Larry Wilmore couldn’t quite believe his eyes on Wednesday night, watching the footage of a protester in Baltimore being disappeared by police on live television.
“We’re talking simple optics here,” the host of “The Nightly Show” said.
The specific clip had made the rounds on Twitter earlier that day: A protester identified as 21-year-old Morgan State University student Joseph Kent walked up and down a line of cops from a distance, before an armored van peeled up in front of the camera, obscuring Kent’s arrest.
Within seconds, the car drove away and Kent was nowhere to be seen.
“Guys, do you not remember that Baltimore erupted because of how a young black man was killed in a mysterious police van ride?” Wilmore asked.
“Then, on national television you have mysterious police vehicle show up and disappear another brother,” he added.
“You know, Baltimore, when you’re under attack for violating black peoples’ civil rights its probably best not to vanish them like some Klan rally magician.”
Watch the clip:
That seems to be the take-away for Baltimore and other police departments - we can still violate people’s civil rights, we just need to do a better job of making sure no video exists.
“Joseph Kent walked up and down a line of cops from a distance, before an armored van peeled up in front of the camera, obscuring Kent’s arrest.”
Dear Brendan James,
You don’t do our side any good when you exaggerate the facts. I’m sure you’ve seen the video. The police vehicle can clearly be seen slowly approaching the police line and then the arrest occurs. The event is bad enough and there is no need to misrepresent the facts this way.