It has happened again — but this time it feels different. This time, the crime of murdering another Black man hit all US homes. US Special Forces Airman, Roger Fortson, was killed by an Okaloosa County sheriff’s officer for simply answering his door. The sheriff, responding to the wrong apartment on a noise complaint, shot and killed Fortson before he could say anything.
He shot him six times before the officer said anything. He was killed for being Black, in his own home, while holding a registered weapon. America murdered Roger Fortson.
He was murdered by Congress which refuses to pass any law that spots police brutality or any hate crimes against Black people. He was murdered by white Americans who look the other way while countless crimes and racism are committed against Blacks daily. He was murdered by Black Americans who refuse to vote and choose to sit on the sidelines while Black men are gunned down daily across the country.
This time is different because Roger Fortson was a gift to the country.
“He has been my gift since he was 4 years old,” Mika Fortson, Roger’s mother said. “He was a kind, loving, goofy, and intelligent person who loved to love.”
Roger Fortson, who graduated with honors, was a 23-year-old US Air Force service member who had intentions of becoming a fighter pilot. He was on the path to becoming whatever he wanted. His trajectory could have led him to become a congressman, police chief, or even the US president. Fortson loved the badge, he loved to respect the process, and he loved life.
“He did well in everything he attempted,” Ms. Fortson said. “He was a gift to the world and they killed him.”
To date, the only thing released is the body cam footage of the sheriff coming to the home of Forston. The sheriff is seen walking into the quiet apartment to check on a noise complaint. The entire scene seems questionable. As he walks up to the apartment, no noise can be heard.
Examining the sound from the body cam, birds can be heard chirping in the background. As the sheriff knocks on the door, he hides his view from the peephole of the apartment. He checks around and then circles back to the quiet apartment. As he knocks again, he continues to hide from the peephole as he announces himself as the sheriff.
Next, Fortson is seen opening the door with a firearm to his side. As he lifts his opposite hand to gesture, the sheriff opens fire hitting Fortson six times in the body. The two exchanged no conversation. Forston never got a chance to understand who was at the door.
Forston had just gotten home thirty minutes prior to the incident and was FaceTiming with his girlfriend when the knock came at his door. As he peeked through the peephole and saw no one, he went back for his service weapon to make sure he wasn’t about to be robbed.
After the sheriff shot him, he gasped for air and said that he couldn’t breathe. The sheriff didn’t attend to his injuries but instead checked to see if anyone else was in the apartment.
Fortson later died at the hospital from the gunshot wounds and the sheriff, who has not been named, is on paid leave until an investigation is complete.
Meanwhile, another Black man has been shot, another son has been taken from his mother, and more questions are being raised about what Black fathers should tell their sons when dealing with the police.
“Our kids can no longer be told that the police are here to protect and serve,” Ms. Fortson said. “We need to come up with something different because as soon as little Black boys are born, they have a target on their back.”
She isn’t wrong. Black fathers in America are starting to prepare for the fact it’s not a matter of if, but a matter of when they or their sons will have to deal with some type of police profiling, police harassment, personal injury, or even death at the hands of the police.
Black men used to be able to consider that if they went to school, picked the right path or career, spoke proper English, and lived a certain lifestyle, they could somehow avoid the typical police/Black man interaction that’s repeatedly being played out.
But Forton was different. He graduated from high school with honors. He joined the military to give back to his country. While in the service, he was credited with saving several lives while on tour.
He was an excellent young man with a bright future, an exceptional human being who loved his country. He had what everyone would consider an amazing future where he could have been whatever he wanted.
If they can view even him as a threat, then no Black man is safe from the mental prosecution of being guilty-before-proven-innocent that whites put Black people through daily.
And what should be said to his mother, who gave America the kind of son Americans can be proud of?
“When people ask me how I’m doing, they say that bravery is getting me through this,” Ms. Fortson said. “I tell them they’re wrong — it’s the pain that’s getting me by. I am hurt and frustrated that they took my baby, and he did nothing wrong.”
Born the middle child out of five, Fortson was a hero to both his older and younger siblings. He was the torch that lit the entire family to want to be better people. He lived to make his mother proud. He lived to make his country proud.
However, America failed him. It failed to protect him, it failed to shield him, and it failed to give him the opportunity to become the man he was growing to become. The country robbed Roger Fortson of the opportunity to fall in love, get married, and have his own kids. America robbed itself of developing the kind of patriot it needs for this country to be successful.
So as Black fathers ponder what to do next to protect their sons, one can only imagine the conversation that needs to be had before their sons venture out onto American streets. Wait, Roger Fortson was killed at home. He was killed because he answered the door. He was killed because of his skin color.
There is a conversation about that. There are no number of words that can be shared with a Black son before he does anything. Unfortunately, there’s no lesson learned either. The only thing Black men can do in America is wait to see who in their community is murdered next by the country and pray it’s not their own son.
