Police Brutality and the Black Lives Matter Activism

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Analyzing How Police Brutality got to the Point of Black Lives Matter?

A countrywide mayhem rose after Trayvon Martin’s homicide, which led to the Black Lives Matter movement, championed by Opal Tometi, Garza, and Patrisse.The upheaval begun as result of pressure from social media hash tag, turning up to be one of the American social media protest against police brutality, particularly towards the black Americans. The recent George Floyd’s execution showing that in spite of all the hard work done by the activists and police radicals, police brutality continues to worsen the pressure of Black Lives Matter. The movement is turning to be a cry in light of evidence that the injustice system is avoiding to support this truth. The paper’s thesis states that injustices system and unmindful towards racism are the proof why police brutality emerged into the movement.

The truth of the matter is before any injustice reaches the courts, there are few parties who may end up involved in corrupt practices. For instance in our case the policeman, lawyers, and prosecutors play a vital role in determining the weight of the case. In fact after the final verdict jail system is anticipated to come up with better ways to implement the decision (Egharevba, 2017). Outrageously corruption and injustice might arise even in the last stage. Investigation has shown that the interconnection between these institutions represents corruption within the justice system in the manner that one or several elements that comprise the system get involved in unlawful actions.

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Researcher shows that even though the early movements addressed most of the social and political issues affecting the black people, they failed to directly address the racial menace that African Americans endured, and continue to suffer under police brutality. Remarkably, when Tef Poe a renowned rapper, was questioned on why the movement was important to the black Americans, he said that “One of the negligent areas of the civil rights movement is that we did not move the moral compass of racism to the right direction” (Bill Campbell; Jason Rodriguez, 2015). Conversely studies account that racism causes police to use excessive force when dealing with a black individual.

 After the Ferguson police shot Brown, the father went into the streets with a video showing his unarmed child facing harassment from the officer. Despite Brown showing no reasonable harm to the police, he ended upshot. After the incident, the likes of Poe, McKesson, and other individuals knew that they had to come up with a solution. Hence, they went into the streets, transformed into activists, who were not only concerned with civil rights but also black humanity.

Additionally, assault and victimization of black women by police, particularly the transgender, transpired feminists like Garza and Opal to raise the Black Lives Matter issue. For a long time, the movement focused on the black man’s experience when addressing police brutality. However, women of color like Tanisha Anderson, Rekia Boyd, Shelly Frey, and others were sexually assaulted and killed by police. Like men, the police targeted the women using racial profiling, mandatory stops, and killings (Ruth, 2016). Hence, the movement’s activists have not only focused on highlighting the effects that such victimization has on black women, but articulated why the change is inclusive to the society.

Most states invest in implicit bias training, policing, installing more colored police officers, to reduce police violence. However, study observes that such provisions rarely enhance the worth of black lives. At one time, citizens believed that such consensus would uphold black humanity, but the number of black deaths proves otherwise. Racism is so grounded in the American culture, that even when an officer takes up the implicit bias program, his inbuilt mentality that, black men are inferior, makes him treat the individual without any sensitivity.

Every black recognize Opal for raising alarm that led to the movement’s campaign on Safety beyond Policing (Egharevba, 2017). This happened after the New York State announced to invest is assets on providing more police officers. Opal emphasized, “How are these people going to unleash even more officers in our communities when we see that enough?”.Since the policing would be executed in black society, then it meant more brutalities. This explains how the movement arose as a strategy to reduce police power by eliminating police-union contracts that protected unfair officers.

Small salaries, inadequate guidance, lack of positive reception and rewards are the major catalyst of corruption. In police force and justice system, bribery is the most common form of corruption. On the other hand false prosecution and presentation of false testimonials in front of judges are termed as the leading cause of police brutality (Egharevba, 2017). In case of police brutality the court in the courts, lack of transparency contributes immensely to the violation of human rights.

In conclusion, police brutality, enhanced by racial disparities, because considerable amounts of black deaths. As a result, movements like the Black Lives Matter activism exist to highlight its effects and enhance campaigns that promote black humanity. All this said and done every life count, despite its race, gender, sexual orientation, or social class.

References

Bill Campbell; Jason Rodriguez. (2015). APB : artists against police brutality. Greenbelt, MD: Rosarium Publishing.

Egharevba, S. (2017). Police brutality, racial profiling, and discrimination in the criminal justice system . Hershey, PA : IGI Global.

Ruth, M. (2016). Police brutality . Farmington Hills, Mich: Greenhaven Press.

Police Brutality Essay Example 2, with Outline

Police Brutality Essay Outline

Introduction

Thesis: Police brutality violates human rights and should be curbed through effective measures.

Body

Paragraph 1:

Police brutality in America majorly emanates from racial profiling whereby police officers develop negative feelings and hate towards certain religions and races.

  • Police officers believe that if one person from a given race or religion disrespects them, it represents the entire race or religion.
  • Minorities have been exposed to discriminatory treatment and physical abuse by law enforcement.
  • Minorities have also been subjected to humiliations and non-violent harassments.
  • Whether based on race or otherwise, the effects of police brutality on a citizen would be far-reaching.

Paragraph 2: 

A case at hand to highlight the effects of police brutality occurred in May, 2020 and involved an African-American.

  • The victim, known as George Floyd, was murdered under the custody of police.
  • In a video that went viral and spurred “Black Lives Matter” protests across the United States and elsewhere across the world, a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, was seen suffocating life out of a helpless Floyd.

Paragraph 3:

Given the harrowing experience it puts citizens through, police brutality should be stopped.

  • The internal affairs department should revamp and improve every police unit in the country.
  • The department should reevaluate leadership roles in police units by way of ensuring that all the units uphold and respect human integrity and rights.
  • It should put in place systems through which “problem police officers” may be exposed before they go on the rampage tramping on citizens’ rights.

Paragraph 4:  

Police departments should reevaluate, revise, and modify their training systems.

  • The departments should adopt new training methods on areas that usually send police officers into being brutal, such as racism.
  • Police departments should thoroughly investigate the effects of such weapons as pepper spray before releasing them for use on citizens.
  • Officers should be trained on how they may handle the effects of the use of police weapons.
  • A more effective training policy should be developed.

Paragraph 5:

Background checks should be conducted to ensure that people who are potentially violent are not recruited into the police force.

  • Background checks should be conducted in combination with a tracking system for preventing possible reassignment of terminated “problem officers” to new positions in new stations.
  • If found guilty of misconduct or brutality, an officer should have their certificates revoked so they may have nothing to identify them as police officers anymore.
  • Until they are possibly re-certified, such officers should not be employed again.

Conclusion  

Police brutality is a serious problem that violates human rights and abuses police authority. It goes against the spirit of protecting citizens and maintaining law and order which is the major role of the police. It should be addressed through measures that would ensure professionalism and civility in how the police handle citizens.

Police Brutality Essay

Introduction

Police brutality involves members of law enforcement engaging in acts of misconduct by using excessive force to cause emotional, mental, or physical harm to members of society. Causing ferocious assaults to and manipulating citizens go against the role which law enforcement officers were sworn to serve, which is to maintain law and order and protect citizens. Police brutality thus amounts to abuse of police authority and violation of the rights of citizens. The situation is especially appalling if a citizen is innocent of any wrongdoing. Often, the brutality leaves victims with serious emotional and physical scars and even leads to death in extreme cases. Police brutality violates human rights and should be curbed through effective measures.

Police brutality in America majorly emanates from racial profiling whereby police officers develop negative feelings and hate towards certain religions, sexes, or races. Apparently, police officers believe that if one person from a given race or religion disrespects them, it would imply that all members of that race or religion are disrespectful towards the police. Race has particularly contributed significantly towards police brutality in the American society. Minorities have been exposed to discriminatory treatment and physical abuse by law enforcement. Apart from physical abuse, minorities have also been subjected to humiliations and non-violent harassments (Ruth, 2015). For instance, there is a tendency whereby African American drivers are pulled over by police and put through thorough questioning with the intent of finding them at fault or probably creating one against them (Ruth, 2015). Whether based on race or otherwise, the effects of police brutality on a citizen would be far-reaching.

A case at hand to highlight the effects of police brutality occurred in May, 2020 and involved an African-American. The victim, known as George Floyd, was murdered under the custody of police (Hill et al., 2020). In a video that went viral and spurred “Black Lives Matter” protests across the United States and elsewhere across the world, a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, was seen suffocating life out of a helpless Floyd. There were other three police officers accompanying Chauvin and they did absolutely nothing to stop the now former police officer from killing the African-American. By July 2020, the protests were still ongoing, with sports associations in various countries directing sportspeople to take a knee during matches in solidarity with the “Black Lives Matter” protests. It is not in doubt that this level of police brutality is toxic for the entire human society, not just the Unites States alone.

Given the harrowing experience it puts citizens through, police brutality should be stopped. The first step in this respect would be for the internal affairs department to revamp and improve every police unit in the country. Since it is this department that is charged with handling the conduct of police, it should reevaluate leadership roles in police units by way of ensuring that all the units uphold and respect human integrity and rights. It should put in place systems through which “problem police officers” may be exposed before they go on the rampage trampling on citizens’ rights. There should also be firm disciplinary actions against officers who engage in the use of excessive force and brutality. Every time the department conducts a review, it should be focused on the review activities and clearly document all of them (Schenwar, Makare & Price, 2016). Implementing this solution would not cost much because it is just about better management of an already active system.

Another solution would be for police departments to reevaluate, revise, and modify their training systems. As suggested by Williams (2015), the departments should consider adopting new training methods on areas that usually send police officers into being brutal, such as racism. For example, they should educate officers on how to handle mentally ill or non-violent citizens, how to go about a post chase arrest, and how to operate pepper spray in the correct manner. On that note, police departments should thoroughly investigate the effects of such weapons as pepper spray before releasing them for use on citizens. Additionally, officers should be trained on how they may handle the effects of the use of police weapons and this should include how to offer or access proper medical assistance for victims. Moreover, a more effective training policy should be developed by choosing qualified and suitable trainers. Trainers chosen should have no history of any kind of misconduct.

A third solution would be to conduct background checks so as to ensure that people who are potentially violent are not recruited into the police force. Such checks should be conducted in combination with a tracking system for preventing possible reassignment of terminated “problem officers” to new positions in new stations. Robertiello (2017) advises that when an officer quits or is fired from the department for human rights violation, relevant information should be submitted to a tracking office by the department. It should then be a requirement that a thorough check is conducted by recruiters with the tracking office before considering any applicant for hiring. Upon being found guilty of misconduct or brutality, an officer should have their certificates revoked so they may have nothing to identify them as police officers anymore. Until they are possibly re-certified, such officers should not be employed again. This way, no “problem officer” would ever get reabsorbed into the police department.

Conclusion

Police brutality is a serious problem that violates human rights and abuses police authority. It goes against the spirit of protecting citizens and maintaining law and order, which is the major role of the police. As a matter of fact, police brutality is among the factors that severely infringe into civil rights in the United States. This is why there should be an end to such police misconduct as verbal assault, unlawful shootings, and physical abuse. The situation should be salvaged through measures that would ensure professionalism and civility in how the police handle citizens. Such measures may include reevaluation and modification of police training programs, reevaluation of leadership roles in police units, and conducting background checks during police recruitment.

References

Hill, E., Tiefenthäler, A, Triebert, C., Jordan, D., Willis, H., Stein, R. (2020). “How George Floyd was killed in police custody”. The New York Times. Retrieved July 7, 2020 from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html

Robertiello, G. (2017). The use and abuse of police power in America: historical milestones and current controversies. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.

Ruth. M. (2015). Police brutality. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press.

Schenwar, M., Makare, J., & Price, A. Y. (2016). Who do you serve, who do you protect?: Police violence and resistance in the United States. Chicago, IL: Haymarket Books.

Williams, K. (2015). Our enemies in blue: police and power in America. Oakland, CA: AK Press.

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