The people in this building are just as upset over that piss as you are."

That's what 22-year NYPD veteran Eric Adams told a rookie cop when the two entered an elevator in a New York public housing project. The puddle of urine in the corner prompted the new recruit to offer the following appraisal: "these people are all animals; they don't deserve anything."

Adams — who was a captain by the time he retired five years ago to pursue a career in politics — is African American and says police too often stereotype entire communities based on the offenses committed by a "numerical minority." One might be inclined to view minorities' disproportionate share of lethal police shootings involving unarmed suspects as evidence of this dynamic.

Some suggest that hiring more African American police officers would help to ameliorate the situation.