Analysis Of Ta-Nehisi Coates The Myth Of Police Reform

When it comes to the topic of police reform, many agree that our country is long overdue for it, however the questions is how exactly do we, as a nation, go about changing one of the most rigid power structures that exist in the country. While some believe that reform must come from within the individually flawed police departments, others argue that the entire criminal justice system needs an overhaul. An analysis of Ta-Nehisi Coates essay “The Myth of Police Reform” reveals that the complex issues of police shootings of minors (especially African Americans) and how difficult it may be to change these problems.
In “The Myth of Police Reform” the author exemplifies the use of logos, ethos and pathos therefore making the argument effective.

One interrogates the actions of the officer in the moment trying to discern their mind-state. We ask ourselves, ‘were they justified in shooting?’ But, in this time of heightened concern around the policing, a more essential question might be, ‘were we justified in sending them?” (Paragraph 1). By adding these questions, he uses ethos to make the reader question the ethics of police shootings and whether the use of police force in certain situations is even necessary. This explains Coastes primary argument, that the problem in our criminal justice system is that we often send police who resort to deadly violence instead of sending someone who is more well equipped to defuse

I believe that there is often a lack of accountability, as well as superiors to believe officers rather than those who may accuse officers of acting. “When Walter Scott fled from the North Charleston police, he was not merely fleeing Michael Thomas Slager, he was attempting to flee incarceration.” (Paragraph 2) While more training and body cameras may decrease the number of violent and deadly situations between police and suspects and they are not the solution to the problem. This flaw in the criminal justice system, Coastes argues, ultimately comes down to how often minors view police as a power, rather than an authority meant to protect. Many believe that our justice system is a fair one, based on the idea that one is innocent until proven guilty that all deserve a fair trial etc. However, why then do law enforcers often resort to deadly force with little hesitation? One reason is lack of responsibility, and lack of training but fixing that won’t completely reform the police state. They problem is in the way the criminal justice system exists often as a deadly force against those who commit crimes rather than as a force that attempts to help past or potential offender. “African Americans, for most of our history, have lived under the power of the criminal- justice system, not to authority.” (Paragraph