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Racial discrimination in the criminal justice system
Racial discrimination in the criminal justice system
Racial inequality in our police system
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The deadly shooting of Michael Brown by Officer Wilson, unveiled numerous issues within local law enforcement, that resulted in social controversy aimed at all of law enforcement. According to the BBC news, Brown was unarmed when he was fired upon by Wilson (“Ferguson unrest”, 2015). A projection from this incident has emerged, claiming that African Americans are killed more frequently than other races when confronted by law enforcement. The statistics have revealed that African Americans who are unarmed have been victim to violence with
For example, in Baltimore of 2015 a boy named Freddy Gray had been killed in police custody. According to an Upfront article, ¨Blue and Black¨ they expand the issue of police brutality by explaining how they people have died and how many. It says, “Freddy gray, 25, suffered a fatal spinal cord injury in police custody, leading to protest and unrest.¨ (healy and jones, 2015) This means that people, including Freddy could die on the spot due to a misunderstanding also not only because of a misunderstanding but sometimes it's due to the race of the person. Also, due to excessive force used my officers many are working to stop use of excessive force.
Although we hope our Police force will use their powers for good, but sometimes police misconduct can occur. Often, the police are under great pressure to act as quick as possible, espcially in a murder case and if the murder victime is white, a child, police officer, or prominent. For example, In the 1990’s the case of Rodney King, that not only shows a racist issue within the criminal justice system, but also the issue with abuse from police officers, but changed the country’s views on the LA police force. Twenty- Seven years ago,Rodney King was brutally beaten by Los Angeles police officers.
The sudden rise in deaths among African Americans in police shootings led to a hard questioning to why it was happening. Many of the African Americans who were in support of victims of the shooting blamed it on white cops being racist towards African Americans. In past events of police brutality such as , “ The deaths of Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, Michael Brown, and other unarmed Black victims at the hands of police sparked a national conversation about racism and policing”, which made African Americans to automatically assume that these white cops were killing African Americans because of their hate towards their race. This also led a step further towards investigating as the school of public health had informed the public that, “ A new study led by School of Public Health researchers finds states with a greater degree of structural racism, particularly residential segregation, have higher racial disparities in fatal police shootings of unarmed victims.” (School of Public Health).
Use of force is the amount of force used in a given situation during police work. The police are supposed to follow the continuum when it come to using force. This continuum is known as the “Use of Force Continuum”. Despite this, use of force is still a constant problem in policing. There are many cases where a cop are sued for using more force than necessary, sometimes on purpose and sometimes by accident.
Historically police officers and the excessive use of force has been a key tool used to disrupt the black community and promote fear amongst anyone who dear to speak out for equality. The same police force that were sworn to protect and uphold the law were the same officers who savagely beat African American citizens with billy clubs and tormented the community with attack dogs just because of the difference in skin color. According to Almalcar Scott “It was the police , for example, who held the fire hoes that mowed down civil rights protestors in the 1960”. In recent times the fire hoes has been replaced with fire arms and the force used to torment the community are officer related shootings.
However, research demonstrates that often times men of color are treated harshly which leads to negative perceptions of police officers. Police brutality is a crime that is has been surfacing in the news recently. Some people are just starting to realize that these injustices against the black community really occur, while others are well aware. The recent shootings, different run-ins with officers being filmed while doing such harmful actions against African American men is an example of police brutality and, that reminds us that as a society work needs to be done to improve police and community relations. A black male cannot even walk down the street on a cold night because he might be a suspect from something or he may be of danger to the people around.
Michael White, the author of Examining the Impact Of External Influences on Police Use Of Deadly Force Over Time, states in relation to the issue that police use of deadly force has been the primary focus of research over the past 40 years that has been examining different major determinates of police behavior with shootings (White, 2003, p. 50). This causes a controversial issue for many. In the research conducted in by Cullen and his coworkers, Hacker (1992) claims that “America remains two nations, Black and White, separate, hostile, unequal." (Cullen, 1996). Police are then put into situations where a White officer is against a Black man or vice versa.
This report is showing light to the communities’ response to police brutality particularly in the black communities and also their encounters with police officers. Police brutality is physical violence and great cruelty demonstrated by a police officer. Police brutality and misconduct have existed for many decades and it even has been broadcasted in news stories over America, but nothing has changed. It has happened predominantly to African Americans in lower-income states. Police officers are given slaps on the wrist for taking a life or injuring an innocent person.
Police brutality remains a common yet controversial topic around the world. Police brutality is “the use of excessive and/or unnecessary force by police when dealing with civilians” (thelawdictionary.org). It’s a topic that segregates communities and makes each other their enemy. Specifically, a white officer has been the enemy of the black community. Unfortunately, the tension between police and blacks grew over the past few decades.
During police officers and African American encounters, the use of force to handle some situations, mislead people from the actual reason of the arrest. These forceful actions are the reasons as to why many believe the one at fault are the African Americans. Perhaps this was the reason as to why four women, who were handcuffed on July 2009, were not trusted when they filed a complaint to the Denver Police Department against the rough treatment they received (Wolverton II 2). The officers denied the charges while lying about the actual truth (Wolverton II 2). The public did not believe the four women and protected the officers.
Police Brutality is an ongoing problem and existent concern in the United States and should be resolved immediately. Law enforcement must function as an element that consists of organized and civilized officers. The presence of police brutality is becoming more of an issue as society grows. The problem posed by the illegal exercise of police power is an ongoing reality for individuals of a disfavored race, class, or sexual orientation. Police brutality must be stopped so that police do not forget who they are serving – not themselves, but the public.
Cops around the United States have been accused of racially profiling black people. This topic has been brought up by everyone around the U.S. and is very controversial. Studies have shown that the majority of deaths by police officers have been people of opposite color in America. Police brutality in America is a growing epidemic that has shown no signs of slowing down. Innocent men, women, and even children have been killed by police officers for no reason.
An occurrence observed by the population of Los Angeles, California conveys the existence of racism and police brutality. According to The Polls-Trends: Racial Differences in Attitudes Toward the Police, “…three quarters of blacks, but only 38 percent of whites, continued to view police brutality as a common occurrence” (Tuch and Weitzer
Just last month a 17 year old black boy from Blue Valley Northwest was shot and killed. “Albers was shot by an officer who was responding to a report of a male threatening to take his own life at that location” (“Shooting”). John Albers was shot just outside his house by a white policeman, for little to no reason. “Police said when they arrived at the scene and approached the home, the garage door opened and a vehicle exited, "moving rapidly" toward one of the officers. At that point, the officer fired, killing Albers” (“Shooting”).
