Lynch: Black People Don’t Want Police Seeing Them as a ‘Stereotyped Image’

[rush transcript]
O’DONNELL: “I mean, even as a young lawyer, you were mistaken many times for –“
LYNCH: “Oh, the court reporter. I think many a young female lawyer has had that experience, going into the deposition and people thinking that you are the court reporter.”
O’DONNELL: “How does that influence what you do every day?”
LYNCH: “Others will always seek to define you based on what they think you represent or who they think you are. But you have to be the one to control what you do and what you say and how you present yourself. You really can’t control how others think about you.”
O’DONNELL: “That’s how many blacks feel, is that they are not treated as who they are even today by law enforcement.”
LYNCH: “I think a lot of people feel that way. I think a lot of young black people feel that way; many older black people feel that way as well. One of the ironies of this entire debate is when I talk to police officers about their concerns; they too talk about how they feel that people don’t see them as individuals. They see the uniform first and not a person. When I point out that’s the same thing that a lot of protesters are saying. There is this often moment of rather startled recognition. That people really are saying the same thing. Everyone wants to be seen. Everyone wants to be heard. Everyone wants to be recognized as the person that they are and not a stereotyped image.”