A white Memphis police officer is at the center of an ethics complaint for a racist Facebook post in which he said that he believed he’s due reparations.
According to Fox13, the complaint was filed against Sgt. Brandon Lea after he wrote a comment on Facebook that said, “Yeah, I think if the government pays reparations, then I want a refund for the slaves my ancestors lost.”
It’s unclear what post Lea was referring to when he left the comment. He’s since deactivated his page.
Last year, Tennessee’s Republican-controlled House tossed legislation that would have banned city governments from allocating taxpayer funds to study and distribute reparations.
In February 2023, Shelby County officials approved a $5 million reparations program to study specific disparities in wealth, healthcare, and home ownership between Black and white citizens in Shelby County and Memphis and then directly fund programs to minimize those differences.
The decision was made just one month after Tyre Nichols was fatally beaten by a group of Memphis police officers, an incident that set off protests nationwide.
The commissioner who sponsored the bill proposed to pay for the program with the commission’s general fund or federal COVID-19 relief money.
Lea has been with the Memphis police department since 2000, according to records cited by Fox13. He was promoted to sergeant in 2019.
“The fact that it came from a Memphis police department officer clearly identified him as such shows a culture of impunity within the police department, but unfortunately it’s something that we as Memphians have so long experienced and just come to expect,” the Memphis Interfaith Coalition for Action and Hope told ABC24.
“We hold people in leadership positions at a high level, so with that being said, he should have said that in the privacy of his own home or while sitting on the toilet. Not posted it on Facebook,” one resident said. “Say goodbye to your job. Next time, think before you post.”
However, not everyone thinks Lea should be punished for his social media post.
“Nobody can take a joke, give one, can’t take one,” another resident said.
As for whether Memphis police are investigating Lea, a police spokesperson said, “The Memphis Police Department is aware of the allegation and is actively looking into the matter.”
