ipl-logo

Police Brutality Essay

1038 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Police brutality and racialprofiling

Police brutality has become a growing issue. With shootings of unarmed African Americans as well as protests, police brutality is one of the most talked about issues in the United States. Police brutality is a term used for undue violence by members of the police force, this violence often directed at young African Americans. With growing awareness towards police brutality, there has also been a growth in questions surrounding the issue. Police brutality is the use of excessive force or verbal assault and psychological intimidation by the law enforcement members. Is police brutality really an issue? Are there solutions? The answer to both questions is yes, although some may disagree with the methods. Groups which are treated as insignificant …show more content…

Race plays a major role in the issue of police brutality in today’s society. As stated by a journalist, ‘’the history of African Americans in the United States is segregation and discrimination which continues to shape the modern society’’ (Chama 203). Historically, police have been known to defend and enforce racism and segregation in both the North and the South of the United States. During the Civil Rights Movement protesters were attacked by police with extreme violence such as being beaten with batons and guns, pepper sprayed, and bitten by police dogs. Despite the fact that segregation was banned after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, African American were still mistreated. The journalist Brain Chama, also agrees with this fact. ‘’Even though the Jim Crow laws made segregation legal no longer exist, millions of African Americans continue to be …show more content…

For example it is not rare to find the situation boils down to the word of the police officer against the word of the victim. A study reports ‘’The New York Civil Liberties Union, which authored the report found that since 1996, the police department disciplined police officers in only 24 percent, or 371 of the 1,543 cases of brutality and other misconduct substantiated by the Civilian Complaint Review Board" ("NY" 6). It can be easily assumed how a judge or jury might be biased into believing a police officer's claim of self defense in a questionable killing situation, especially when there's no evidence involved except for statements. "In other cases, either the department did not find the officer guilty, did not punish the officer or has yet to act on the complaint" ("NY"6). If racial prejudice is considered, it can be suspected that many African Americans face potential wrongful conviction and imprisonments, due to the brutality and discrimination of the

Show More
Related
1150 Words | 5 Pages

Police brutality is an ongoing dilemma in the United States and the current issue relating to it was Freddie Gray’s death in police custody. This was a very important incident that months later would lead to violent riots in

Read More
1391 Words | 6 Pages

Annotated Bibliography Books Dudley, William, et al., editors. Police Brutality. D.L. Bender, 1991. • Police Brutality gives information on how police brutality is a widespread issue in the United States and explains different controversies and cases that relate to police brutality. • The editors of this book include activists and nonfiction authors who provide reliable information on what happened during different incidences of police brutality and the viewpoints and controversies that come with it.

Read More
467 Words | 2 Pages

What is Police Brutality? Police Brutality is the use of any force exceeding what is necessary to accomplish a lawful police purpose. It's history is undeniably long.(“Police Brutality”) Why do they mostly target blacks? I think they target blacks because they still view us as the minority of the country and they overuse their power.

Read More
92 Words | 1 Pages

The history of police brutality goes way back to the slavery era, where law enforcement against African American slaves were known as Fugitive slave catchers. In the United States, during the mid-19th century, fugitive slave catchers were responsible for returning escaped slaves to their owners. The patrols were formed in response to white Southerners ' fears of lawlessness and even insurrection on the part of the slaves, who outnumbered whites by almost two to one in some areas (“US Slaves”). White males were required to be slave patrols. This is evidence in the

Read More
229 Words | 1 Pages

Police brutality is described as using excessive and unnecessary force while dealing with people. Using excessive use of force means to practice force well beyond what would be necessary in order to handle a situation (Danilina, S. 2010, June 8). There are various forms of police brutality, it can occur in physicality and can also use the exploitation of power.

Read More
1491 Words | 6 Pages

One big reason that police brutality is a problem that needs to be solved, is that it causes mental health problems in its victims, families, and communities. Many studies have gone

Read More
1125 Words | 5 Pages

Police brutality is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Or in other words police being hateful and racist to African Americans and does not follow the equal rights they are supposed to by law. Police Brutality started very early such as in 1877 and 1894. How I look at the cause of police brutality is poor police training, racist police officers or governments enacting hard on crime policies. The consequence for the police officers who perform police brutality on somebody is not nearly as bad as the person they perform it on.

Read More
1111 Words | 5 Pages

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.

Read More
672 Words | 3 Pages

Police brutality is defined as an unrestricted and unnecessary amount of harm inflicted by the police on civilians. It is corruption within law enforcement. When they feel threatened, cops tend to use excessive force. It happens too often in Canada and the United States for many different reasons, but the worst is racial profiling. It is not the responsibility of a police officer to frighten someone without justification.

Read More
1146 Words | 5 Pages

In today’s chaotic world, police brutality is becoming more of an issue as society grows. Police brutality is an ongoing concern of the United States as many innocent lives have been taken due to the corrupt police system. Law enforcement must function as well as an element that consists of organized and civilized officers. Police brutality is one of the most serious, enduring, and divisive human rights violations in the United States. This is a problem that is nationwide, and it usually affects individuals of a disfavored race, class, or sexual orientation.

Read More
900 Words | 4 Pages

Police Brutality is a problem in the US because it is used when it does not have to be, Some cases of police using force are not included in records, and when force is used people could be hurt or killed. Many police officers decide that it is best to use force. Even when it is not required. An innocent man asked a police officer to move his vehicle out of his driveway and the officer forced him out of his house.

Read More
282 Words | 2 Pages

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.

Read More
1477 Words | 6 Pages

Since the times of the Civil Rights Movement in the 20th century many African-Americans have had strong opinions about the issues regarding police brutality. Police brutality is the excessive use of unnecessary force by the police, violating the human rights of the civilian. The cause of this issue is police officers stereotyping any innocent civilian based on their appearance such as teenagers, African-Americans, or homosexuals. However, the killings of African-Americans have been most perceptible in recent years.

Read More
892 Words | 4 Pages

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.

Read More
760 Words | 4 Pages

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

Read More

More about Police Brutality Essay

Related Topics

Open Document