Broadly speaking, the population of Prairie County, Arkansas, is a bit more than 8,000. Of that, some 13% are African American, and about 85% are white.
We are going to assume that most of the Black people who live in Prairie County take offense at the use of the n-word in most settings. And we are also going to assume that even the white people — and perhaps the smidgen of “other” races that live there‚ dislike, are offended by and wince at hearing the word used.
So it was especially disturbing to hear the sheriff of Prairie County, Rick Hickman, talking nonchalantly about his use of the word.
“It is what it is,” he told a television reporter. “Everybody does it. I don’t use the n-word a lot, but occasionally I might have said it.”
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
A recording of Hickman talking to a dispatcher that was obtained by Eplunus Colvin, reporter for The Pine Bluff Commercial, had the dispatcher telling Hickman about a double homicide that eventually turned into a triple homicide. As the dispatcher described where the killings took place, Hickman responded dismissively by saying: “Oh, really, Black people, then.”
At this point, the dispatcher stifles a snicker.
“That’s exactly what it is,” he responds.
As an executive with the NAACP said, those comments were disturbing because they suggested a lack of urgency and compassion for the incident and for those involved.
But no, Hickman, a Republican, said. There was no offense intended. He was simply trying to identify where the crimes had happened.
Later, however, his explanation was neutralized by his admission that well, here and there, the n-word maybe slips out.
The chair of the Democratic Party of Arkansas, Grant Tennille, called for Hickman’s immediate resignation, calling his speech “divisive and dangerous.”
“Hickman has lost the respect, trust and cooperation of many of his constituents, and Prairie County is less safe while he wears a badge,” Tennille said.
It would be appropriate for someone with the state Republican Party to verbalize some outrage at Hickman and his words, but many in that party have had to perfect the practice of looking the other way when it is one of their own doing the outraging, and they appear to be in full avert-their-eyes mode here.
If Hickman is not going to leave of his own accord, this is a good time to send him to the exits at the ballot box, as we hear he has an opponent in the Republican primary.
As it stands, a considerable percentage of the population has to wonder if, because of the color of their skin, they are receiving the same concern, attention and professionalism as people who are differently hued. May 24, when voters go to the polls, is an excellent time to remedy that.