People Are Pointing Out How White Privilege Saved the Life of Woman Tased by Police

A woman in Oklahoma was tased by a police officer when she refused to sign an $80 ticket, drove away during the stop, and kicked the police officer. Given her repeated attempts to resist arrest, many aptly pointed out that her white privilege is what ultimately saved her life. 

During a routine traffic stop in the town of Cashion, 65-year-old Debra Hamil was pulled over by authorities for driving with a broken tail light. In bodycam footage captured by the officer who detained her, Hamil can be seen refusing to sign the $80 ticket she was handed. “I don’t think that I deserve to pay $80 for something that is fixable and I can fix it,” she tells the cop.

The officer then asks her to step out of the car which she similarly refuses to do, prompting him to tell her she’s under arrest and repeatedly ask her to exit the vehicle. “You’re not placing me under no damn arrest,” Hamil tells him before fleeing and driving away. Once the officer pulls her over the second time, he holds up his gun and demands that she get out of the car. “You’re not going to do that to me,” she tells him. 

Hamil continues to resist the officer’s demands, which is when he holsters his gun, opens her car door, pulls her out of the vehicle, and throws her onto the pavement. As she’s being repeatedly tased, Hamil can be seen kicking the police officer and demanding that he leave her alone. 

Naturally, the cop’s response to Hamil’s behavior—a taser followed by a brief verbal exchange—prompted many online to highlight what the police response would have been should she not have been white.