Christian Cooper’s sister is glad Amy Cooper is being prosecuted for calling the police and falsely accusing her bird watcher brother of threatening her in New York’s Central Park.
Melody Cooper admitted she loves her brother but does not agree with his refusal to cooperate in the investigation against Amy Cooper. She expressed her sentiments in a July 13 Twitter message.
“I’ve seen the reactions to my brother’s statements and I’ve thought long and hard about this. I love my brother but my heart aches and I must speak my truth. While #christiancooper wanted the Manhattan DA to be the one to press charges, there’s a larger picture,” Melody Cooper tweeted on Monday.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office announced plans to charge Amy Cooper with falsely reporting an incident in the third degree on July 6.
The charge stems from a May 25 incident between Amy Cooper and Christian Cooper, who are not related, in Central Park’s Ramble area. In a video filmed by the bird watcher, Amy Cooper called police to say she was being threatened by a Black man. The video went viral after Christian and Melody Cooper shared it on their social media pages. Amy Cooper was fired from her job with Franklin Templeton investment firm and temporarily had to surrender her dog to a rescue shelter.
Last week, Christian Cooper released a statement to confirm he would not participate in Amy Cooper’s prosecution.
“On the one hand, she’s already paid a steep price,” Christian Cooper said. “That’s not enough of a deterrent to others? Bringing her more misery just seems like piling on.”
The charge Amy Cooper faces reportedly is punishable by up to one year in jail. Her arraignment is set for Oct. 14.
Melody Cooper argued her brother’s empathy stemmed from his limited interactions with law enforcement, a stark contrast to the experiences of other Black men.
“He can afford to be compassionate but that is not the case for most Black men in this country. Not by a long shot. And false claims are made by women like Amy Cooper because they know this,” Melody Cooper asserted.
She agreed with Christian Cooper’s sentiment that “policing should change,” but added that “it hasn’t happened fast enough. People are getting hurt and killed in the meantime. False calls have increased,” she wrote. “If there’s a chance to send a message to other White women that they can’t and shouldn’t put Black people at risk in this way, it should be done.”
She added, “I understand that in this situation my brother intellectually sees Amy’s humanity, who didn’t see his. I emotionally see Emmett Till and logically worry for the humanity of our own.”
