Fear Of Police Brutality

Police brutality is defined as “excessive and/or unnecessary force by police when dealing with civilians,” and this has become more prominent within the United States throughout the years (Danilina). There has many cases where police brutality has been seen via news channels, and it has dismantled the unity of trust between the civilians of the United States and the law enforcement who are supposed to protect the everyday people from harm. The issue is if the law enforcement is actually right within their means of protection, or have they gone too far with using excessive force in any situation that may or may not be harmful to them. There is, also, the question of whether racial profiling is the biggest contributor to 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

The violence that some officers exude to minorities should only be used in extreme, desperate situations not when a teen steals some cigars or is walking home with a hood on. Besides showing an interest in racial justice and issues of race helps to break down barriers, exposed as false perceived misunderstandings, and shed light on commonly held perceptions of a race-infused

The brutality of the police force has been a long worldwide problem, but especially between the years of 2012-2016. Black people are being unjustly beaten and shot in plain sight for doing nothing while being unarmed. Journal of African American Studies “Blacks are viewed as deserving of harsh treatment in the criminal justice system” (482). “Black males with more “Afrocentric” features may receive longer sentences than blacks with less Afrocentric features like lighter skin and straighter hair”(482). Nowadays it is important to know about the police force. It’s important to know our rights as citizens and be careful around cops. Not everybody is good, but not everybody is bad also. In The New York Amsterdam News 21 people were killed by Chicago police in 2008. Entire families were being attacked. They believe it’s because of their skin color and how they are different. The year of racism started off with the world seeing the police murder of Oscar Grant. “The media have pushed people away from hearing the issue of police brutality, and it has fallen off of the radar screen.”(2) “You can’t give in. They will try to make an example out of you, try to break your spirit!”(2) African Americans say do not trust the cops with anything. “They will ruin you.”(2)

Police brutality is a controversial issue that has recently been in the news, but seems to have always been an issue in America. Police brutality refers to the intentional use of verbal or physical attacks directed towards individuals by the police force that result in false arrests, sexual abuse, or death. (Dudley, William 13.) Most of these actions are linked to racial profiling: the targeting of individuals for suspicion of crime based solely on the individual’s race, ethnicity, religion, or national origin. (Dudley, William 13.) Statistics about how often racial profiling and police brutality occurs, movements such as Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter, and police reform efforts are just a few points as to why this topic is so controversial today.

Police brutality is becoming a trend in America. Tensions among the public and especially the African American community are rising due to the latest cases of police brutality. Many people believe that we have come far in this society but to be honest Racism is still a factor. The use of brutal and lethal force by some police officers leading to unnecessary deaths have African American parents on edge to send their children outside for anything. Law enforcement and people whom we trust with our lives are the very same to take it. Some people may want to argue that these cases such as the shooting of Michael brown and choking of Eric Garner are isolated incidents. Others would argue that the work of a police officer is too difficult and that sometimes an officer needs to use such force in order to enforce the law and protect him/herself while on duty. Law enforcement proclaims to feel threatened however what about the civilians who feel threatened of becoming the next target or victim of prey. The society is well aware that not all police commit these crimes and that we do still have law abiding officers. However, with the effort from everyone we can eradicate the bad apples and create a safer road for the officers and civilians.

Throughout the last one hundred and fifty years, there has been a history of tension and conflict between the police and minority communities in the United States. In principle, the police exist to enforce the law and protect all citizens regardless of race or ethnic background, yet police departments across the country have been repeatedly accused of targeting and harassing racial minorities, and of failing to root out racist attitudes and practices within their ranks. In recent years, high profile cases such as the beating of Rodney King in Los Angles and the assault on Abner Louima in New York have only served to heighten concerns over the mistreatment of minorities by the police, resulting in widespread calls for major legal and institutional reforms. The recent shootings of Michael Brown, Ezell Ford, Eric Garner, and Terrance Crutcher underscore the danger Black men and boys face when they cross paths with law enforcement officers. In the absence of a coordinated national strategy, state and local police departments have largely been left to develop their own solutions to the problems of policing minority communities and improving cultural sensitivity amongst their officers. Many departments have sought to reform recruitment and selection policies in the hope of attracting greater numbers of minority applicants, while others have instituted diversity training and education programs aimed at improving police understanding of minority cultures and communities. To date, however, these efforts have yielded mixed results. Some departments have achieved notable successes, but on the whole, relations between the police and minority communities across the country remain strained. of cultural diversity and the police.

Racial disparities occur in arrests, stops and use of force. A report on the Minnesota police department found that Black people are stopped more than twice as much as they should be, for their share of the population(4); In Ferguson it was found that police arrest black people at a rate three times higher, than their share of the population, and “At least 1,581 other police departments across the USA arrest black people at rates even more skewed than in Ferguson” (5). Force was also found to be used at more disproportionate rates against black people. It was found that blacks are 50% more likely to experience “use of force”(6). These are clear cases of racism in the police force, it shows that there is bias rooted in all enforcement actions. It would be statistically impossible for these disparities to exist, without some element of racism in many actions and levels of the police force, and the only way to change this is to completely reconstruct how enforcement is carried

The law of this world tells one to get rich but kills you when you try to make ends meet, one is told to stand up straight and be loud but sets your skin against you when your pride gets a little too loud. Over the past decade, police brutality has been an extremely controversial issue as it is a serious violation of the basic human and civil rights of American citizens. These actions of severe beatings, fatal chokings, and unjustified shootings have caused an outburst from the minority communities which has made it easy for many to be fooled through the language of persuasion.

“All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these, are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Deplorable, though, is the fact that people of color have systematically had their liberty violated unceasingly throughout our history. Fifty-two years ago, in his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, Martin Luther King, Jr. declared, “We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.” Uttered decades ago, these words should have no pertinence in today’s society; yet they still ring loud and reveal the same plight that people of color share today. The real argument, though, is that under the constitution, police have no legal right to rob people of color, or any people for that matter, of their civil liberties; however, people of color are continually targeted, and are treated with such an abysmal impertinence that it should no longer go unnoticed.

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 part of getting the job done. For years, minorities have fallen victim to police brutality based on racial profiling, stereotypes and other

Police brutality is not a new subject. It has been around for numerous years, and like most issues, has resurfaced to the public’s eyes. The recent events brought up the question: Does there need to be a reform in the system in the police system? In this year alone, there have been countless cases of individuals being harmed or even killed by police officers for reasons that continuously are not explained. What has people more attentive to this injustice are statistics showing that most victims in these police attacks happen to be African Americans and other minorities.

Police brutality is an ongoing problem in the United States. Law enforcement agents are there to protect the public for they have the legal right to use physical, and even deadly, force. However, many of these officers abuse of that power. In the past year, there have been more than 900 cases of police abuse. Most of the victims have been innocent, unarmed, and/or of color. Police brutality is becoming more and more of an issue as society keeps growing. This nationwide problem could be solved in many ways, but having peaceful protests and by educating our police officers about racial differences are two good possible solutions.

The United States of America is a country with a history built on diversity and promise of opportunity. Striving to blend multiple cultures and sectors of individuals into a melting pot. However, some state that it has failed citizens, as even after a century of attempting to not see colour African Americans continue to struggle to be viewed as equal and not be discriminated against. In our modern day, "racially open" societies, racial profiling towards African American men can be witnessed frequently in their everyday life. American citizens have witnessed countless cases of police brutality and in recent unlawful murders of black lives, it has become a controversial topic among communities that have seen police brutality take place on their local newsrooms or in front of their homes. 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, yet a great amount of the population feels unsafe because of the colour of their skin. Racism is a global issue that is widely conversed, yet it is still a growing concern amongst the nations of the world. Racial discrimination and/or can be defined as any action, whether intentional or not, based on a person’s race, which has the effect of imposing hate towards an individual or group. As the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity