As with climate change, as with evolution, as with any number of other topics ... it's obvious that white denial of police violence against black people has nothing to do with lack of facts. The facts are there and indisputable. 1/n

People don't reject climate change because the facts aren't available. Creationists don't reject evolution because the facts aren't available. White people don't reject the truth about police violence because the facts aren't available. 2/n

White culture accepts that police are largely there to protect them from black people, and police violence — including outright murder of innocent people — is acceptable in that context. Stating facts will not change that, because the facts are irrelevant. 3/n

All the excuses white people make for these murders are telling: the black victims must be perfect in every way, or they deserved being murdered. Cops can say they were afraid and white people will believe them, because white fear trumps black existence. 4/n

This white armor is impervious to facts. And many of the same white people who would never condone climate denial or antivax attitudes or creationism are fine with black people being acceptable losses for the sake of police "protection". 5/n

In science communication, we call the idea that people just need more facts and they'll come around the "deficit model". The problem is: the deficit model is wrong, and bombarding people with facts can actually help entrench their incorrect beliefs. 6/n

We see this with climate change, with evolution, with vaccines, with COVID-19 ... and with police violence against black people. Facts are irrelevant. So long as white people "know" the cops are there to protect them from black people, no facts will ever change their minds. 7/n

Naturally there's always an irony in pointing this out. Knowing that the deficit model is a failure doesn't stop us (me!) from trying to use facts to persuade. It's a hard fight, but it's necessary. Lives are literally at stake. 8/n

The failure of the deficit model is also why we white people have to get our own. If white people listened to and respected black people when they state the facts, this problem wouldn't exist in the first place. 9/n

Anyway, I've pitched this concept as articles and projects multiple times and been rejected every time, so here I am yelling about it on Twitter before I've even had my coffee. Take that as you will. 10/10