Police brutality against black men in America is thought to be something that does not exist anymore due to the civil rights movement in 1955-1968. Unfortunately, a statistic shows a black suspect is killed by a white police officer twice a week. (McKay) “While African-Americans constitute 13.1% of the nation’s population, they make up nearly 40% of the prison’s population. Even though African-Americans use or sell drugs about the same rate as whites, they are 2.8 to 5.5 times more likely to be arrested for drugs than whites.” (Hudson) These statistics confirm that not only are black people more like to be victims of fatal police brutality, they are also more likely to be convicted for a crime as well. Many police are accused of racial profiling. “43% of the shootings” involving a white police officer and a black suspect “occurred after an incident of racial profiling.” (Hudson) Racial profiling is defined as "police officers stop motorists of certain racial or ethnic groups because the officers believe that these groups are more …show more content…
Eric Garner who was murdered by a NYPD officer using excessive force by forcing Eric into an illegal chokehold. All of this brutality was caught on camera by a man who lived near the scene which shows that “Garner said the words “I can’t breathe” several times before he stopped talking.” (Duncan) Garner never received CPR by EMS or police officers. “[T]he person shooting the video ask[ed] why Garner never received CPR. “Cause he’s breathing” an officer responds.” (Duncan) Garner died later in the hospital due to his injuries from the chokehold. Even though a chokehold is illegal in New York, the officer did not have reason to use this excessive force, and Garner died from the officers’ actions, the officer was not charged with anything. This is only one example of the police getting away with murder just because of their
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
Police brutality and police militarization have become a hot topic in the United States of America. There are many cases where police officers motives are being questioned, leading the public into an uproar. Just to name a few of these cases, we have Micheal Brown from Fegurson, Missouri, that started it all, which took place on Augest 19th, 2014. We also have Eric Garner from New York, taking place July of 2014. July of 2016, Alton Sterling of Baton Rouge and Walter Scott from South Carolina in April of 2015.
One day a boy named Tyrone and his father were on there way to Six Flags when they were pulled over by a police officer. The cop walked up to the vehicle and Tyrone’s dad asked the officer why he was pulled over. Then the cop asked Blue, Tyrone 's dad, to step out the car so he stepped out the car and the officer searched him. After that Blue tried to take off his jacket but the officer thought he had a gun and pulled out his weapon and shot Blue in his face in front of his 10 year old son. Blue was rushed to the hospital he was in critical condition, Blue died later that night. Police shouldn’t be able to get away with police brutality because officers are responsible
The United States has a dark history of mistreating and racially profiling black Americans. Over the years, America has developed into one of the world’s most powerful countries; yet police brutality remains a monumental problem. Police brutality has transformed into such a hot topic, and when brought up in conversation, it sparks a debate. Nevertheless, the brutality should be talked about. Although many believe that the media pushes the narrative, that only African Americans are victims, police brutality stems from racial profiling and is an ever growing issue because stories show a painful pattern, lives are negatively affected, and the use of different solutions is utilized to expose the problem.
In the past, police officers were considered to be peacekeepers. However, this has changed and they are now regarded as law enforcement officers. Most officers do their work diligently but their priority is on making quotas as well as arresting innocent people followed by maintaining peace. Police brutality remains to be the biggest challenge facing police agencies in America. Police work is a dangerous job, and police are more than likely to be put into situations when excessive force is needed. Sometimes police use excessive force for their own personal reasons, such as racism. The issue of police officers using excessive force may or may not be of great concern, but it should be looked into by both the police and the public. Police brutality should be addressed. Despite
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.
Over the past five centuries, black people have endured violence in many different ways. Today, police officers use deadly, excessive force that leads to inexcusable assaults, beatings and shootings. This demonstrates the government’s role in initiating and prolonging racial suppression and provides the explanation for police brutality to become a federal crime (Black Radical Congress, 3). In history, racist violence, police brutality, has been used to suppress the racial blacks and to preserve power and privileges for the white race.
It is crazy how much police brutality goes on in the United States. Some names of popular cases are Philando Castile, Rekia Boyd, and Tamir Rice (Lopez, Johnson 6). Is it a coincidence that all three people that were just listed are African American, or that the majority of police brutality cases involve people who are not white? Racial corruption exists in the judicial system as shown by unlawful shootings, stereotypes, and stand-your-ground laws. Somebody has to stand up and do something; everybody has to stand up and do something. But how can anything be accomplished if citizens are just shut down, laughed at and problems only get recognized for about a week or even a couple months and then forgotten about? This is a clear, known issue throughout
There are distinctive differences between use of force, excessive force, and brutality. What is meant by use of force, is the force that was essential while making that arrest, for example, an arrestee trying to fight back. What is meant by excessive force is the result of a lack of training and a violation of a person’s constitutional rights. Brutality is the physical violence done by a police officer. It is very important to first understand what each of the terms mean in order to better understand police brutality.
Recent Surveys have shown that police brutality typically occurs in areas that are predominately African American and that have police departments that are composed of non-minority Officer. For Example in Ferguson Missouri there is a population of approximately blank. Minorities account for only about 5.6% of the population. White American citizens only made up blank percent. The demographics of Ferguson’s Police Department show that white Officer outnumbered African American officers 51 to 3.
Police misconduct is an unacceptable or illegal action taken by police officers. Police brutality is a form of misconduct, that needs to be taken care of right away, there are steps to take before using a lethal force, there are precautions to hire the right people for this job. Also most all of the victims of police brutality usually never report the crimes committed against them and never will see justice.
Police brutality against African Americans was present in South Carolina during the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. One of the more famous incidents has been called the Orangeburg Massacre of 1968. “28 students were injured and three were killed- most shot in the back by the state police while involved in a peaceful protest” (zinnedproject.org).
It breaks my heart to read about another person whose a victim of police brutality. The thing that saddens me even more is that I belong to a generation of selfish people ; a society filled with them too. It is amazing to me, how a person can live in this world and not be moved by the horrible events that are taking place. I guess a nonchalant attitude towards events effecting others are a result of the time period. We're living in a society full of distractions, so of course our focus is not the heinous crimes that are taking place. Out mobile devices & technology keep us from paying attention to the real issues . Instead of trying to figure how to raise awareness on police brutality, or fight back like those before us we're entertained by
Those of the minority community have been subjected, for many decades, to violence by those in law enforcement in the United States. This type of violence is a direct depiction of police brutality, which often leads to death. Police brutality has been an issue for many years, and it remains a major concern for those of the minority community.
Allegations of police brutality by the U.S. police departments have been on the rise for the past two decades. The use of excessive force by police officers beyond what is considered necessary is not a new fact to the world. Many of these encounters with civilians have been unjustified because the majority ultimately ends in death. The police involve the use of weapons such as batons, Tasers, pepper spray, or guns. This may also include false arrests, psychological trauma, and verbal abuse. Some individuals will state they are just doing their job, but others argue these cases can be traced back to poor training and policies. Every police officer has the right to protect himself and the community, but they should be able to discern when to use reasonable or excessive force on the civilian depending on the situation at hand.