“The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened”, said John F. Kennedy. Police Brutality started in 1872 but is also still happening in today’s world. It involves extreme force and weapons in certain situations that may not be needed. Over the years, it has became worse with injuries and deaths increasing. Hearing excessive stories about different victims getting treated like animals. I understand that if you do the crime, you do the time but that doesn’t mean leave them with marks or not even being able to take their last breath. Officers should be retrained the right way on how to handle a difficult situation and be less forceful.
First, civilians are starting to recognize and even record some of the arrests because they are getting outrageous. When the officers start hearing people screaming “STOP!!!” or “I am recording you” they let it pass over their heads and continue what they’re doing. The reason for some of these arrests getting out of hand is because they believe that every person wants to attack them, so when they shoot someone they call it “self defense”. Second, racism plays a big part in this brutality because officers tend to use more force than white folks believing that the color of their skin means they are going to cause more trouble in the area. For example: selling drugs, being in a gang and stealing. Although, it shouldn’t matter what somebody’s race is, it still doesn’t give them the right to treat them differently and using extreme force. However, when going to court there are officers who do get charged with murder/assault later on getting fired from the police force and then there are officers who don’t get charged with anything and walk away from the situation like it was just another task he finished being able to keep his job. For example: in 2005 there were 13 officers who were convicted of murder/manslaughter.
On July 17, 2014 there was an incident involving Eric Garner and the officers that ended in a tragedy. It all started when Eric was standing at different corners in different areas selling illegal cigarettes. The cops obviously had to put a stop to it, but didn’t ask him respectfully or treat him right. They simply threw him to the ground
“If police had more of the minority in suits and protecting the people just as much as the majority, would the crime rates be different?” Said (Alex R. Piquero from University Of Texas at Dallas). The police already has a very small population of the minority group already on the police force, If you go to California or New Mexico you can see that most police officers are hispanic, and the same for New York of New Jersey most of the police officers are African American. Most people however could very well see a change in police brutality if there was even more of the minority in the police force. In some cases of police brutality it isn’t brutality at all, the civilians have been known in most cases to push the police officers to their “brink” and push them to use excessive force, so basically setting up police officers to continue the persona that all police officers are bad. Police officers are incredibly easy to work with but you also
Police brutality has become more of a worry within the past two decades. Riots are becoming more frequent. Fatal shootings are becoming common. Police officers are not held accountable for the killings they have committed and will continue to commit. Several people believe in the use of excessive force, otherwise known as police brutality, to claim territories and correct others.
Throughout history, there has been very few careers that require such a high degree of an ethical standard such as the one required for law enforcement. There is, however, a multitude of careers that require the dedication and heart such as required for a police member. Where this dedication and heart differs relies solely on the difference in the job. Officers are required to be aware of their surroundings nearly all the time as if something were to happen they would be required to navigate through the situation successfully. Somebody such as a CEO for a multimillion dollar company would not require this same quality due to the fact it is not part of their job description and the only individual that he/she needs to be worried about is themselves. However, in today’s society, and with media being an ever growing aspect, some police officers have decided on their own personal way to handle justice. So unfortunately, this small percentage of police contract a huge amount of negative eyes to the profession. This small number of individuals bring a negative view to the police department as a whole and for this cause an issue in the public’s eye. Regardless of what many individuals believe, many of the police officers decide on the ethical side of the job and are hardworking professionals who seek out to just serve the public. However, being an African American male myself the main issue I have and want to combat is the punishment officers should face if
It may be fun watching “Scariest Police Chases” or “COPS” on television, but it’s a completely different feeling when you’re actually in one of those positions. To end police brutality is also to bring knowledge and comprehension of the law to the people. Many people want to argue or fight back to stand their ground, standing firm in their belief that they’re in the right, but that is not how the law sees it.Officers need to remain vigilant and prepared for any situation that develops. Rarely does an officer have time to prepare an emergency call, relying on their training and making in the moment decisions based on ever changing circumstances. If people tend to overreact then so do officers. Cops in the simplest terms are people
Police brutality is the lavish physical assault or verbal assault during police procedures which can involve interrogating or apprehending a suspect. Police brutality originated from the labor worker strikes in the 1800’s through the 1900’s. The violent brutal act of these officers usually formed around the lower socioeconomic class. Since then police brutality has hit an all-time high in the 21st century. In New York alone there has been reportedly over 72 police brutality reports some reports even ended in the deaf of a citizen. There’s been claim of police officers violently choking citizens at traffics stops and beating citizen up in public. There’s been new technology such as body cameras which are used by most police but not all.
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 United States is facing a continuous wide spread of police brutality from the past to today. TV Networks, newspapers/magazines, bloggers and forums are getting involved into the discussion about police brutality. After a father bought a toy gun for his son for his birthday, his son went outside to play and a police officer saw him with the gun not knowing it was a toy and shot him several times. This incident occurred in Sonoma County in October 2013. Something close to that happened in November 2014 where a Cleveland police officer killed a 12-year-old boy carrying a toy gun. On April 12, 2015 Freddie Gray was arrested by Baltimore City police and while being transported he allegedly fell in a coma, with injuries to his spinal cord. Use of excessive force by police is common in black communities. Officers aren’t trained effectively and they act out of fear. On uslegal.com Police brutality is described as a civil rights violation that happens when a police officer acts with excessive force by using an amount of force with regards to a civilian that is not necessary. Excessive force by law enforcement officers is a violation of a person 's rights.
In the United States, the murders of innocent, unarmed African Americans have led to the uprising of the Black Lives Matter movement, however, did this endanger the lives of police officers? In my opinion, yes it does endanger the police force but the police were the same ones putting black people in danger in the first place. Americans today are either completely for the movement or against, you never really encounter a between of them. Then, there are some people that believe in the protests but are not for the violence. My whole life i’ve heard, “Treat people equally and fairly.” and when I think about that I wonder… if all people had that mindset, then black lives matter wouldn’t be a thing.
Over the years, the United States has faced many cases of police brutality. Officers are faced with many threatening situations everyday forcing them to make split-second decisions expecting the worse, but hoping for the best. Therefore, police brutality severely violates human rights in the United States. Police officers have one of the hardest jobs America has to offer. They have to maintain public order, prevent, and identify crime. Throughout history, the police community has been exposed by violence in some way or another. Police officers have been suspects in dangerous shootings, severe beatings, fatal chokings, and unnecessary killings. The history of police brutality is repeated, going through stages of violence, corruption, and
Police brutality has been a growing issue in the United States of the past century. The unique thing about police brutality is it does not discriminate. With that said some races have it worse than others. Such as the African American race they are continently in the news for African Americans being shot and killed by the police. Many look at police brutality as a physical abuse, but it is much more than that. Some people have suffered from mental issues to, such as thinking back to a incident with the police or having anxiety everytime they see a police officer. With that in mind if the police are viewed as a threat in the eyes of some of the public it can only get worse.
Police violence has gone on since slavery times, but had a big impact on the early 40’s- late 60’s. On June 27, 1969 Helen Smith stood with Donald Best, patrolman Alvin Nachman approached with his dog and ordered to “hold the noise down”. No neighbors had complained about anything, the police dog attacked Ms Smith and as she fought off the officer maced Ms Smith. She had to get a total of 75 stitches over her body, and was charged with assault on an officer (Alexandria Wicle). In the 90’s police brutality was widely discussed in the media. Rodney King made headlines in 1991 when the video was released showing Rodney being hit numerous times by an officer with a baton (Police Violence). Eric Garner died on July 17,2015 during an encounter
Although I should know by now, I cannot help but think that there has been an overwhelming amount of police brutality in recent years. Police brutality can be defined as, when a police officer uses more force than necessary. This issue has spread throughout the United States of America, and is putting the lives of our citizens in great danger. Police brutality is not only physical, but it can also be verbal attacks; and, in most cases, it is caused by false arrest and racial profiling due to police corruption. Police brutality has been and continues to be a major concern in society and it is used very loosely to any and all forms of police misconduct. Whereas, in reality, excessive force of police misconduct is what defines police brutality. The jobs of a police officer are too calmly resolve public disturbance and disputes. Police officers are supposed to protect citizens; instead they are hurting and using excessive force. It is not right and it is unjust for a police officer to hurt a citizen due to an assumption without any actual proof of criminal activity.
“ I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe.” Those three words have created an epidemic of videos taken during police altercations with citizens. Demonstrations and protests have occurred as a direct result of this incident. The video is compelling and in my opinion shows excessive force, giving support to the suggestion of police brutality. However, once the footage was clearly edited to skip directly to the altercation, it seemed to lose some credibility. What really happened before the officer placed Mr. Garner in the choke hold? Why was the video edited to skip to the choke? Factors that may never be known, except by those that were actually involved. A body camera on each officer at the scene would have been crucial in obtaining all evidence of what really transpired. Every officer should be equipped with a body camera as part of standard uniform attire.
Every other week we hear about the police taking a life and how the suspect was thought to be “armed” or “dangerous” but quite frankly that's rarely ever the case. They’re usually “misjudged” or “mistaken”. Police brutality is a problem because police abuse authority, presents a double standard, show repeatedly documented excessive force, Coincidentally all the victims are African American males; Something doesn't add up. Police are “suppose” to serve and protect everyone no matter the age, sex, religion, or race but are the main ones killing us. Police use excuses like it was a “accident”. Yes, I totally agree accidents do happen but not when there are multiple bullets being fired. According to protocol police are trained to injure not kill! Standard Police officers have enough weapons, excluding firearms, to do their jobs and keep the peace. For example, pepper spray; known to be extremely effective and detain the suspect. Another weapon possessed is the taser; known to be immensely effective and detain the suspect with great force, not deadly but great! We even have the billy club. A couple hits with that thing would make any man back down especially an unarmed one! My question is why is the first reaction a gun when police possess many other weapons that are less likely to kill?
Due to race, not standing for the National Anthem, increased amount of police weapons and inequality, police brutality has become a huge problem nationwide. Police brutality has always subsisted but within the last 10 years it has been increasing drastically. We need to take a stand against and end the police brutality. According to the document To Serve and Protect, “To serve and protect: we see the slogan emblazoned on the sides of police cars and recruit officers hear it from their instructors at the academy. It is also a mandate of the church, Jesus reads from the prophet Isaiah in the synagogue in Nazareth and proclaims his mission is to serve and protect the vulnerable, the oppressed (Luke 4:16-21).” I myself want to be a police officer and I think because of all the police brutality incidents police have started to get an atrocious reputation. What society believes is that all police officers feel they are “above” the law, that is not true. Most police officers disagree with the excessive force some use. It is not rightful. This is just adding another problem with how American is going down in a negative way. Police officers are supposed to protect us, prevent crime, and enforce the law. They are only allowed to use excessive force when there is a necessary reason. A necessary reason would be if the officer has a probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious injury. Many cases have been uprising on police brutality and race.