To understand racial discrimination today, we must first examine our country’s past. Looking at our very own constitution, we read that our founding fathers, many of whom were slave owners, made “all men are created equal” as the document’s cornerstone phrase. However, one needs only to take a moment to see how little progress our country has made regarding racism. In the 1970s, many police departments were sued over their hiring and promotional practices, leading to federal consent decrees that led to more Black and Hispanic officers being hired into a number of police departments. The widespread use of those decrees came about a decade after Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and the age of the Civil Rights Act. Many people today feel our federal government has moved at a disappointingly slow pace and has ignored multiple opportunities to transform our country for the better.
In order to better understand the uprising happening across the country, I decided to sit down and speak with Jesse Navarro, a retired Hispanic officer who directly experienced the results of the Federal Consent Decree and became part of the San Diego Police Department (SDPD) in the early 1970s. Navarro had no idea that his dream of becoming a police officer would be a road filled with challenges under the horrible specter of racial discrimination and intimidation at the hands of his superiors in the police academy. “Nationwide, police departments were pressured to hire minorities, so what happened is that some white officers would give purposely brutal training in the hope that we would quit,” Navarro said. “They believed that by making us endure both physical and psychological pressure we would break and drop like flies. They even had a name for us minorities, ‘The Chocolate Squad.’” Listening to Mr. Navarro’s emotional story brought tears to my eyes. His voice was full of emotion and would occasionally break when recalling this difficult time in his life.
Little did he know that this experience would later lead him to become an agent of change among his fellow officers. After graduating from the police academy, the oppressive treatment towards minorities within the force, which also included female officers, was no different. Many of them would be fired for no good reason as police departments across the country were on a crusade to “wash out” their force.
In 1975, after witnessing this, Navarro became the leader of a group of fired policemen, and against all advice, decided to sue the San Diego Police Department. As he was still on the force, he had to move very secretly, and looked for a law firm that would be willing to represent them. Nine out of 10 firms turned him down as no one wanted to fight City Hall. Finally, Napoleon Jones Jr., who would go on to become a U.S. District Court judge, and Roy Cazares, who would go on to become a San Diego County Superior Court judge, agreed to represent them under one condition: Navarro would conduct an undercover investigation to collect police records and detailed testimonies of all the fired officers. Later that year, the civil rights lawsuit was officially presented and soon after Navarro was forced to resign, losing his home and his life savings. Two years later, the federal government pressured the SDPD to settle and all fired officers were “welcomed back” with one condition: that they would need to return to the police academy for training. Believe it or not, all 11 officers, including Navarro, graduated for the second time from the academy.
When speaking about our current national situation regarding police brutality and race relations, Navarro shared that racial relations among fellow officers have improved. He also added that there has always been a small percentage of “bad elements” in modern society. Politicians, doctors, teachers and even the clergy have individuals within their ranks that have caused deep shame to their institutions. Police departments are no different, and unfortunately, they have the power to inflict horrific harm. However, this is no excuse for the actions of bad cops, especially towards the Black and Latino communities. Police departments need to do a much better job of re-training their officers and they need to be reminded that they are, first and foremost, public servants with an oath to protect and serve their communities. Officers also should be evaluated periodically and receive psychological treatment when needed. “Bottom line, if you can’t handle verbal abuse you better find a different job,” said Navarro. “When cops take everything personal instead of helping de-escalate a situation, they contribute to the escalation of chaos.” Law enforcement agencies tend to have relatively little de-escalation training, and far less de-escalation training than defense training.
We all need to become agents of change, in our families, communities and in our nation. We truly need to live the principle that all humans are created equal. Holding people who abuse their power, including police officers, able for their actions would be a powerful start. By peacefully protesting, which Navarro strongly encourages, we are able to spark change. This, and voting are just two things that we can do to move positive change forward. Ask yourself, what can I do to improve racial relations and overall human rights? As Michael Jackson once sang, “I’m starting with the man in the mirror, I’m asking him to change his ways.”
Jesus (Jesse) Navarro is retired. He served in the District Attorney’s office as the Community Relations Director under Bonnie Dummanis and Summer Stephan. He studied Criminal Justice and for many years worked as a criminal and civil investigator in both the U.S. and Mexico.
