America has a long history of police brutality – and Black people in the country have stood up against it every step of the way. One significant occasion was in Washington DC on this day (14th September) in 1941. A large crowd of about 2,000 protestors, marching from four different points of the city, converged on 10th and U Streets (NW) to draw attention to the urgent need for police reform. The rally – called for by the Citizens’ Committee Against Police Brutality and organised by grassroots movements for justice – sought to challenge systemic issues within the criminal-justice system, particularly the use of excessive force and misconduct by law enforcement. Signs carried by protesters included, “Old Jim Crow Has Got to Go,” “Protect Our Civil Rights” and “Police Brutality is a Disgrace to the Nation’s Capital.”
Tensions were high, particularly between 1936 – 1941. In the years leading up to the protest, several Black people had been killed at the hands of police. One such case was the shooting of Jasper and Edward Cobb in 1940 after refusing officer Donald Webber’s demand to see their driver’s licences – the two brothers were standing beside a car, not driving. Despite the Black community’s outrage, there was little accountability from city officials – some officers, including Webber, were exonerated.
Although the large protest on 14th September failed to bring about the hoped for overhaul, it was a turning point. Charles Hamilton Houston, the first general counsel of civil-rights group NAACP, said: “The persistent and forceful campaign, which the Washington Council [of the National Negro Congress] and allied organisations have waged against police brutality in Washington, has been one of the most significant battles for civil rights and personal freedom and security ever conducted in the District of Columbia.”