"Singer and lodge member Gary Fishell reportedly sang the song to the ’70s hit “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” by Jim Croce. The lyrics of the original song were changed to show blatant disrespect over the death of a boy who was brutally gunned down by an officer:
Michael Brown learned a lesson about a messin’The charity golf event was thrown by retired LAPD cop Joe Myers who reportedly threw the soirée for about 60 people — half of whom were retired and current cops.
With a badass policeman
And he’s bad, bad Michael Brown
Baddest thug in the whole damn town
Badder than old King Kong
Meaner than a junkyard dog
Two men took to fightin’
And Michael punched in through the door
And Michael looked like some old Swiss cheese
His brain was splattered on the floor
And he’s dead, dead Michael Brown
Deadest man in the whole damn town His whole life’s long gone
Deader than a roadkill dog
Fishell, who is a private investigator, only now reportedly realizes that the song was “off-color and in poor taste,” according to his lawyer who spoke to TMZ, “He’s a goofball who writes funny songs.” As to why Fishell would think that a song mocking the tragic death of a young Black boy would make anyone laugh, his lawyer replied, “He thought the room would get a kick out of it.”
Glendale Elks Lodge is now reportedly disassociating themselves from the Myers’ event. An unnamed trustee for the lodge told TMZ that the dinner was not an Elks Club affair and that Myers, who is a member, was allowed to hold a dinner at the location.
An attendee of the Myers’ function taped the song and was reportedly upset that no one else appeared to be ruffled by the dubious song."
Anyway, that's just one song at one event. The bigger issue is the attitude of many in law enforcement (or at least the perception of it) to those in the minority community. I say many because it's certainly not all. But folks are always calling for a discussion and some kind of open dialogue on race relations between those in law enforcement and minorities, and incidents like the one I mentioned above are not going to help us to get there.
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