Detroit Police Chief James Craig says he was “appalled” by Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s “racist” assertion this week that facial recognition analysts “need to be African-Americans, not people that are not.”
The Michigan Democrat made the comment on Monday while visiting the city’s “Real Time Crime Center.”
“Analysts need to be African-Americans, not people that are not, because let me tell you — no, it happens all the time, it’s true,” she said while flanked by a reporter from The Detroit News. “I think non-African-Americans think all African-Americans look the same.”
Mr. Craig, who himself is African-American, attempted to tell the congresswoman, to no avail, that trained professionals of any race or ethnicity are perfectly capable of doing their job.
Watch: Rep. Rashida Tlaib at the Real Time Crime Center with police Chief James Craig discussing facial recognition software: “Analysts need to be African-Americans … .” https://t.co/qrG27El3AZ pic.twitter.com/o8bCwAJEVM
— The Detroit News (@detroitnews) October 2, 2019
“But it does make a huge difference,” she countered after the police chief’s correction.
“If I had made a similar comment, people would be outraged. They’d be calling for my resignation,” Mr. Craig told a local ABC affiliate on Wednesday. “I think they’re racist.”
“It’s a software. It’s biometrics,” he added Thursday morning during a “Fox & Friends: First” interview. “And, to put race in it … we’re talking about trained professionals. My staff goes through intense training with the FBI, and so they’re not looking at race but it’s measurements. We were appalled when she made this statement.”
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.