In contemporary society, the choice to conform seems effortless compared to any other challenging actions. Drabble’s claim in 2001 The American Scholar, “Our desire to conform is greater than our respect for objective facts,” holds a great deal of truth. Within our political spectrum and societal standards Drabble’s claim distinctly emerges. Foremost, the U.S. political spectrum embodies several examples supporting Drabble’s assertion. Police brutality issues hold vital accuracy to her claim, the constant abuse of power harms a great deal of black Americans along with other people of color. With all the present evidence (videos, eyewitnesses, statistics, etc) of police harming and/or killing mainly black Americans, this becomes an objective …show more content…
(Kahn, etal. 2015). Yet, as a society, no mass change has taken place considering the known racism within these systems. Most of public society views the option to “leave it to the law” as easier, because it is; the mainstream media mainly encourages it, so conforming to those standards has prevailed. FBI statistics that display how black Americans are three times more likely to be shot by police than white Americans are clear objective facts, nonetheless, rarely any change takes place. The choice to conform requires almost no effort and does not challenge anything, which propels most to follow the standard of ignorance. Specifically with politicians, our last election, wikileaks presented objective facts of corruption within the DNC and with candidate Hillary Clinton. Instead of a mass rejection to this, most Americans tolerated the overt corruption/lies while mainstream media downplayed the issue. Playing into the standard to conform, no respect appeared given to the clear facts in the released emails. Onto the Flint crisis, an objective fact: they
Police brutality is one of the most serious and divisive human rights violations in the United States and it occurs in every community. The job of a police officer is to maintain public order, prevent, and detect crime. They are engaged in a dangerous and stressful occupation that can involve violent situations that must be controlled. In many of these confrontations with the public it may become necessary for the police to administer force to take control of a situation. Sometimes this force takes the form of hand to hand combat with a suspect who resists being arrested. Not all police officers in communities are good cops. At least once a year the news is covering a story about a person
The heated issue of police brutality and police officers violating civil rights has extensively covered media headlines for several years. Hundreds of people are killed every year by police officers, and many of these cases bring up issues of police brutality. More often than not, it is usually a white police officer and an african american offender encounter that sparks media attention. The shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri is just one of these cases that has caused a major divide in the United States. Michael Brown was fatally shot by Officer Wilson after an unfriendly encounter in the streets. Those who believe that Officer Wilson made the right decision in shooting Michael Brown, point to the fact that the grand jury chose not to indict him. Although Darren WIlson was not charged after the shooting of unarmed Michael Brown, some people believe that his actions were unlawful and he should have received some sort of punishment for his wrongdoing. Acknowledging all of the facts of the investigation, Officer Wilson did not act properly in the circumstances of the time.
For example, 76% of crime report in local news stations in Chicago depicted a black perpetrator for their leading stories (Entman, 1990). This coverage works to provide stereotypes on the assumption of black people as dangerous, sub-human, and inherently criminal. Moreover, in comparison to white criminals who were not shown in holding or mug shots, black criminals are frequently shown handcuffed in police holding (Entman, 1990) The association of black people with symbols of menace increases the apprehensive and negative beliefs required for systemic racism (Entman, 1990). As a result of extensive circulation of negative stereotypes, it becomes imbedded in the social psyche that violence and discrimination are reasonable merits to be employed against these people as they are seen as a threat to social stability. In effect, there is little accountability for violence against blacks by members of law enforcement and many officers are not indicted for the murder of blacks, or else face menial sentences (Chancey& Robertson, 2015). The underlying attitude of disregard towards black lives enables institutionalized racism, which is transferred to the general public, and is justified by the negative stereotypes fabricated by the ruling white class (Chancey& Robertson, 2015). For example, from “January 1
Police brutality is a topic that everybody confers to emphasize the burgeoning fear of the police. This comes in the form of excessive force which becomes a controversial topic for citizens and police alike. The nation has it’s own definition of what excessive force may be, as some believe using a Taser has the same intention as using a nightstick to apprehend scoundrels. Others may ascribe excessive force as a race crime; “In March 2015, the DOJ also issued a report detailing a pattern of clear racial disparities and discriminatory intent on the part of the Ferguson, Mo., police department”(Excessive or Reasonable Force by Police) resulting in uneasiness between the multiple groups regardless of their age; interestingly officers are also affected by the disparity of the community. The judgement they receive can actually affect how an officer decides to act because they
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.
Throughout numerous centuries police brutality has been a consecutive issue in the world. But rather than trying to help solve the conflict, governments ignore the cruelty that goes on in the police department by police officers such as killing, beating and abusing their power on innocent civilians and incarcerated people. What’s bazaar is that the reasons it happens, police officers target minorities and inmates to perform these cruel acts of behavior being they know that they are the most vulnerable in this society. Maybe if the government was more involved in these complications; there would be more of a sense hope to solve and prevent this matter. If the government were to place certain laws and consequences that would be followed by police officers this could seize the thought that being a police officer you can do what you want considering as we can see today most cops get off on petty convictions or with no conviction at all. They need to change the way the courts try officers, the way the academy train them, or even show a sense of care for their citizens then police brutality could eventually vanish.
Do people know that there are more than 900,000 law enforcements that serve across the U.S. at any given time over the course of the year according to Time magazine? One can imagine the amount of citizens that lose their lives due to police brutality.Police Brutality should be stopped because most of the time the victim is unarmed and attacked without reason, Police Departments know officers are targeting and are not stopping it and in many cases the officer is put back on the streets without punishment.
The problem that needs to be solved is police brutality and the deep fears that the young minority generation harbors against the police. Children and teenagers used to look up to and admire officers of the law. They used to dream to be a police officer one day. Some children still may view them in this positive light; however, now that outlook has changed. Teenagers today are shaping their ideas and thoughts of the world at a time when every week they see images of excessive force, physical abuse or unnecessary death by the hands of the police. I should not be afraid to go through a routine traffic stop. I should not have the thought cross my mind that will I just get a traffic ticket or is this the last time I they will speak to my family. I should not always be prepared to start recording events on my phone when a police officer is nearby. Police officers judge and
Police brutality has been an issue for many years; it remains a major concern for those of the minorities. Police brutality is defined as the use of any force that is not reasonably necessary to accomplish a lawful police purpose (Fritz 2003). There are four main causes that contribute to the police brutality towards African Americans; those of which include racial bias, faulty police recruitment, and an authoritarian mindset.
Police brutality has been a major problem for years now. just now American citizens are able to see because of technology and social media. Throughout everything citizens have seen or heard they have never heard about police brutality against military men. Until the death of Sergeant James Brown. Sgt. Brown reported to El Paso, Texas county jail for a two-day sentence because he was driving under the influence or intoxicated while driving . While serving this sentences cops say that Sgt. Brown refused to speak with guards so guards called in their riot team. As the riot team approaches they remove Mr. Brown from his cell and places him in a chair with a spitting mask over his face. During the process Sgt. Brown yells out twenty times “I Can’t
What gives someone the right to put forcefully put there hands on someone without a person’s consent ? What gives someone the right to think they can take advantage of other people , because they think they’re above the law ? Or is it because they think they have the right because they have a badge ? Either way shouldn’t all people be punished the same for doing something wrong ? Or do certain people just get away with crimes because they wear a police uniform.
The general argument made in the article is that over the years there have been so many accounts of police brutality against students that haven’t been acknowledged. More specifically it argues that police officers that don’t know how to handle large crowds or protests in a nonviolent way then they should have to go back to school to learn better ways. It states "Tear-gassing students while they sought refuge in their rooms was an act of terror by the police. Someone has to explain and justify why they needed to chase the students from the hostels. Chase them to where?" In this passage it is suggesting that police brutality needs to be ended and those officers who have commited these acts should be held accountable. In conclusion, its belief
When I argue with someone about a topic, I notice that I am hardly listening to what they are saying. I am more focused on proving my point, and I disagree before the opposing argument is even presented. People tend to stick to their beliefs. In addition, if people find a flaw within their beliefs then, they either ignore it or find something that in their mind justifies their views. This is the type of behavior that I have seen on the Internet. For instance, the topic of police brutality is one that has been all over social media this year. Hashtags like Sandra Bland, Michael Brown, and Ferguson have trended on Twitter, and they are proof that some people are tired of police brutality. However, there are also certain people who believe that
Brutality incidents for whites have had a shorter-term effect than that of a black person. By reviewing answers of both populations it’s evident that because the white community is not the one being constantly abused they tend to have a one-sided care. Their one-sided care is formed by the simple fact that police are taking advantage of their authority yet they don’t fully pay mind to how the mind’s of black people are being molded into fear.
Over the past few years the minority community has been impacted indefinitely by decisions Federal Court officials have made in regards to police violence There has been a numerous of incidents where law enforcement officers have acquitted of killing unarmed black men. For example, Alton Sterling, Freddy Gray, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Walter Scott are just few of many unarmed men victims of police brutality, and have not received any justice. These series of events sparked the Black Lives Matter Movement which goal is to fight system racism and oppression amongst people of color. Upon the formulation of this movement, it has received a lot of criticism from opposing sides. Black Lives Matter started as a #hashtag in 2013 after the death of Trayvon Martin and now has developed into a full functioning organization.