. (Comey added) that some officers scrutinize African-Americans more closely using a mental shortcut that “becomes almost irresistible and maybe even rational by some lights” because black men are arrested at much higher rates than white men.
Click here to read Comey’s entire, groundbreaking speech. Or watch it below:
