In 2021, I wrote in my book Race for What an example of Step 6 – Being Led by a New Mind:
“I was most moved by Kim Gardner, (The City of) St. Louis’ first African American Circuit Attorney. Gardner is also a registered nurse and former state representative. She stood out for her approach to criminal justice reform. Gardner talked about her community outreach from her office. Gardner requires her prosecutors to determine if a person arrested is a threat to the community, and if not, seek alternatives to incarceration. She aims to rehabilitate offenders and prevent future wrongful acts, rather than focusing solely on punishment. She saw this approach as a better way to improve the quality of life and safety of the community.
After the event I introduced myself to Gardner. I told her about my work which, at the time, included working for a food justice organization. Much to my delight, Gardner also expressed a desire to address issues such as food insecurity, believing that meeting basic needs can prevent minor and desperate crimes. that keep officers and her office busy. This is the type of new mind approach that leads to a more humane world. It broadens the boundaries of what a prosecutor’s office can do to improve the life in the community she serves.”
From the moment I first met her, I was moved by Kim Gardner’s vision of working to help and work with those who are in a more difficult position to help themselves. However, despite her efforts, she has lacked the support of the same white antiracism people who marched against police brutality. This begs the question: why?
I showed up to many events in support of Kim after that initial introduction and even invited white folks from the many antiracism groups I was involved in. I even sent out emails and invites on social media to many more. Of the hundreds to thousands who Marched for BLM after wrongful police deaths, A handful at best showed up to support Kim. I cannot understand why, given that here is a warrior for social justice. She is willing to hold cops accountable from a prosecutor’s office – and the same people who marched against police brutality did not support her.
This is one of many ways of showing love that Race for What stands behind. It made me wonder whether white folks were showing up to these marches for themselves because the optics made them look good because when it came to being involved in the long haul for change, there was next to nothing.
It is much easier to feel like you did something when you show up with a large crowd several times and talk about the problems. I am not dismissing this effort. I marched for change in LA with White People 4 Black Lives (WP4BL) and Black Lives Matter (BLM-LA) many times. Ironically enough, we protested EVERY week outside of the LA County prosecutor’s office because she refused to prosecute one single officer for a death at the hands of a policeman after over 500 people lost their lives on her watch.
In St. Louis the community is fighting to keep Kim in office. When I asked for support, I got different excuses from some of the leaders of these groups, some of which went against their teachings. I heard “we do not support candidates.” Well, what about a candidate that stands for the change that you teach needs to happen? One of the harmful practices of white culture we learn about in antiracism work is seeing the world as “either or.” This means that we do not care to put context in the situation. It is a very all or nothing approach. BLM-LA had the same mantra about not supporting political candidates until they found one campaigning for office that shared the vision of BLM.
The other arguments demonstrate a lack of understanding of cause and effect. I have heard, “She has trouble managing or keeping a staff,” “The police are quitting on her,” or “The murder and crime rate are going up under her purview.” There are others related to these three but let’s look deeper. Her staff is paid a low wage from public funds. Kim and her staff members have had their lives threatened by members and the leader of the police union. She has been under constant scrutiny and has had attempts to distract her brought on by the powers to be in the state legislature.
The police officers quit because she has held them accountable and not prosecuted at the rate that they want to be able to justify their budgets. This budgetary decision making is a real sickness in the design of the approach to policing and with fewer prosecutors and less police, the crime rate remains as high as always but the media can paint the picture how they want and they finally have their scapegoat.
A man who should have been held without bail drove into a young teenage girl who lost her legs because of it, and everyone is blaming Kim and her office for not demanding that he be held without bail. But the truth is her office requested it and it was denied several times. Why is the judge not being held to the highest level of responsibility here? The answer is because Kim has been fighting the system and lacked the support, she needed to be effective from the beginning. That, my fellow white folks, falls on us too.
Another reason may be that people are resistant to change. Kim Gardner’s approach to criminal justice reform challenged the status quo and traditional methods of prosecuting criminals. This may have made some people uncomfortable and resistant to her ideas.
It is also important to consider the role of systemic racism in this situation. As the first African American Circuit Attorney of St. Louis, Kim Gardner faced additional scrutiny and criticism that her white counterparts may not have faced. This bias may have influenced the lack of support she received from those who marched against police brutality.
It is dangerous to stand for justice in a system built on violence and corruption. It is dangerous to put your life on the line for those who lack economic and political power against a violent system with violent leaders in a position to cause harm. I get it if you do not want to put your life at risk to make the change. But please admit that and maybe someday someone will hear you speak the truth about yourself and be inspired to do more. In conclusion, Kim Gardner’s approach to criminal justice reform transformed the focus of the prosecutor’s role to rehabilitation and preventing crime and the repetition of wrongful acts. She is broadening the boundaries of what a prosecutor’s office can do to improve the life in the community she serves. However, despite her efforts, she needs more support from the white community. The same people who marched against police brutality. It is important to recognize the preconceived notions of what a prosecutor’s role should be, how we are resistant to change, and the built systemic racism as contributing factors to this lack of support. We must continue to challenge these biases and support leaders like Kim Gardner who are working towards a better, more just criminal justice system.
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