Good Rebels Persevere: Boston's New Police Commisioner

People often ask Carmen and me for examples of good Rebels at Work. Here's one: Boston's new police commissioner Michael Cox.

He's rebelled for justice, accountability, and the possibility of better Boston police. Despite what the very same police force brutally did to him. I'm not sure I could have overcome such violence and betrayal of my co-workers.

He's a testament to Rebel perseverance and, as Carmen has observed, that optimism is the greatest act of rebellion.

Highlights from today’s Boston Globe story about Cox:

"Cox’s story, as a victim of its brutal, racist, and dishonest side, embodies all that is wrong with the Boston Police Department. In his brave refusal to give in to his abusers, he embodies its best.

"Who better to lead the force at this long overdue time of reckoning in policing and racial justice than someone who has seen his colleagues at their worst, yet still believes in what cops can be at their best?

"The most intriguing thing about Cox is his faith. Even after he was brutalized by some colleagues and mistreated by others, he stayed committed to the force then and in the decades since. In the months after the attack, that faith was misplaced: Cox kept quiet and waited in vain for those who beat him to come forward and apologize, he told former Globe reporter Dick Lehr and others who have written about his ordeal.

“But the blue wall of silence shot up: Dozens of officers who were on the scene that night filed remarkably similar reports claiming they’d seen nothing. Their superiors seemed reluctant to investigate.”

#rebelsatwork
#perseverance
#courage
#goodrebels