How would you feel if you were a minority and were unjustly harmed while being arrested or even while you were in court being prosecuted? Yes, a crime was committed, but that does not give the right to officers , in any way, to physically harm the criminal, especially if it is a mild crime. The job of the officer is to calmly arrest the criminal, if resistance occurs, then the officer may use small amount of force, but not force that will lead to eventual or complete death.The criminal justice system discriminates against other races that are not caucasian. Therefore, by defining the necessity to understand that the criminal justice system is discriminatory, by refuting counter arguments of those that claim that the criminal justice system …show more content…
However, having power does not mean one should take advantage of it. This past year of 2015, there has been multiple incidents in which African Americans have been the victims of police brutality and of many white individuals. Public media and communications show mostly African Americans dying in the hands of police, but yet other races like such as Hispanics suffer at their hands too. The media does not show that because Hispanics cannot protest against the justice system, like as Africans do, for if they do, they will be severely punished with, in most cases, deportation. In fact, police brutality this year has caused a revolution and protest to be even more recognized than before. “Black Lives Matter” is the campaign that initiated in 2012 after Trayvon Martin’s murder and they “talk about the ways Black lives are deprived of their basic human rights and …show more content…
The same goes for the victims of these horrible crimes committed against race. It seems as though African males are the targeted ones in “hate crimes”. Trayvon Martin, a seventeen year old teen from Florida who was killed by George Zimmerman for appearing suspicious(Library,CNN), Darrin Manning,16, genitals were ripped of when he was frisked by a female officer (Mail Online), and the Charleston Historic Black Church shooting in the summer of 2015 are some of the cases that have made it to the headlines. According to an article from the Huffington Post, “The longer the sentence, the more likely it is that non-white people will be the ones getting it. A July 2009 report by the Sentencing Project found that two-thirds of the people in the US with life sentences are non-white. In New York, it is 83%”(The Huffington Post ‘Fourteen..’). Laquan McDonald’s killer, Officer Jason Van Dyke, has been charged with first-degree murder. Anita Alvarez, the state attorney for Cook County said, “He abused his authority, and I don’t believe the use of force was necessary,”(Washington Post). Officer Van Dyke’s attorney “said the officer feared for his life when he opened fire”(Washington Post). If officers are going to fear for their life and use weapons, then should they be allowed to protect the
African American’s still are thought to be discriminated against by law enforcement, according to recent scenarios which have occurred. For example, Eric Garner was seen to have been physically abused by police and many of the public believe this is because he was African American. Though racism is less common today, it is still relevant and apparent in society. Violence is still used by both individuals and law enforcement, as well as as a form of protest in some circumstances. Though there is still some violent-protests present today, for humanitarian reasons this form of protesting has become less common throughout all of the ethnic
The justice system is in place in America to protect its citizens, however in the case of blacks and some other minorities there are some practices that promote unfairness or wrongful doing towards these groups. Racial profiling is amongst these practices. In cases such as drug trafficking and other criminal acts, minorities have been picked out as the main culprits based off of skin color. In the article “Counterpoint: The Case Against Profiling” it recognizes racial profiling as a problem in America and states, “[In order to maintain national security] law-enforcement officers have detained members of minority groups in vehicles more than whites”…. “these officers assume that minorities commit more drug offenses, which is not the case” (Fauchon). In relationship to law enforcement there has also been many cases of police brutality leaving young blacks brutally injured, and even dead in recent years, cases such as Michael Brown, Dontre Hamilton, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and Freddy Gray just to name a few. Many of these young men were unarmed, and the police involved had no good justification for such excess force. They were seen as threats primarily because of their skin color. Despite the fact this nation is trying to attain security, inversely they are weakening bonds between many of its
In today’s society, police officers are very cautious on how much force they can use on a suspect due to the police brutality going on right now. Police brutality is defined as the use of force exceeding what is necessary, many people argue that there should be new policies to determine how much force a police officer can use and also have laws that will convict officers who have killed people by using too much force, so that there is less incidents in the future.
Holmes, Malcolm D. "Minority threat and police brutality: Determinants of civil rights criminal complaints in US municipalities." Criminology 38.2 (2000): 343-368.
Police brutality has been an apparent mark on the struggles, trials, and tribulations of people of minorities for years, primarily Black people. From the times of slavery to the present unlawful targeting and murders of black citizens with no justification, police brutality has been an enema in Black American culture for hundreds of years. Seen both in James Baldwin’s “Going to Meet the Man” and in the current happenings of the United States. The hashtag “#BlackLivesMatter” has been a focal point in the current struggle for equality of the races. The current outpouring of support for black lives and
To illustrate, majority of blacks are stop by police more than any other racial groups. Police brutality is base on ethnicity. Officers seem to target black communities for many reasons. Racist cops might view blacks as less innocent compared to whites. Growing up as an African American you witness hearing your parents telling your male siblings to respect officers and to interact with them differently than they would do their families and friends. After the fatal shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. The public wanted justice because the incident was not handled properly. The people wanted to express their concerns. After this incident I remember more allegation from black communities begin surfacing that the police use excessive force against them,
America as a people gloat when it comes to our freedoms we think we have it better than every other country out there but the protectors of our freedom are becoming fear and hated because of the injustices committed by certain officers. Some say life of an officer is hard because they do not know if they will ever see their family again after they drive out of their house in the morning, others might say every officer knows what they were signing up for so they should not be pitied. Police officers face dangers everyday but profiling and racially motivated brutality is not justifiable and officers should be severely punished for committing these crimes.
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 America, police brutality affects and victimizes people of color mentally and socially. Social injustice has become a major issue, which involved 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. The three key deaths of Eric Garner, Philando Castile, and Alton Sterling have become the face of police brutality in the year 2016. People knew that it was unequal treatment of black people by police in the United States and they made it known by creating #BlackLivesMatter.
For many years in the past, police action particularly police abuse, has come to be unclear. Citizens are worried about protecting them from criminals. In fact they need to me aware of the corrupt police officers that are in the streets today as well as the criminals. There are many examples that make police brutality the worst as it is today. This one is one of them. Police Officer Daniel is in the choke hold death of Eric Garner, come in the wake if November 15th by the channel 24 news in Ferguson Missouri, police officer would walk free after killing 10 year old Michael Brown. (www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-32740523) In the present police brutality does exist in the mist of us in the time and age we live in everyday. We just haven’t seen it yet. There are people that think if a police
Firstly, a person’s race comes into play too often. People of color are more likely to entangle themselves in the justice system. Consider that the arrest rate and disparity of African American and Hispanic people are much higher. Police “stops and searches” are proof of racial profiling. A study conducted in Connecticut proved the racial disparity by showing that more people of specific races are pulled over during the day, but not at night because they cannot be seen. Also, a glimpse at the people serving time provides a vivid example of the racial inequalities seen throughout legal situations. When the Brown vs Board of Education case was won, there was around 100,000 African Americans in jail and currently there are at least 800,00 in prison. Black men are six times more likely to get incarcerated as white men and Hispanics are 2.3 times more likely (“18 Examples of”). Additionally, before the sentencing even begins these individuals are at a disadvantage. These communities have worse odds of making bail, in contrast to white defendants. This implies that they include the greater parts of those who are imprisoned before their trial even begins, placing even the innocent in jail for longer than needed. Overall, a person’s race or skin color should not produce a lower quality of
Police brutality and racism are an ongoing problem in our country. It goes back hundreds of years with no sign of it stopping. Police officers have been abusing their power since they have been around. Abuse against African American males by white police officers is getting out of hand. Most officers face no punishment at, and all there is a special code that they follow. Officers follow The “Blue Code of Silence”, which is a code that means they look out for one another. Even with video recording devices, the news, and social media, these events still go on. African Americans take most of the abuse and it looks like there is no end to this. This is a reflection on our society, and it makes us look ignorant to what is going on around us.
This article that I have chosen is a perfect example of why officers commit police brutality on people especially minorities. Racial profiling by officers must also end because not everyone in a certain race is a criminal. What I have read in the text complements the information about police brutality that this article provides because they both explain why officers go after minorities due to them assuming the person is going to fight back. This article also complements the in class discussions on this subject.
I strongly believe, it can go both ways. My reason for saying its a good idea because there is always two sides to every story. Although, there has been numerous headline articles based on police brutality. Before the situation escalated, viewers will see the cause and effect of the situation. I believe a lot of the negative feedback will decrease because the media and viewers could see how life really is while being a police officer. Police officers has a job to do everyday they step foot out their doors. Today, in society many people don't respect the police, I've witnessed it. If a police officer demand you to do something, just do it. Randomly capturing live videos action worn by a police officer, the community will have an opportunity
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