The Weekly Sonnet Unmemorable Modernism

In the past years we have seen many riots and debates over the racism and inequalities in our criminal justice system. We have heard story after story, and watched video after video of police brutality and racism in America. We saw the unfair outcome of the Zimmerman and Treyvon Martin case. When George Zimmerman followed and fatally wounded Treyvon Martin, a seventeen year old African American boy who was walking around the neighborhood, just because he looked suspicious to him. In 2014, we saw the riots in Ferguson, Missouri after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown by a white police officer, sparking a debate over the

Written in the form of a Shakespearean sonnet, one could hardly mistake it for anything so pleasant. Sonnets being traditionally used for beautiful, appealing topics, already there is contradiction between

Our society shows how racism and police officers are a focal point within our country. In the United States, many police officers demonstrate racist qualities. Research states that many police officers are only patrolling around predominately African American neighborhoods. People agree that police officers are just sitting in areas where African Americans live instead of just sitting anywhere and waiting for any crimes. (Martin, Trayvon. Racial Profiling). Polices are just waiting for African Americans to make a mistake. Most Police Officers haven’t changed their ways on racism. “Diallo was gunned down by NYPD officers while trying to enter his apartment building. The officers had mistaken Diallo for a suspected rapist—who was also black’’ (Martin, Trayvon. Racial Profiling). NYPD killed an innocent man because he was African American and he looked like the guy they were looking for. Therefore, this just proves police officers have not changed their racist

Every person should have equal rights and opportunities not based on their ethnicity, race, or culture. There are countrywide issues that have lead to racial injustice. In recent discussions on racial injustice, one major issue has been the many cases of police brutality and hate crimes against minorities. Many falsely accused people are being incarcerated simply based on the color of their skin or how they look. Racism has been a huge part of Americas past and will continue to be a part of our history as time progresses. It is our history itself that keeps racism in America regrettably alive. It is what has shaped our society today. The actions of unlawful police officers have been presented through media. By revealing the problems with our law enforcement this has allowed the public to see the roots of this issue. There are many factors that contribute to the issue of police brutality, they are all derived from the roots of the tree of our history. It is time that people take a stand against hate crimes such as police brutality.

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 topic of whether or not there is racism in the legal system is becoming increasingly debatable among certain groups. The obvious evidence that has been glaring in the faces of the public for decades says it all: the criminal justice system is, and always has been, swayed by racism. Despite this, the opposing side of the argument - which mostly consists of privileged whites – diligently argues that racism was outlawed decades ago. There are also African Americans who are unaware of how their race is constantly being oppressed. However, the younger generation is quickly becoming culturally and politically woke and passing on the knowledge. Although racism is not explicitly stated in the law, racists are still hiding behind the supremacy of the country. White policemen have went as far as mindlessly killing young black people and claiming it was done out of self-defense. White judges will find loopholes in the legal process when dealing with an offense committed by an African American. They are targeting African Americans and punishing them more harshly than the white people who commit crimes.

Current socio-political controversy in America has hit an all-time high. Our country is divided regarding topics such as immigration, minimum wage, healthcare, and foreign affairs. These problems desperately need a solution, however, because of the variety of opinions as to how we should solve these, solutions that satisfy everyone have been nearly impossible to come by. One of the most prominent issues in our country that has been increasingly problematic is racial profiling. Racial profiling is seen throughout America at places like airports and on the highways. Multiple ethnic groups have been affected by this ‘strategy,’ such as Muslims and Latinos. One of the most subjected groups to racial profiling and arguably one of the most outspoken have been African Americans. The divide between African Americans and police officers has been continuously rising in the last decade, as many have spoken out regarding the unfair treatment of blacks by law enforcement. In the last decade alone, there have been far too many instances in which a black citizen’s life has been claimed by the hands of a police officer, such as in the case of the killings of Philando Castile and Michael Brown. The public response to these killings have been outrage and angst against police officers. Believing race was a factor, the public began to voice their opinions and protest the seemingly unfair treatment towards black individuals by police officers. This has only increased the tension between the two groups, as there are often racial profiling accusations toward police officers who pull over black drivers. The best way to approach a solution is to first look at the history of the problem and its contribution to the current situation. I believe the unfair treatment and racial violence towards blacks that occurred in American history has contributed to the rising tension between blacks and police officers, resulting in the current racial divide and constant confrontations between the two groups. The best example of this can be seen in the issue of racial profiling, in which the two groups’ perception of one another has been hostile and unwelcoming.

It was once said by Ta-Nehisi Coates that, “We have this long history of racism in this country, and as it happens, the criminal justice system has been perhaps the most prominent instrument for administering racism.” In today's society and primarily in the criminal justice system over the past few years, there has been an alarming trend of racial profiling amongst minorities. Our society has created its own idea for who black people are. Depicting them as criminals, rapist, drug dealers, gang members,and just overall under a negative light. In recent years, we've seen black lives taken away due to the assumptions and discriminatory mindsets of people like police and overall mainly white people solely because the color of their skin. Although

Inefficient policing resulting from the high tensions between law enforcement and minority races has called the issue of racial profiling and corruption within the American justice system to national attention. Many citizens now demand an end to the improper treatment and wrongful deaths of people of color on the basis that all races should be treated equally by law enforcement officials.

Police brutality in America has been known to put fear in the lives of many Americans. Although police brutality is played out across all avenues of the media and many people see this happening, it yet does not change the fact that racism still exists in the justice system of America. People in positions of power yet have not done anything to rectify the situation and this has lead to the rise of “Black Lives Matter” movement. Numerous opportunities have been presented to officials to speak up about this one huge problem in America, yet there is so much more that can be done to help better the racial tension between police and people of color. If the racial tension between law enforcement and people of color continues to grow in America

It is not a secret that black Americans are at a larger economic, political and educational disadvantage, yet so many white Americans believe that the black American is as successful as a white (Embrick 2015, 838). So in cases of police brutality, minorities are portrayed to be offenders and violent, while the police are given the role of a protector in media (Embrick 2015, 839). Although it does not mean that such publicized cases of police brutality are not thought provoking for white Americans, many do understand the situation and the existence of this violence (Sigelman et al 1997, p. 789). It is simply that majority believe it is outside of America’s racist history instead, and based more on criminal behaviour (Sigelman et al 1997, p. 789). This impacts society to split into two, the world those who are privileged live in and the world that the poor and marginalized are forced into (Embrick 2015, 837).

The american criminal justice system has been fueled by the racism for far too long in this country. As members of this society we need to take a stand for what's right and to review the laws of this nations to ensure correct practices of law is carried out in a fair fashion and for our elected officials to uphold the fairness in criminal procedures. Otherwise millions of americans will be incarcerated each day for injustice of our laws.

To discuss racial issues in today’s political climate is to walk on a tight rope in an effort to open Pandora’s Box. With the media coverage of police brutality and the rise of groups such as “Black Lives Matter”, Americans are once again faced with the topic of racial discrimination in our justice system. Despite how divisive this issue can get, both sides must concede that something is terribly wrong here: black men are incarcerated at a rate six times more than whites and one in three black men will go to jail at least once in their life (Rehavi). Most would agree that racial profiling is a large contributor to this phenomenon, yet the difference of opinion begins to split

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

The nature of the metaphors with which the lyrical subject of the sonnet presents the nature of our world are grim and