I publish below the highlights of a just written set of remarks and comments made by David “Double D” Devereaux. He is the Spokesperson for the Washington State Council of Clubs, Founder of the Motorcycle Profiling Project, and works with motorcyclists at the national level. Below are the highlights. The full article is HERE.
Practice Targets
Many people interested in target shooting are familiar with practice targets. Many times these targets are silhouettes of human beings. Nothing descriptive, just a neutral target. Then there are practice targets that more graphically depict people. Beyond neutral practice targets, these targets depict stereotypical images of terrorists, bank robbers, and armed criminals with a hostage. It’s impossible to defend the actions or goals of any of these types of people so vilifying their images receives little objection.
But what about law enforcement practice targets that depict motorcyclists as a caricature of criminality? If motorcyclists wearing helmets and leather jackets are depicted pointing a gun as if they are a threat during training, doesn’t it make sense that this would eventually create the same instinctual threat assessment when they see a biker in the field? Do these targets encourage and reinforce discrimination and profiling against bikers, or worse?
It only makes sense that biker practice targets reinforce a discriminatory mindset that has persisted for decades. But what do the experts or studies say? Experts and university studies both say the instinct to shoot is intimately tied to the visual depiction of the target. And subject matter experts agree that biker shooting targets are dangerous, and all use of such targets should completely cease.
Target Company Says Bad Bikers Need To Be Terminated.
A company called Baker Targets offers a practice target called the “Bad Biker Target”. The ad reads “Bad bikers need to be terminated!”. The ad depicts a masked man pointing a handgun with his right hand while riding a motorcycle. Aside from the fact that reality requires your right hand to be on your throttle while riding or you will rapidly decelerate, this image contains red dots indicating high value targets within the target. Notice one of these is on the front tire!
Unfortunately, “Bad Biker Target” is not the first discriminatory depiction of motorcyclists on practice targets. The practice of vilifying motorcyclists has been occurring for decades. The feature image is a practice target depicting a motorcyclist that has existed since the ’70’s.
Experts Say “Bad Biker Target” Increases the Chance of Unjustified Deadly Force.
Retired 1st Sgt. Bobby Colella, a Subject Matter Expert on the U.S. Army’s premier marksmanship training system, has trained thousands of Soldiers in marksmanship skills. Colella says, “If any police department or officer is found using “Bad Biker” targets on or off duty, it’s a logical assumption that they are conditioning their minds to automatically perceive a threat, and subsequently eliminate that threat, based on the observation of a person who resembles a motorcyclist. Perhaps this is what happened in Waco?”
“In conventional warfare, the enemy is identified by his uniform – In civilian policing, the threat should be identified by its actions, and actions alone. Motorcyclists are not at war with the police; they shouldn’t be at war with motorcyclists. These targets MUST be immediately removed from any inventory or range facility.”
Read the rest of the story by going HERE.
Is this what we have to look forward too ?
They already had practice in Waco, TX last year.
If you don’t know about this, go to agingrebel.com and read up. Very frightening that they could do this in America.
Not good. Do they have uniformed police on their bikes as targets too? Do the police really need these kinds of targets? If so; why? What makes this target more effective than the traditional bad guy targets. Are they trying to DE-sensitize police officers into being okay with shooting bikers? I mean if anyone on a bike is shooting at them I would hope their training has been good enough for them to already know how to return fire if what is behind the shooter isn’t a family with children walking down the sidewalk (or any non perp) just like with any other active shooter.
Are these targets moving like a bike would be as they shoot at them? Lots of questions…
Like most criminals, that biker is an idiot. Should be shooting with his left hand.
Don’t get to upset boys and girls. None of those “aiming martks” are anywhere near the proper point of aim.
You’ll also notice that the individual depicted in the target is aiming a firearm at the viewer. A perfectly legitimate training scenario.
WRT your SME, they say an “ex” is a has-been and a “spurt” is a drip under pressure.
Very upset with this for a number of reasons: The driver depicted in one of the targets target is not wearing a DOT approved helmet and using his throttle hand to aim the gun. This is not only unsafe but defies common sense. We all know his cowboy hat would blow off his head and he would not be able to go WOT and escape the police without a free throttle hand. He also seems to be one of those people who like the weird little fairings on his cruiser. Unforgivable.
Good grief! As a rider, and as a target shooter, using an inanimate target of any kind means nothing more than, “that is the target”. Anyone that follows this silly line of thinking would really be freaked out by paintball (you actually shoot other people as targets), kids with slingshots, squirt guns or cap guns… grow up. This country is really getting full of sissies and scaredy-cats.
Like Dave said. Pretty sure some folks would freak over a fairy riding a unicorn target. I bought some great silhouettes of the traditional 25ft head/torso ones, except with arms up and holding a finger in each ear for hearing protection. Easy to find with a web search and sure to bring a smile at the range.
Probably sell a lot those targets in central and South America…..
Groups of people that are worried about being shot by a cop should stop shooting at cops.
It’s aimed at us vintage Indian owners who ride with a left side throttle. It’s a very small segment but obviously now a concerning segment to them. Our right hand is free to do what ever with. Cops loved them.
I don’t like this bike-riding target. Not because it isn’t logical, but because it encourages the target shooter to think of bike riders as the bad guy. And the subconscious is everything. That’s why blacks are getting shot so frequently. If you think that a certain category of people is more likely to be criminal, then voila! You shoot first and ask questions later.
This is nothing more than social commentary about idiots, those that aspire to be idiots, those that fear idiots, and an advanced course in being an idiot, for the intellectually blessed.
Which herd gets culled next? (The self righteous, the indignant, or those with skin in the game?
The last time I was pulled over was the first time in over 20 years. I was driving in a rental car with California plate in the State of Utah and first thing the cop said was, “You’re not from around here are you?” Anyone who doesn’t think that they are a potential target from dim-witted cops is fooling themselves. We’ve all heard the term Guilty for driving Black, well with this mind set you can include guilty for riding a bike which isn’t a stretch for anyone who rode bikes before reality TV and weekend stock broker biker wanabe’s.
Welcome to the new world order….
We’re gonna need more tin foil
See this update
http://www.motorcycleprofilingproject.com/law-enforcement-training-terminate-bikers/
Glad to see the company take them off the market !!!
Now if they could stop making the targets with Black people on them !!!
Just Kidding !!!!!
BWHAAHAAHAHHHHA !!!!
Are there also targets of pants-dragging hoody wearers…..???
Just wondering…
-nicker-