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Relationship between police and community
The importance of police brutality
The importance of police brutality
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As many people see in the news now a day that some police officer have been seen on television and videos that black males are being killed by white officers (males). But what people do not know is that there is news that is bias because the news will give you want they want the public to know or what will catch the public 's attention. And this is what makes the minority (race) upset because they think that officers are intending to kill black male. In contrast, what the police officer try to do on the daily basis is to make the street and the community a better place and they do not wake up in the morning thinking to themselves that they want to kill someone just for the heck of it. For example many people believe that there should be justice
They will try and retaliate and burn and hurt those who do not believe in what they say such as the retaliation in Ferguson, Missouri and in New York. And the people who are burning buildings and stealing, killing or hurting other people are not even half of the people in Ferguson they are people from different States. Not only that but “Racial and ethnic minority perceptions that the police lack lawfulness and legitimacy, based largely on their interactions with the police, can lead to distrust of the police”. And if the community thinks that the officers are unlawful and racist and abusing their power then they will not want to interact or even call the police men when someone is being raped, killed or robbed to because they do not believe in the justice system. The community will greatly be affected because if they distrust the officers then they will take matters in their own hand and the congress would have to put them in quarantine and isolation statues for their behavior thus giving them a time when they can be outside and a time when they cannot be outside. This also shows that the “Distrust of police has serious consequences. It undermines the legitimacy of law enforcement, and without legitimacy police lose their ability and authority to function effectively”. This mean that the officers will not make a difference in that community because no one in that community trust them or let them do their job because the officers will lose the authority they once
We then see this play out in discriminatory hiring practices, biased treatment in courtrooms, and the kinds of brutal treatment by police that took the lives of unarmed Black people like Eric Garner, Michael Brown, and Akai Gurley. The result is that our communities are being put in double jeopardy, first by over zealous police and then by news stations serving as PR firms by
In the videos all over the news and internet we have seen numerous cases of innocent lives of black people in the United States being taken. It was found that “nearly 1 in 3 black people killed by police in 2015 were identified as unarmed, though the actual number is likely higher due to underreporting” (“Police Killed More”). While about 33% of victims have been unarmed, for some reason these officers’ first instincts were to pull out their guns and shoot. These instincts are likely attributed to these officers’ past experience with violent black criminals; yet, what about their experiences with violent white criminals? Why don’t we hear about innocent, unarmed white lives being taken by the police force? It’s because it’s much less likely to happen. According to 2015 reports, unarmed blacks were killed five times faster than whites (“Police Killed More”). Also, based on a project by The Guardian, “black males between the ages of 15 and 34 are nine times more likely to be killed by police than any other demographic” (Craven). This evidence shows that safe to say that because there aren’t really any stereotypes on white people to be violent, the officers don’t initially think to pull out their guns and shoot. Stereotypes attached to young black males such as being violent thugs and criminals are the only logical explanation or excuse for
There is considerable evidence that minorities and police are not in agreement on many issues, and the blame is being shifted from all parties involved. The police feel that they are fair in their treatment of minorities, but the evidence in many instance prove otherwise. When we view articles on the arrests of minorities versus whites, you will notice a variation in how various nationalities are treated. When reading the newspaper, you will see the photograph of a minority with previous criminal history and other issues outlined. This to me is done to paint a picture that shows the accused is already known for violating the law.
In 2014, the death of Eric Garner in New York City raised controversial conversations and highlighted the issues of race, crime, and policing in neighborhoods that tend to be poor and racially isolated. Garner, an unarmed black man, was killed after being tackled and held in a “chokehold.” According to the AP Polls in December 2014, “Police killings of unarmed blacks were the most important news stories of 2014.” The problem is that young black men are targeted by police officers in which they have responded with the misuse of force and policy brutality. It is evident that this issue affects many people nationwide. The civilians do not trust the police department and the justice system because they hold the perceptions that police officers are immune from prosecution despite their actions. In particular, black individuals, specifically black males, do not feel safe in the presence of police officers because they are not held accountable for their mistakes.
Let’s begin with the most known, Rodney G. King. Rodney was caught by the Los Angeles police on March 3rd, 1991 after a high speed chase. He was beaten by officers with their batons. A video was taken of the whole incident. The officers were acquitted. Numerous people of all colors became livid after they heard this. There were protest and riots, although many just wanted whites and blacks to come together. There are several other accounts of police brutality among individuals. To name a few; Robert Davis, Frank Jude, Steve Biko, Sean Bell, Kathryn Johnston, and the list goes on and on. What many might not notice is all the names I stated are black individuals. Zachary Hammond was a white unarmed teen who was killed on July 26, 2015. His case did a lot of attention but not nearly as much attention as any of the people I stated above. This proves a good point that Caucasian people can be shut out when it comes to police brutality. It seems as many don’t believe that whites are brutalized by police. This can be an example of falsely stereotyping one another. There are other ways we falsely stereotype one another. For example if you live in an area where there is a high population of one color of individuals no matter black or white and abundance of the police officers who watch over that area are the other color, it’s not hard to make an assumption that those officers are racist when they use excessive
The negative views of everyday people often make work hard for officers, adding more stress to their careers. The general public regularly criticizes officers for using excessive force and brutality, especially when a police officer ends up killing a suspect or criminal. Oftentimes, especially when a white police officer shoots a citizen of a minority race, the general public is quick to find faults in the officer, blaming the officer for being racist. However, cold, hard statistics show that the majority of police officers are, in fact, white, and the neighborhoods in which these officers are placed in tend to be high-crime areas with many minority citizens living there (Miller “When Cops Kill”). In addition, people might say that a citizen who was shot was not armed; however, almost anything close to the shot individual could have been turned into a deadly weapon that he or she could have used to wound or kill the officer involved. Whenever officers are in this position, the natural reaction is to defend themselves. Everyday, police officers confront the most aggressive, immoral, and sick-minded individuals of society. Officers jeopardize their own lives every time they report for work. Officers witness things that no person should ever have to encounter. They see the most horrific and gruesome scenes that the general public turns away from and
The article for discussion this week regarding “Policing and the Fear of Crime” touched on the significant factors that reference the fear of crime. The article first addresses how people feel about crime in their community. Then it progresses the analysis fear from a collection of data and concepts retrieved from research, surveys, and polls. There was an evaluation done in the seventies and eighties, which showed an overwhelming percentage of people who were fearful of becoming victims of violent crimes. There was data retrieved from polls that suggested people were even limiting their activities because they felt uneasy about walking down the street. The sense of fear traveled across different ages, sexes, and professions. The least frightened group individuals were young men, and the most scared were senior women (Moore & Trojanowicz, 1988). There were also variables such as race, class, and residence that altered the public’s perception about fear of violence. The researchers investigated participants who felt as thou if they were ever to acquire wealth and status, their fears of being victims of crime would reduce dramatically. Next, the article addressed what causes someone to become fearful. It was the possibility of actually becoming a victim of a crime which was a considerable influence on person’s fear of crime. There are also the factors of hearsay information about victimization traveling through word of mouth and social networks that cause people to become fearful. While I was assigned to the Gang Unit, people would always ask the questions about the rumors that get passed around about gangs targeting specific individuals for initiations around certain days and times. During my time on the unit,
In the Ferguson article (2015), there was an example given about an African American man claimed that he was standing outside of of Wal-Mart, an officer called him a “stupid motherf****r” and a “bastard.” According to the man, a lieutenant was on the scene and did nothing to reproach the officer, instead threatening to arrest the man (p. 80). This demonstrates that the police in Ferguson had no respect for the civilian and even though the lieutenant was present, they did nothing. The officer was not suspended nor held responsible for this incident. By failing to hold officers accountable, it sends a message that officers can behave as they like, “regardless of law or policy, and even if caught, that punishment will be light.” (Ferguson, 86). This message serves to excuse officer wrongdoing and heighten community distrust. This is also to say that police can possibly get away with murder because they are higher officials and work for the
Police shootings occur all over the world but are a huge problem within the United States. We continue to hear more and more about them. These shootings are making headlines. Front page news it seems almost weekly. All the shootings go one of two ways. Either a Police Officer has been shot or a Police Officer has shot a citizen, but either way the final result is death. Whether an Officer has been shot or an Officer has shot someone these cases seem to be related to one thing, fear. People in today’s society feel as though they can’t trust Police Officers as they are there to hurt and kill them. And Police Officers feel as though they are in danger of doing their everyday duties because people see them as the “bad guys” and want to hurt or kill them. Yes, police brutality and racism still exist, but not all cops are bad. Yes there are still bad citizens in this world that want to kill and harm others, but not all citizens are bad. People seem to react to these shootings by rioting quickly after a police officer has shot and killed someone without
Much of my family is or was involved with military of law enforcement, so consequently they have a different perspective on events that happen than other people. Things like “police brutality”, where an “innocent” black kid was fatally shot for “doing nothing wrong”. What I believe is that, if the kid was “doing nothing wrong” he would not have been shot if he had followed the officer's directions, and obviously he was doing something wrong because the cop confronted them, they were acting suspicious, therefore , I see, these “police brutality” cases as just hollow arguments based off of lies just to give the American people an enemy, something to unite the community as well as boost ratings for news networks. The media then proceeds to blame officers, or implies that officers are the bad guys, even though they do not have all the facts and they only provide one side of the argument. I think this is very unjust and I want to be able to change the perception of officers and their connection with the community, so that we can truly be united as a
What most people would think is that only black men and women are killed by police officers. Yet this year there has actually been more white individuals killed by police officers than any other race. This is only a problem, because when you read about police killings it is almost all about how police target people of color. With this idea it makes it so that people of color feel more like a victim in the country and are then scared of police officers, who are supposed to be there to help. The statistic of white people being killed by police officers is not covered by the media, because it is not as intriguing or as controversial as the other stories. It is very important that people know that police killings as a whole is an issue not just police killing minorities. Using social imagination and looking at this problem you can see why you would not want one group to feel victimized, which would lead to them striking back at the people that are there to help
The movement BlackLivesMatter have outed hundreds unlawful officers and victims that never got the justice needed. The same characteristics (color and style) that emulates strong, noble people can backfire. Black people in this country who actively resist dehumanization makes a call to action and a response to anti-Black racism in our current society. (Cullors, 2015) The growth of the movement has moved country-wide, first starting in the south; the south had always had history of racism and anti-black impulses. This movement is continuing to carry up north and west, and is projected that any officer can be the next one to unlawfully kill another black individual. These immoral police officers are no different from the rest of the police force, their uniforms are no different color or style they do not have different titles, there is no distinction between the these two types of officers. African Americans are persuaded to be more cautious and angry towards police officers; anyone with a cop uniform can be considered a threat to their life. Innocent cops were murdered in retaliation to the unfair judicial systems that are not punishing these cops. Once a police-like uniform is worn it not only once symbolizes honor and power, but t too many communities
Police brutality is one of the most serious human rights violations in the United States and it occurs everywhere. The reason why I chose this topic is because police brutality happens all the time in the United States and still remains unrecognized by many. Additionally, the public should be knowledgeable about this topic because of how serious this crime can be and the serious outcomes that police brutality can have on other police officers and the public. The job of police officers is to maintain public order, prevent, and detect crimes. They are involved in very dangerous and stressful occupations that can involve violent situations that must be stopped and controlled by any means. In many confrontations with people, police may find it necessary to use excessive force to take control of a certain situation. Sometimes this makes an officer fight with a suspect who resists being arrested. Not all cops in communities are great cops. At least once a year, the news covers a story about a person being beat by an officer. The article “Minority Threat and Police Brutality: Determinants of Civil Rights Criminal Complaints in U.S. Municipalities” by Malcolm D. Holmes from the University of Wyoming, uses the conflict theory to explain why officers go after minorities sometimes causing police brutality. It explains the police’s tension with African American and Latino males. Those minorities are the ones that retaliate more against police officers which causes the officer to use violent force to defend themselves.
Protests around the world have taken place to fight for justice in the black community. The immense number of deaths of unarmed black men and women is a clear sign that they are more likely to be killed by police than white people. Physical violence and excessive use of force by the U.S. police towards African Americans are seen in the news regularly. “People, including police officers, hold strong implicit associations between blacks, and probably Hispanics, and weapons, crime and aggression," said Jack Glaser. Police brutality statistics show that African Americans are three times more likely to be murdered by cops than any other race. Racial disparity in the United States is a coherent reason for the increase of criminal injustice in the United
Understanding the issue is just part of what’s needed. The purpose of the section is to identify a solution, or as may be the case, solutions. So, the question here is what can we do to improve the relationship between the police and the citizens. Over the years there has been many books written and studies conducted, all in an effort to find the best way to improve police and citizen relationships. To do this we must look at all available information. According to The Study Circles Resource Center’s Protecting Communities, Serving the Public: Police and residents building relationships to work together (2000), “Bring police and community together. We need to meet not just when there is a crisis or a big crime. We should do things to build relationships that are not so full of conflict. Then it would be easier to work together. We can build respect and trust for one another when we make time to meet with and learn about each other. This is the only way to do it.