"I wish that nigger would come back down from Trenton and give me a reason to put my hands on him, I'm tired of 'em. These niggers are like ISIS; they have no value. They should line them all up and mow 'em down. I'd like to be on the firing squad, I could do it. I used to think about if I could shoot someone or not, I could do it, I'm tired of it."
Frank Nucera, Jr., is a former New Jersey police chief, of the predominately white town Bordentown Township, was arrested and charged by federal authorities for committing a hate crime and violating an 18 year old African-American male's civil rights for using excessive force during an arrest. The Acting Federal Prosecutor, William Fitzpatrick, stated Nucera harbors intense racial animosity and a senseless hatred for African-Americans and dishonored the profession of police officers. This nation is reeling from a series of high-profile police shootings involving people of color and racial bias is the reason police officers interact differently with whites and people of color. It is crucial to address how racist ideologies were woven into the fabric of American culture which link directly to slavery and lay the foundation for racism in this country. Racial bias plays a pivotal role and defines the differences in human behavior which vastly affects America's law enforcement communities. It is imperative to resolve the crisis and restore trust between police officers and the communities in which they serve. The
Police brutality and office involved shootings have sparked national debate and created a strain between police officers and citizens. Recently, there have been more home videos that display acts of aggression by police officers. These police officers often use excessive forces or a condescending tone towards people of color which is why there needs to be a better way to mend police and civilian relationship. People should be able to trust the police in their communities rather than fear them.
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)
Chapter 4 in The Color of Justice: Race, ethnicity, and crime in America, was about the relations between society and law enforcement officers. This has been a major topic, especially in the United States for a long time. The unfortunate statistic that minorities are more likely to encounter being killed, arrested, and victimized by excessive physical force; has been a real issue even in today’s society. However, police departments are trying to combat the way police officers interact with the community; especially those of color. Although steps have been takes there are still some instances where police aggression happens. With all of the issues that arise between certain minority populated community’s police it is evident that conflict
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.
Another factor in conflicts with this nation’s police force is the differences in races between American neighborhoods and their police force. In order to reduce the presence of racism in law enforcement, the race and ethnicities of the police force must be representative of the population they are responsible
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
Many of the problems and conflicts between the community and the police are based on situations involving police misconduct and race. Other issues occur because of an experience one has had with the police because he or she is minority. Early resentments from White officers cause a different outcome when handling a police situation that involves a different race as oppose to his or her own. This begins to shape the perception of the residents that witness these actions. It has been shown that an officer’s attitude and behaviors when dealing with a minority is harsher and unfair. Several situations like the Rodney King story and police brutality where a minority was the victim is viewed by the public and discriminatory behavior solely caused by a person’s race or ethnicity. This creates distrusts and suspicion with regard to the way a police department handles these issues. The public is disappointed and reluctant to construct a relationship with his or her fellow officer.
One of the most polarizing policy issues in the United States is the process of using race, ethnicity, and/or national origin by law enforcement as a chief predictor of criminal behavior. In the presence of social media and modern technological innovation, there has been increased documentation on the very problematic ways in which police officers use their position of authority against minorities. The countless cases of murder and police brutality have prompted national dialogue regarding to what extent race should be used in methods of policing. Against a troubled backdrop of incessant clashes with minorities and law enforcement, navigating the situation requires a degree of care that does not diminish the
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
I have been a police officer for nearly 10 years, and I have seen how the citizens we serve and the various media sources that surround us constantly scrutinize our actions. Simply because the actions of other officers may not be ethical, professional, or correct in the eyes of society, that should not determine the hatred towards all of the officers. Often people believe that police officers constantly and consciously commit racial profiling, but that is not the case. Chapter Four: Racial Profiling and the Law will be utilized to demonstrate the legal issues surrounding racial profiling that have led to changes in law enforcement.
In the year 2018, there are still numerous signs of racial bias that’s evident throughout the criminal justice system. The way in which policing tries to serve and protect the major population is sometimes seen being done in discriminating ways. Racial profiling is another key contributor to racial bias throughout America especially towards African Americans. African Americans are noticeably given harsher sentences than whites in situations where the offense was the same for both. There are deviant and corrupt agents throughout much of the criminal justice system and it still hasn’t been addressed properly in a way that everyone starts to understand the negative impacts that are being done together. Some police officers may feel the need to
Almost everyone has heard the famous hymn, “Jesus Loves the Little Children,” but not all understand the true meaning when it says, “Red, and yellow, black, and white, they are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” The moment sin entered into the world, perfection no longer existed. This loss of perfection changed the way humans viewed each other. It made one ethnicity view another ethnicity as inferior, and in doing so, created what people now know of as racism. For centuries, racism has been a part of society, shaping the way humans view each other, but with the aid of Young Women 's Christian Association (YWCA) - Stand Against Racism, racial discrimination and injustice can be eliminated.
Past experiences have shown that African Americans tend to have a more hostile relationship with police officers than other races. Research from multiple scholars confirms that there is in fact a correlation between a person’s race and the attitude they have towards officers. This experiment aims to verify that race is responsible for this difference in attitude. A survey containing multiple demographic questions and inquiries about attitudes and reactions to police officers was distributed to my Research Methods class as well as my family and friends. The results of this
In recent years, reporters and commentators assumed that racial diversification of police officers would reduce misconduct, as well as weaken the code of silence. This belief dates back to the 1967 President’s Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice, which claimed the lack of racial diversity among officers was a problem in policing (Weitzer, 2015). 50 years later, President Barack Obama’s interim report suggested the same recommendation of diversification but offered very little justification. Data collected over time has shown that the majority of officers are “blue” meaning racial diversity is trumped by their occupational training and socialization with other officers. As diversity is almost nullified as a result of police culture, racially diverse officers have little to no impact on the amount of misconduct and corruption.
The words “Boong”, “Abo” or “Coon” are what people called me a million times a day, every day in my entire 15 years of life. It doesn’t matter where I am; who I’m with; what I do, people will still call me with those words instead of my name. I do not say that I am ashamed of my culture or who I am but I just get tired of how society, giving and calling me by the labels, the labels built from their own stereotypes and racial discriminations. And here’s how my life has been filled with racism and discriminations.