Journal News ID’s suspect in recent burglary as “Blonde, Caucasian”, Fails to ID Sutton Manor Assailants as “Black”

After an assault in Sutton Manor earlier this week, New Rochelle police issued a statement to the press after an assault in Sutton Manor:

At 7:28 PM on Jan. 4, 2010, NRPD received a report via 911 of a robbery on Sutton Manor Rd. Responding police units determined that a 57 year old resident of New Rochelle was accosted and robbed of his briefcase. The description of the suspects is as follows: 2 male blacks, wearing dark clothing; the suspects fled in the direction of the boat house on Sutton Manor Rd. The NRPD general Investigation Unit is conducting a follow up investigation.

The Journal News failed to identify the two suspects as black:

Two suspects wearing dark clothing entered a home and struck someone inside with a metal rod. The suspects then fled in a dark-colored sedan.

Today they reported on a robbery at the Marina Deli just a few blocks away, on Shore Road and failed to report on the race or ethnicity of the robbers (or even what weapon was used).

Two masked gunmen robbed a city convenience store late Thursday night, police said…The men, both wearing ski masks and black jackets, stole $600 in cash and fled in an unknown direction.

Also today, the Journal News reported on a burglary that took place yesterday on Drake Avenue. In this case, however, the race of the burglar was described in the article — she is white:

The burglar was described as Caucasian with blonde hair. She wore black leather gloves and a black The North Face jacket. Confronted by the victim, the suspect fled “escaping in the gray Honda with New Jersey license plates.

I am sure that apologists for the Journal News will leap to claim that pointing this out is “racist” but racism is treating people differently based on their race. It is, in fact, the Journal News, that is engaged in racist behavior if they are going to only provide a description of race when a police suspect is white.

This is not a black/white issue but a law and order issue. It is very useful to the community to report that a burglar is white, blonde, women and that she got into a gray honda with New Jersey license plates. Residents can then report to police if they see someone matching that description.

Likewise, it would be useful for residents to know that the two armed robbers in Sutton Manor are black. It would also be useful to know what weapon was used because if the Sutton Manor robbery and the Marina Deli robbery both involved young, black men brandishing a tire iron or metal pipe residents can report to police if they see a pair of black men walking down the street carrying a tire iron.

The interest of the community are not served by withholding information that might help the community identify police suspects to police including the appearance of the suspect if known including if they appear to be white, black or whatever. The pair that brutally beat a man in the head with a metal pipe showed a depraved indifference to human life. They could just as easily killed them man. Is the Journal News so afraid of reporting that a suspect is black when the police report identifies the suspects as black that they would place political correctness above public safety? The country has already seen how political correctness allows a person with explosives shoved down their pants board an aircraft in attempt to kill 300 people. We do not need that here.

Residents of New Rochelle are white, black and other races and ethnicity. Almost all of them are law abiding citizens who want to be protected from the sort of thugs that appear to be running around on Shore Road/Echo Avenue. I submit that none of them — black, white, or any other race — wants to be beaten senseless with a tire iron and will support police in reporting the suspects if they are seen on the streets. Intentionally withholding this information in cases where the assailants are black is irresponsible and dangerous.