Legendary Wu Tang Clan member Method Man has never been one to hold his tongue, and stepped into the Ferguson debate on MSNBC after the Wednesday night shooting of two police officers from the embattled town.
In addition to discussing his own history with the police, Method took a less compassionate view than standard media reactions to the sniper shooting of two officers.
“You reap what you sow,” he said. “I’m looking at my situation of being searched at 13,” M recalled of his youth. “Yeah, eff the police.”
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The issue hits close to home for Meth, real name Clifford Smith, because he grew up getting singled out by cops. He is careful to point out that he doesn’t think all cops are bad, but is convinced that the recent shootings are related to what the FBI report uncovered – specifically evidence of rampant racism and abuses in the Ferguson Police Department.
“But it’s all about fear,” he continued “We’re afraid of what the police can do and the power that we think they wield… With the cops, it’s, ‘We don’t live in these neighborhoods, we only know what we see on television, or what other officers have told us, and we’re just as frightened as these people — but we have guns.’ And when you deal with human nature — human nature, just an officer dealing with things professional, he’s still a human — when that fear kicks in, you never know what could happen.”
In discussing the sniper shooting of the two police officers, Method went on to say, “I hate to say that FBI report kind of played into this. But you reap what you sow, in a sense. If that FBI report would have never come out, and the scandal, how they’re basically paying the city by giving people tickets — that is incredibly insane, but we knew this already. This is common knowledge in the hood.”
Watch the video below, with a full transcript of Method Man’s comment’s beneath.
METHOD MAN: We’re afraid of the police of what they can do and the power that we think that they wield as far as if something happens to me from a police officer, will it be covered up? Will there be justice for me, whatever? With the cops, we don’t live in these neighborhoods, we just know what we see on television or what other people have told us. And we’re just as frightened as these people, you know, but we have guns. And when you deal with human nature, human nature, not just this is an officer who’s dealing with things professionally, he’s still a human being. And when that fear kicks in, you never know what can happen.
I just made an analogy the other day about how someone can tap you on the shoulder, scare the mess out of you and your first reaction is to turn and smack them. Imagine if you have a gun in your hand? It’s the same thing. Now, With this thing that happened in Ferguson just now with the two officers, sad, very sad. I hate to say that FBI report kind of played into this and these things shouldn’t be happening, but you reap what you sow in a sense.
If that FBI report would have never came out and the scandal or whatever and how they’re basically giving people — paying the city by giving people tickets and things like that. That is incredibly insane but we knew this already, this is common knowledge in the ghetto. When they come in the hood — I mean, guys used to sit out and drink beer in public, stuff like that, never a problem at times. But when they are trying to make quotas everybody sticks it in their pocket.
