“I Am a Child!”

By Ameer Hasan Loggins

From the body-cam of a police officer in Rochester, New York, I watched a sickening scene unfold. The officer was in pursuit of someone fleeing on foot through the snow. I could not make out who the person was. All I was able to see was them slowly, running as fast as they could, and getting nowhere. All I could hear was the sound of the police officer’s feet pounding through the snow-covered pavement.

The officer caught their target — a 9-year-old girl.

When I think about 9-year-old children running through the snow, I imagine them with joy. I imagine them dodging snowballs. I see them building snowmen with their friends and family. I think of them bundled up in puffy down coats, gloves, and beanie hats for protection from the winter winds and freezing cold.

I never imagined watching a 9-year-old girl, wearing a basic black zip-up hoodie, thin spandex tights, and running shoes, being chased, captured, and wrestled to the ground by the police. It was 10 degrees outside on January 29, 2021, in Rochester. It was 10 degrees, in the snow, when two adult male police officers’ man-handled this child. She begged, “Can I please get the snow off of me? It’s cold!” Snow covered her entire body and an adult male officer denied her request and sought to further put his unwanted hands on her to wipe off the snow. Snow covered her…