In May of last year, Amy Cooper went viral after a video showed her calling the police on a Black man who was birdwatching. He had asked her to put her dog on a leash as she strolled through Central Park, per park rules. She proceeded to falsely claim to the cops that a Black man was threatening her life. On Tuesday, Feb. 16, the charges against Amy Cooper were dropped after she completed a therapeutic program about racial biases. These types of programs are known as “restorative justice” counseling programs for first-time offenders with low-level charges.
However, there was nothing “low-level” about the charges that Cooper was facing. In October, she was charged with falsely reporting that Christian Cooper tried to assault her. The video clearly shows viewers how she emphasizes Cooper’s race during the call and weaponizes her white privilege. She attempted to exaggerate the situation and threatened Christian for daring to ask her to follow the rules.
Christian Cooper was simply trying to have Amy Cooper put her dog on a leash, as is mandatory in Central Park. A loose dog can easily scare away or harm several birds. Pet dogs in particular have a severe impact on the wildlife population of birds. They can disturb the natural ecosystem by attacking birds or passing on diseases, which can lead specific species of birds to extinction. Studies have shown that dogs have been linked to the extinction of eight different types of birds.
Christian Cooper had a fair justification for asking Amy Cooper to put her dog on a leash. But instead of a calm exchange between two people, he faced a hostile and escalated situation and an angry white woman threatening him with possible police brutality. The situation demonstrates that systematic racism in America is enforced by white power and privilege.
Amy Cooper should be facing severe consequences, and the incident should be used as an example of why systemic racism is oppressive in our society. An individual could face jail time depending on if the incident is charged as a misdemeanor or felony. Amy Cooper should have been given more community service-based consequences. It would even be reasonable to ban her from Central Park to show that egregious actions like hers can have permanent repercussions.
But a theoretical program about racial biases is not enough. It won’t get Amy Cooper to fully understand the implications of her actions. There are very few studies to prove the effectiveness of these programs or whether they tangibly change people’s behaviors. This is why in 2018, the NYPD decided to execute a large study observing officers who have taken such programs. The researchers looked at the officer’s actions before and after taking the training course, as well as the data regarding ethnic disparities between people who were arrested or interacted with officers. The studies concluded no meaningful change.
There is no doubt that the privilege granted by her whiteness was why charges were dismissed. If a Black man had falsely reported a crime, the consequences would have been much greater. Take what happened to ‘Empire’ actor, Jussie Smollett. He falsely reported that he was attacked on the street by Trump supporters. He was taken into custody, and his case ended up with six new charges added to it. His case continued to escalate while in custody. Meanwhile, Cooper was able to have her charges dropped by attending a therapeutic program.
The aggressive behavior against Black people in everyday life is continuous. They are constant victims of the law. This repeated violence indicates much of what is wrong with the U.S. criminal justice system. It is not tailored to help everyone equitably because of the racial inequality prominent in America. The system was built to favor white people. Amy Cooper should not have been able to threaten a Black man without repercussions. She was able to call 911 with the confidence that police would be on her side because of her race.
America has institutional racism embedded within its legal system. The law is not devoted to disrupting this reality. If it was, the consequences for Amy Cooper would have been much larger as a reflection of the greater implications of her actions. She should have been banned from Central Park or been given more community service programs to participate in.
The charges should not have been dropped. There is no way of knowing that the therapeutic program worked and that Cooper understands why her actions are racist. Who is to say she will not do it again? When she uses her privilege as a weapon again, it is not likely that she will be caught or called out. Racist people like her are too common in our society; it is impossible to catch every one of them.
