Police Brutality And Police Brutality

A great deal of society views law enforcement officers as heroic and honorable individuals, whose main purpose is to protect and serve the community. For many officers, this description is accurate, however for others; violence and brutality against innocent citizens is the key to getting the job done. For years, minorities have fallen victim to police brutality based on racial profiling, stereotypes and other unjustifiable reasons that has cost several innocent lives. The involvement of officers in police brutality against minority social groups causes tainted and negative views on policing and their overall duty to protect, when they are ultimately the aggressors in this case. Police brutality is a violent incident involving an officer and a victim, usually including excessive force, unnecessary violence and sometimes resulting in a senseless fatality. Minority groups such as African Americans and Hispanics have often been the victims of this form of abuse by officers, however little justice has been done in order to protect these individuals from this form of cruelty by the hands of those with the most power.

There is no question that police brutality, when it occurs, is one of the most egregious violations of public trust that a public servant can commit. Police officers, those individuals taxed with protecting the public from danger, should never be in a situation where they pose a threat to the public. Furthermore, there is no question that police brutality occurs. Moreover, generally when there are allegations of police brutality, there has been some type of underlying violent incident. In addition, while issues of brutality may seem clear-cut to a disinterested observer, it is critical to keep in mind that law enforcement officers are not presented with textbook examples of the appropriate or inappropriate use of force, but real-life scenarios involving quick decisions. There are many arrest and non-arrest scenarios where officers need to use force to protect self or others; and the degree of force required may be greater than what a disinterested observer would assume. Another recurrent issue in debates about police brutality is that racial bias appears to be a motive behind police brutality. When one considers that minorities are disproportionately likely to be arrested and convicted of crimes, one would expect to find a disproportionate number of minorities among those alleging police brutality. Therefore, while acknowledging that police brutality, when it occurs, is a serious problem, the reality is that most

It comes to the point where no one becomes safe as one walks outside the front door of the house. Leaving the minorities questioning if they will ever be safe in the streets again. Not everyone in the world is a criminal, but it only takes one person to ruin and blame the whole race. Police brutality is an everyday case and there has yet nothing to be done to help reduce nor stop the violence. Often people critic the duty and the responsibilities that a police officer has in this county. Their duty is far from just eating donuts and drinking coffee. The first thing someone does when they feel like their life or someone’s life is in danger, is call 911 expecting that the law enforcement appears on the scene in .0 seconds. Even then a

A controversial topic in today’s policing is whether police use reasonable force or excessive force in certain situations. By definition excessive force is any force beyond what’s necessary to arrest a suspect and keep police and bystanders safe. There have been a number of occasions where an officer has crossed the line and went farther then he or she needed to subdue the person getting arrested. With social media and the constant need to record things on camera many of these incidents have gone viral and caught the attention of the public. This can be helpful in certain cases and at the same time recording an officer puts him in a situation where he knows he is being recorded so he has to be mindful of what he says and does. That can cloud his judgement and put the bystanders in danger as well as himself.

Police officers are expected to serve and protect the people of the United States, however, in many cases police officers have abused their power and force. Police brutality has always been an issue in the United States, especially in the 60’s, where African Americans were not treated equally. A number of laws have been passed since then that protect every American from discrimination and racial profiling, but there are still cases of racial profiling by the police that seem to occur every year. Therefore, police brutality is a problem that needs to be addressed sooner rather than later.

In the United States, studies have shown that minority citizens, particularly African Americans, are the primary victims of police brutality. This use of excessive force, when utilized by law enforcement officers, encompasses a wide range of abusive practices – racial slurs, profanity, unnecessary searches, physical abuse, and even murder. According to a report by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, 313 African Americans were killed without trial by police, security guards, and vigilantes in 2012. In other words, one extrajudicial execution of a black person occurs every 28 hours. This tension between law enforcers and minorities is hardly new, as evident by the prevalent racial discrimination between blacks and whites throughout history – slavery, Jim Crow, and the civil rights movement. Although many Americans today believe that our nation is progressing into the “age of colorblindness,” blacks are three times more likely than whites to engage in police contact that result in the use of excessive force (Eith & Durose 12). The following pages will analyze how impoverished neighborhoods, negative stereotypes, and mass media contribute to the mutual antagonism between police and African Americans, ultimately setting the stage for violent conflicts. Furthermore, this paper will also investigate real-life examples of Rodney King and Michael Brown, as well as examine how American citizens have resisted against this racial oppression through both violent and peaceful campaigns.

History has shown that not only is police brutality and profiling nothing new—especially to minorities—but it is also a problem that is unlikely to go away. Some research hypothesized that due to the dynamics of our society, such as social and emotional variables, fighting police brutality is a losing battle. In their writing, Malcolm Holmes and Brad Smith (2017) concluded “the social circumstances that shape the emotional responses characteristic of police-minority interactions seem to make certain adverse outcomes inescapable, given the structure of inequality in America.” Police brutality and its relationship with minority communities has been the center of research beginning with the Wickersham Commission in 1931. (Ruffin, 2016) The Commission found officers routinely tortured and beat arrested citizens to obtain confessions. This regular practice had a negative effect on the opinion of law enforcement among minority communities.

A controversial topic for decades, one issue that has made a noticeable impact in modern day society, especially in the year of 2015, is that of police brutality. Stemming from deep-rooted and institutionalized racism within law enforcement and other surrounding fields, it has sparked a firestorm of opposition, with many American citizens up in arms over the target that’s been seemingly casted on the backs of the black community. Despite the various protocols that have been implemented as a means of placing a more critical eye on law enforcement, we are still seeing more and more cases of excessive police force being committed daily without any sort of justice for these victims. The idea that an officer on duty has more legal protection than that of a normal civilian must have some merit, as a study done by Cato Institute found that “When police officers are charged, they are convicted at a lower rate than people in the general populace.” (Elinson and Palazzolo). By granting these officers more rights and not holding them to same authoritative ruling regular citizens are ordered to follow, it allows for corruption and discrimination in the forces that are expected to help us. Without reprimanding the police for violation of conduct, we will continue to see the same issues arise for many years to come.

Police brutality refers to the intentional utilization of vituperations or extortionate force directed towards a country 's citizens by the police force. This extortionate force may be physical or in form of psychological dauntingness. Police brutality is highly evident in many countries all over the world especially in the news where such cases are reported. It is optically discerned as a form of police malfeasance which involves sexual abuse, police corruption, erroneous apprehends, racial profiling, and political repression. These forms of police brutality are mainly directed towards the vulnerably susceptible groups such as the poor, the impuissant and the elderly. Most of these police brutality actions are always linked to racism. Many countries have sanctioned their police force to utilize force in apprehending the suspects and withal in forfending themselves. They are however supposed to utilize plausible amounts of force in controlling any situation and in accomplishing their goals. Police brutality always contravenes the suspect 's constitutional rights and it should be ceased. This paper is going to discuss the police brutality; tolerance of police brutality in the society and ending police brutality (Socyberty.com, 2010).

In recent years, many believe that police brutality and the use of extreme force has become oblivious to the public eye. “Police brutality is the use of excessive and/or unnecessary force by police when dealing with civilians. Excessive use of force means a force well beyond what would be necessary in order to handle a situation.” (Wooden, 185). Members of our nation continue to shelter and protect themselves from criminals, but now they must be aware of the men and women that are supposed to be the “peace keepers”, who protect and serve. The horrific events in the last couple of years involving law enforcement agents that have prompted another go around of national reforms from human rights activists, politicians, and citizens will be discussed within this essay. Minority groups must be able to protect themselves from the police officers taking advantage of their powers as a law enforcement agent. But, with this distinguishable difference in power, the citizens are prominently at a standstill for justice.

The duties of law enforcement involve looking after the American people. As the Los Angeles Police Department puts it, it is the police’s duty to “Protect and Serve” the community. As Americans, we should expect to be able to rely on local police to solve our problems and bring peace and stability to society. Yet, as current events have shown, these promises are not always fulfilled. Since the late 1960s, America has begun to grow from a racially segregated nation, into one of unity and equality. Today there is no doubt that immense progress has been made, however events involving our law enforcement and minorities has seemed to halt such progress. Police brutality continues to be a major issue nationwide with the

The subject of police brutality and violence was just a topic for music in the past; it is still alive and strong in music today. A rapper named lil boosie wrote a modern version of NWA’s F*ck Tha Police called, F*ck The Police. The song is mostly about the endless threats, humiliations, and violations experienced at the hand of vicious cops. (Clover) In the chorus of the song he raps, “We don’t need you bitches on our street, stay away from me.” He is so against police that he thinks our streets would be safer without police. The rapper doesn’t want the police to help him, that is how much he hates cops. He also states, “Without a badge, you’re just a bitch.”(Clover) He wasn’t holding anything back when writing this song. You can really feel

Police misconduct is the process of committing a crime and/or not following police department policy guidelines and regulations in the course of one’s officer duties. Many believe that police misconduct is in cases few and far apart, and because of the Civil Rights Movement of 1964, there is no reason to question officer’s racial bias. Some argue that excessive police force is justified, or that the murder of unarmed black men is okay because of their “questionable characters.” Other individuals may also argue that police brutality is just a “fact of life” and an “occasional slip-up” without a solution, or even a need for one. Police brutality is a real, persistent problem in the United States. Each year thousands of innocent people, specifically

Over the years, racism and police brutality have become controversial topics among the society. The main reason for this is because they both go hand and hand. Even though officers are faced with many threatening situations everyday forcing them to make split second decisions, racism and racial profiling are the main cause for police brutality rates and the government should start doing things to stop it because many innocent people are getting hurt and killed because of their race and what law officials assume. Is it ok for a police officer to pull over a black driver for a simple traffic offense and use excessive force while searching them? But doesn't do the same to a white person? Black Americans are overwhelming faced with corruption,

A common issue presented in today’s national media is police brutality. Police brutality is the use of unnecessary force on civilians by police. The concept of having police officers is to ensure safety and protection of citizens. Police should only use force necessary to accomplish their lawful purpose. The common occurrence of police brutality has sparked responses nationwide in the form of protests, riots, and movements to end the excessive and sometimes fatal force of police officers. The public rallies are also in response to lack of conviction or repercussions of many of the cops who demonstrate unjust police brutality. These incidents are also commonly associated with racial disparity. The headline news stories of the shooting and killing of unarmed African Americans, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and twelve year old Tamir Rice, all in the same year, prompted citizens nationwide that change in the law enforcement system is necessary. While a majority of police abide to their oaths and stand for justice, a noticeable amount have historically misused their power. If a community cannot trust police officers, it will be detrimental for society as a whole.