There are many bridges that a child must build in order to grow into a man. From a very early age being raised in the lower income part of Bolivar Tennessee, it was determined early on in life that I truly valued God, trust and integrity. For more than thirteen years in law enforcement and being the first African American Chief Investigator, I learned that God was showing favor in my life as a hardworking man. I have worked on many cases and as I look by over the years of solving so many crimes, it was the foundation of my Christianity that molded me into the man that I am today. In today’s law enforcement the general public has lost faith in the men and women that protect and serve them due to the cellphones audio and video that has flooded
Clay grew up playing multiple sports and he felt like he could succeed in job that demands teamwork. Along with the influence of his family he chose to become a police officer. The major problem officers are placed with these days is the trend of the media using racism against officers. Clay believes this is becoming a constant issue in their department because it’s encouraged a lot of people to start challenging officers and fighting them. The problem is that “When one officer from wherever screws up or handles a situation poorly, it makes it like we are all bad and that’s not the case”. He believes that if social media and the news continues to put stories out here with false information it poses a threat to future officers and their ability to effectively do their jobs. Many police departments are starting to back off such as Baltimore City Police and possibly others due to severity of recent events like the Baltimore riot and the past history of the Rodney King case. Clay believes it has now become Cops versus the community and that’s not the case with his department. “People forget that officers, and many others that serve this country are human”. One bad person ruins the rep for thousands of others who are only trying to do their
One of the most destructive forces that is destroying young black people in America today is the common cultures wicked image of what an realistic black person is supposed to look like and how that person is supposed to act. African Americans have been struggling for equality since the birth of this land, and the war is very strong. Have you ever been in a situation where you were stereotyped against?
The narrator of The Autobiography of an Ex-colored Man was born to a “colored” mother and white father. This combination of his identity led him to encounter many internal and external challenges. Physically he appeared white, so he experienced being able to “pass” as both “colored” or white whenever he wished. Being able do such a thing, the narrator struggled with racial boundaries. He embodied almost every permutation, intentional or unintentional, of the experience when encountering various racial (white and “colored”) communities, eventually deciding to pass as white at the end of the novel. Due to cowardice, instead of representing his race, he suppressed the African-American part of his identity and destroyed his chances of achieving true contentedness and self-awareness.
I have 2 years and 11 month as a Correctional Sergeant. In that time my experiences as a correctional sergeant has been both as an area supervisor for adult and youth offender programs section, segregation and a shift supervisor. As an area supervisor I have had to handle many different inmate issues to include but not limited to the following: conducting inmate disciplinary, handling inmate grievances, inmate property, inmate classifications, and disruptive inmates. As an area supervisor I was also in charge of many officers where I had to train and develop their skills being that most of them had under a year experience. In 2015 I was hand selected by both the Associated Warden and Warden to take over segregation to clean up the problems that were occurring in segregation.
In what can be called a viscous cycle starting with the war on drugs, a war that from the beginning has unfairly targeted minorities. A war that has helped contribute to the breakdown of the black family, and add to the constant socioeconomic struggle that perpetuates crime in many communities. These communities experience constant and unfair policing that puts so many youths into the system, that discredits, imprisons, and ultimately breaks them. Filled with discriminatory practices that have been overlooked for years under the disguise of gaining a “Victory.” A victory that may never actually come to
Our society has become one that is very diverse. Law enforcement agencies (local, state, and federal) for our changing society need to include an increase representation of women and minorities, definite improvement in leadership skills, and to strengthen community policing. These are all issues of great importance, which are no longer going to be pushed aside.
Sergeant Anthony Turner’s interview with Bob Sanborn on 90.1 KPFT station in Houston was a very insightful one. According to Turner, sometimes this (the TAPS program) is the first time that an at-risk youth have a positive encounter with a police officer. According to Sgt. Turner middle school kids and high school level kids have adverse reaction to the police. It is during the time when high school kids start driving and being pulled over that some of these kids have their first encounter, and through social media and friends, many of them don’t know what to expect. Social media puts out a lot of negativity about officers. TAPS addresses these issues.
Along with gaining the support of law enforcement officers in the community policing effort, members of the community must also take a stake and become an integral part of the movement. A study noted by Lord, Kuhns and Friday (2009), researchers found that more than 45 million people over the age of 15 encountered the police in some fashion. Of those encounters, one quarter involved members making first contact with police officers. Unfortunately, citizen encounters with law enforcement with negative connotations were more influential to decrease satisfaction with the police than were positive encounters to increase satisfaction (Lord, Kuhns, & Friday, 2009).
Although women in law enforcement has increased within the past 20-30 years, the struggle to be fully accepted and held to the same standard as a male continues, and this is mainly due to barriers such as the attitudes of male officers. Many policemen continue to express negative views of female officers such as the perception of being less physically capable, mentally and emotional feeble, and unable to earn the trust and respect of citizens. (Davis, 2005) There are many beliefs that because men have maintained the lead role in law enforcement, allowing more women to carry out the same duties demystifies the masculine persona that has always gone hand in hand with policing. There remains the stigma that males have always had the protective role, not a female, and this way of thinking continues to be difficult to deter from. On the other hand, although it is not fact, many police authorities would agree that policewomen are better empathizers and sympathizers in cases concerning women and children - - as mentioned before, and that they tend to approach situations with a unique perspective; bringing different ideas and virtues to the table. For example, most female officers who are petite in stature, know they are unable to stop a physical confrontation, so in order to prevent the occurrence of a fight, will resort to communication to calm the situation. Not to say that males do not have compassion, but there is the maternal quality about females that juveniles feel more comfortable talking to rather than a big scary guy in uniform. (Miller, 2012) In other ways, female officers receive more respect than a male officer might. Patrol Officer Denelle Craul, of East Pennsboro Police Department believes, “Men are taught to respec...
Time may pass and personal morals may change, but one of the strengths of the United States of America is its unwavering dedication to justice. Throughout time, this country’s methods and laws have grown and adapted, but the basis of the law enforcement’s work has remained the same: the safety and interest of the people.
Something happened my sophomore year of high school that little did I know would change my perspective, not only of myself, but life in general. I was looking for something new and exciting to enhance my high school existence and decided to give the Criminal Justice Club a try. I was familiar with the advisor of the club, but knew that the club had astigmatism for attracting those students who were just looking for something easy to do. I knew about the criminal justice system, but only what they show on Law and Order. However, I immediately fell in love, not only with the club but the entire prospect of Criminal Justice. I stepped into the club as if it were a place I belonged and easily became a leader. I was able to learn things the TV shows
The battle my neighborhood in Brentwood faces is frightening, specifically for a minority society. Being that I come from various cities and states, I’ve noticed a shift from how a community comes together to support one another into a society that’s mainly about individualism. Accordingly, Brentwood has been known for their reputation of gang violence, drugs, and crimes including homicide. Just recently, four teenage boys were brutally manslaughter in the front and back of their vehicle by MS13 gang members. Prior to the incident, two young girls from Brentwood High School was murdered by the same gang. For this reason, a big issue we face in Brentwood is the security of us young kids and teenagers and safety of our beings.
In order to have effective policing I believe integrity and ethics play a huge part in helping build trust within communities. Sound conduct by police improves community interactions, enhances communication, and promotes shared responsibility for addressing crime and disorder. There are three ways that police departments can strengthen community relationships just by training officers about procedural justice, bias reduction, and racial reconciliation. If we implement these concepts, we can create an environment in which effective partnerships between the police and citizens can flourish.
Today in 2015, community policing is as relevant as it has ever been in the history of America policing as many law enforcement agencies across the country continue to try and build stronger relationships, and establish partnerships between police officers and the communities they serve, especially minority communities. Since the 1990’s and early 2000’s many police agencies have come to accept the concepts of community oriented policing, and have made great strides towards better community-police relations. Many departments now meet regularly with neighborhood groups, allow citizens to participate in citizen police academies, conduct forums to give citizens a better understanding of the duties of police officers and their actions. Some police departments require and encourage officer to get out of their patrol vehicle and initiate positive contact with the people on their beats (Shusta, Levine, Wong, Olson, & Harris, 2011). All of these efforts are important and relevant to community policing, which helps to remove and diminish negative images of police officers. Citizens are more willing to work hand in hand with police officers who are approachable, engaged, and take ownership in the neighborhoods they serve, which is what community policing is all
If I purse a career in the law enforcement I would face a moral dilemma between my religion and my career. If I use excessive force and accidentally kill someone in the process, it would be difficult for me to accept that fact. As stated in the 10 Commandments, it is forbidden to kill (Personal communication, E. Amero & K. Demas, Oct. 19, 2016). Religious ethics may not be applied in my future career because of the moral dilemma I may face. As a result, I’ve decided to pursue a career that will allow me to apply my religious ethics as well.