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How race plays a role in police brutality
How race plays a role in police brutality
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What does an Alien, Big Foot, and Police Brutality all have in common? They are all hoaxes of society. Quick judgement is a characteristic of everyone in today’s day and age. We are often repeat-offenders of “judging books by their covers” and “making fun of their names without knowing their stories.” With our public opinion already skewed when it comes to the discussion of police officers, we often label their actions as “police brutality.” To clear things up, the only justification a “pig” will ever need is the badge on his or her chest. The same officers that prioritize are safety beyond theirs are being falsely accused of unlawful manner under the scrutiny of the same people that they protect. This skewed viewpoint needs to be redirected …show more content…
Most “police brutality” has been geared towards black people. In fact, over 336 black people in the U.S. have been killed by police officers. In addition, black people are 3 times more likely to be killed by police than white people. I believe the only way to combat the issue of police brutality without making it a race-specific issue (because white people have been victims) is to get rid of police officers all together. With the extraction of this form of law enforcement, police brutality shall no longer exist. It is as simple as an algebraic equation: police brutality - police = brutality. No longer will we have to deal with the issues presented by police officers. We can also move our focus onto more pressing issues that are actually real. First off, the distrust with government is a big deal in the United States. Every year, the decline of public trust in government has been rising. In 2014, public trust was mapped at 24% which is an alarming percentage. How were we ever expected to trust the core of government if we could not even trust the lowest level of government, the police officers? Now, with the extraction of police, we can rebuild our relationship with the government to the heights once seen under President
There are quite a few cases involving police brutality going on today. The reason it is such a hot issue is due to the violence against minorities, but especially the African Americans. Police brutality is defined as “the unnecessary force by police officer against citizens, resulting in injury” (Peak, 1947, p. 162). That is the most worldwide view of police brutality because a lot of individuals are either injured or killed while the police are trying to apprehend them. The way this issue can be addressed if we look at, is it excessive force or acceptable force and what can be done to prevent people dying by the hands of the police.
Police brutality has been a significant issue for many years.. The people affected by this most of all, are people of color. They are subject to racial inequality by the police and the justice system every day. They are being killed everyday simply for existing. The excessive force used by the police specifically towards African Americans is continuous; with the justice system doing close to nothing to change that. This is one of the reasons they continue to kill and harass African Americans. According to Propublica, young black males are about twenty times more likely to be shot and killed by the police than their white peers are. Murderers are walking free, and innocent lives are being taken. Over the past couple of years, thousands of people have been killed on the hands of the police, both black and white.
Police brutality is hypocrisy; as the police are meant to protect society from harm, not cause further damage and stress. Police should be trained properly so they do not resort to violence and abuse of power. Many cases of police brutality and not sanctioned and are undertaken by a group of police as a form of "mob mentality". Police are placed on a pedestal of authority and respect by the rest of society. To maintain this image, rules and codes of ethics within the police force should be maintained at all possible times. If police are using brutality to resolve issues, it doesn't set much of an example of dispute resolution between individuals. Over the past decade police abuse remains one of the most serious human rights violation in the United States. Police officers are trusted and expected to respect society as a whole and enforce the law. There is a time a place for aggressive force if needed, apprehending a suspect, however the environment and situation might influence the moment thus resulting in the brutal and barbaric behavior from the cop. The important thing to do is to understand the circumstances when excessive force can be used and times where the use of force has to be abstained. Police officers follow a strict guideline in how to handle encounters from escalating into something much more serious. The use of excessive force, in this case police brutality brings liabilities that cannot be taken lightly with the department and the community. Usually the high crime rates tend to revolve around low-income minority areas and officers tend to assume that minorities living in the areas are guilty. Police brutality that does exist is most likely result of emotional exhaustion.
For many individuals, police brutality is a non-existent matter because it does not directly affect them or the community in which they live. Yet for others, this is an everyday occurrence and few limitations have been set as to what is unjust and malicious behavior of an officer towards the public, therefore, several officers are rarel...
In America, police brutality affects and victimizes people of color mentally and socially. Social injustice has become a major issue, which involves the principle of white supremacy vs minorities. The current police brutality that has been occurring is culturally disconnecting ethnicities from one another. According to Cincinnati Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell, “.the cultural disconnect is very real; you have the weight of generations of abuse on African Americans,” (Flatow, 2016). For example, over the past four years, there have been countless acts of police brutality.
One large factor that fuels police brutality is the media. The media is constantly showing the world what police officers are doing wrong. The book “The Politics of Force: Media and the Construction of Police Brutality”, is a book where author Regina Lawrence does an extensive study on how the media ties in with the formation of police brutality. Lawrence analyzed more than 500 incidents of police use-of-force covered by the New York Times and in the Los Angeles Times from the year 1981 to 1991. Lawrence informs readers of the structural and cultural forces that both shape the news and define when police use excessive force. Lawrence claims that police brutality incidents occur in greater numbers than those that are reported. She also explores how media is obtained, so the public can see a new perspective on policing policies. Journalists decide whether one story makes it to the news if the issues and events need light shone upon them. If it were not for the media, many issues and events would go undocumented, as police and elected officials would rather leave them unexposed. Lawrence also shows how a news event involving the police can become a tool for isolated social groups to gain access to the
Police brutality is a negative thing to think about everyday about the men and wemon that are supposed to protect and serve they swore to protect and make sure all of the laws are being followed in the past, present, and future. There isn’t anything you can do to stop the bad police officers to protect yourself other then the law that you have to fight to bring justice to the court. The youngest person that has experienced police brutality and lost their life was a 12 year old and the oldest was 65, but more than 100 victims were unknown.
Police Brutality Police work is dangerous. Sometimes police put in situations that excessive force is needed. But, because some officers use these extreme measures in situations when it is not, police brutality should be addressed. The use of excessive force may or may not be large problem, but it should be looked into by both the police and the public. For those people who feel racism is not a factor in causing the use of excessive force, here is a startling fact. In Tampa Bay, Florida, five men died while in the custody of the
Attention Getter: Are all the officers who are intended to "Protect and Serve" really following through with that?
Police brutality has become one of the hot topics within the media within the past few years. It’s always been around but its being discussed and speculated now more than ever, because of technology like cell phones, people are able to record what is happening, which furthers the attention of the police’s over excessive force within their communities. Still even with cellphone footage of cops killing these innocent people, they get acquitted and get put on leave from their job with pay until all of it blows over and they begin working again. Some cops believe that because they’re hiding behind a badge, they get a pass at murdering people and call it self-defense and refuse to take responsibility for their actions, which is a technique of neutralization. Minorities, especially African-Americans suffer many injustices from law enforcement especially in terms of being killed, brutalized, and longer jail sentences
When hearing the phrase “police brutality,” many people imagine batons cracking skulls, tasers electrocuting bodies and bullets penetrating innocent teens. While police officers have been known to use violence, police brutality does not occur as often as many believe. In many situations, officers have to act on impulse and curiosity, despite the backlash the media may create.
Chaney and Robertson, (2013) stated that “The Department of Justice office of Civil Rights has investigated more than a dozen police departments in major cities across the country on allegations of racial discrimination or police brutality”. Police brutality is defined as the use of excessive physical force or verbal assault and psychological intimidation. White police officers who grew up in the south and were raised to see African Americans in a negative way have a lower opinion of them. However, not all white police officers are from the south, some say that police officers are just abusing their power. When we look at what is going on around the country, it appears racism plays a part in police brutality. Even during this new digital age, there are video cameras in police cars facing the front of the vehicle, but that still does not hinder police using excessive
This goes against the code of ethics that law enforcement officers were swore in to protect. Illegal search and seizure also ties in with the feeling of superiority. Some officers believe that their badges give them the power to handle civilians roughly and ignore their constitutional rights. For example, most traffics stops result in illegal and search seizures. Officers use the superior state previously stated to scare civilians in to exiting their vehicles and searching without probable cause. This practice is crossing many boundaries including the civilians’ constitutional rights and the boundaries law enforcement officers’ ethical
Police brutality is an act that often goes unnoticed by the vast majority of white Americans. This is the intentional use of “excessive force by an authority figure, which oftentimes ends with bruises, broken bones, bloodshed, and sometimes even death” (Harmon). While law-abiding citizens worry about protecting themselves from criminals, it has now been revealed that they must also keep an eye on those who are supposed to protect and serve.
Officer safety is extremely important. If police are incapacitated, who will be left to protect the people in the future? Along with such indoctrination, ethical indoctrination is paramount. The department must understand that the citizens trust the police to be ethical, and a breach of that trust is unjust. Further, it is not practical to act unethically.