Predictably, The Sun took to the editorial page to admonish FOP Lodge 3 President Gene Ryan for his use of the term "lynch mob" in describing those calling for the summary jailing of most or all of the six Baltimore police officers in the wake of the death of Freddie Gray ("No 'lynch mobs' here," April 24).
The term "lynch mob" has melded deeply into the American lexicon and is simply no longer the exclusive province of black Americans. Two or three minutes of fact checking proves undeniably that "lynch mob" has been used by politicians and public figures of all stripes in describing their opponents as well as what they view as judicial or legislative overreach for decades. Given the sensitivity of The Sun to what is viewed as inflammatory terms, however, I'm looking forward to the editorial page of tomorrow's Sun to read the admonishment of the Rev. Jamal H. Bryant, of Empowerment Temple AME Church for referring to the Baltimore police as "ISIS."
But then another staple of the American lexicon describing typical treatment by the mainstream media comes to mind — double standard.
Stephan Fugate, Baltimore