Town Hall Meeting Research Paper

Week three I wrote about a shooting that took place in Dallas, Texas when gunshots were fired killing five police officers. It concluded with the gunman, 25 year-old Micah Xavier Johnson of Mesquite, Texas, being shot dead by the Dallas police after attempted negotiations failed. Videos showing two men shot by police in both Louisiana and Minnesota created protests in Dallas and lead to erupting fire. The gunman's house was warranted to search; bomb-making materials, ballistic vests, rifles, ammunition, and a personal journal of combat tactics were all found. The amount of shooters were unknown, but when the shooting started twenty protesters that had been carrying rifles scattered the area. It was a very well thought-out attack that took

It is one that everyone is familiar with due to its high profile coverage. Although this incident occurred in St. Louis, Missouri, it is very relevant to police shootings all over the country. As a short recap, police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed unarmed teen Michael Brown. Ultimately, Darren Wilson was not charged with any crime. Wilson, like many officers before him, argued that he was afraid for his life and therefore used his weapon in self-defense. Unfortunately, this argument has been heard many times after Michael Brown’s death as well. When Laquan McDonald was shot and killed in Chicago in 2014, Jason Van Dyke “feared for his life”; dash-camera footage, though, showed otherwise. Police personnel and city officials even went so far in this cover-up as to pay Laquan’s mother millions of dollars not to speak to the media about what happened. Although video of the shooting was available in 2014, the video itself was not released to the public until late 2015, after Rahm was re-elected to mayoral office. As more details surfaced, it then became clear to the public that not only did the officers and top law enforcement attempt to hide this incident, but the Cook County State’s Attorney was also involved. I argue that had there been more diversity on the force, or in the very least sensitivity training, maybe these officers would have seen a person and been more compassionate, instead of seeing a threat and

For peaceful protestors, their message could be misinterpreted and taken the wrong way. The media need to consider the possibility that there might be people who might partake in the protests for no reason. Furthermore, the family of Michael Brown and President Obama appealed for everyone to act calm; however, this was not given as much footage as the violent incidents, stoking an already delicate situation further. In this particular case, the grand jury was given sufficient time, evidence and almost all the information. Although the evidence pointed around the facts that the people involved were an unarmed African-American teenager and a policeman and whether the police man was acting rightfully, the media sensationalized this news to such an extent that they made this story about race. Instead of concentrating on the actions and the ethics of the policeman and focusing on the jury’s decision, the media has therefore imprinted a false perception of the whole story. The media needs to think about a better way to portray the news as to prevent a division within the

The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting affected the country’s thoughts on school safety in a way that perhaps no other event has. “President Obama wiped away a tear as he spoke in Washington Friday. 'We've endured too many of these tragedies in the past few years,' he said. 'We are going to have to come together to take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this regardless of the politics.'” (Shock). The people and citizens of this country wanted to be comforted by a trusted government official, so President Barack Obama delivered a speech about gun violence just after the shooting. “‘The only way this time will be different is if the American people demand that this time it must be different, that this time we

The police involved shooting of Michael Brown has changed the way society views law enforcement, and the method of how law enforcement officers have to interact with this same society. With the deaths of individuals like Brown, Freddie Gray, Eric Garner and Tamir Rice, and with the assistance of social media and bias news reporting, as well as high level officials within our social structure, who’s speech and words can carry a large impact on our behaviors, there has been a picture painted that police are murdering people of different ethnicities without regard for justifiable force. Politicians, celebrities and the media alike, have been a major contributor to the anti-police sentiment and the violent interactions that police

On November 9th 2015, a town hall meeting took place in my political science class. This meeting was a chance for students of the school to bring up concerns, or issues regarding there education. For their voice to be heard directly to the faculty that runs the school, the students could finally have a chance to get a valid answer. There was questions about safety, mathematics, community college education, and typical student issues.

On December 14, 2012, almost a month after Obama’s re-election, the Sandy Hook shooting occurred. In this terrible tragedy, twenty children and six adults were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut. Two days after the incident, Barack Obama delivered a speech at an interfaith vigil to those who lost their loved ones. In this speech, Obama discussed the need for change and stricter gun laws in order to keep schools safe. He stated, “These tragedies must end….. We can’t accept events like these as routine.”

On the morning of December 14, 2012, America experienced its deadliest mass shooting at a grade school and the fourth-deadliest mass shooting by a single person. All of America was left reeling as the details of what transpired were shared through every media outlet. Media reporters and American citizens were left wondering about how could this have happened and how could we have prevented this heinous crime. In looking for an explanation the Media emphasized various topics such as mental health, violent video games, and gun control as possible catalysts. This essay will provide a critical analysis of what happened in the Sandy Hook Shooting, the media’s role in public opinion, and the arguments laid forth by claims-makers as associated

The Dahlonega City Hall was crowded on the evening of March 1st 2010. The seats were full, except for at the very front, and the standing room was filled almost out the door. The crowd, mostly made up of students, leaned in to hear as the voices of the City Council members faded in and out of the faltering sound system. The six City Council members and the mayor sat along a bench as if they were the judges at a hearing. Because of the ongoing discussions and the crowd, I thought I had arrived a few minutes late; but I was able to find a seat in the front two rows. Despite how packed the small room was there were plenty of empty seats in the front. I had thought the meeting was well on its way by the way conversation was going and

In his 2002 documentary, Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore touches upon the problem of gun violence in the United States. By conducting many interviews in the United States and in other countries, Moore searches for the root that causes gun violence in the U.S. in comparison to other countries and how social factors can affect the American culture. Moore focuses on a school shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado and tries to analyze why the two killers shot up the school. As a Criminal Justice major, gun violence is a crucial issue in the U.S. and with easy access to guns and an overexposure of violence in media, there should be imposed limitations to minimize violence.

There is a war going on with police brutality. There’s always something new whether it’s abuse, homicides, or injustice in our community. Society has a huge issue with police officers because many are not pleading guilty for the murders of African Americans. Ever since the Trayvon Martin case, black culture created a bigger feud with police. We live in a world where our “heroes” are becoming villains in our country. The injustice for these particular cases are so common that the community and help from the president of the United States is not enough. During the Mike Brown case, Barack Obama walked in the march in Ferguson with the Black Panthers for the protest. Even if you have the whole community and the president on your back the white man still wins.

One of the most important news stories was the Connecticut School Shooting. Twenty-six people died that day, twenty of them were children. Twenty-year-old Adam Lanza was dressed in all black with a military vest on walked in the school and started shooting, killing twenty-six people. When he opened fire, teachers were rushing children in the bathrooms and closets. A kindergarten locked her door, covered the windows and started to read her children a story to keep them calm. One parent that was there said when she heard three gun shots, she ducked under the table and dialed 911, letting the teacher and vice principle walk into the halls to see what was going on. When the police arrived, they had barged one room and told the teacher and children to hide in the corner. As the police officers were evacuating the

As the shooting came to a conclusion, people immediately attacked guns. Protests and mobs of angry people would chant their message that guns needed to go, in order to prevent another massacre like this. But the

I support protesting gun violence in public schools because it has become a serious issue in this country and student’s lives matter enough to take the time to protest.The events described in this article are important because, the March 14th walkout was the first national test of teenage activism against gun violence. The walkout was partly a protest to push lawmakers to pass gun reform and partly a memorial to honor victims killed by firearms. Teenage organizers said the protest was to highlight Congress’ inaction against the gun violence plaguing their schools and neighborhoods. The marches ranged in size in all 50 states and an estimated 185,000 people participated in the nationwide walkout. This fight for change could be called a revolution

One community that stands out the most for the conflict between law enforcement and their community is Ferguson, Missouri. On August 9, 2014 Darren Wilson, 28, a white Ferguson police officer fatally shot Michael Brown, an 18-year-old African-American male (McLaughlin). This case started one of the biggest uproar the nation has ever seen between community and law enforcement. When the incident first occurred there were many pieces of information missing to paint a scenario of how and what occurred between Brown and officer Wilson. Apparently Michael Brown was walking home late at night when officer Darren Wilson and Michael Brown got into a confrontation that lead to Wilson shooting Brown, the case goes