Rhetorical Analysis Of Police Willing To Talk

More and more the conversation of racism and police brutality is brought into the public consciousness as situations continue to arise. This brings up the question, what can be done to start addressing these issues? Written by Meg McIntyre, the article, “Police Willing to Talk, Agree More Work Needs to be Done,” was published in the Concord Monitor, a news site based in New Hampshire, whose main audience is the residents there, particularly those who care about racial issues in this case. In light of the BLM Movement and the death of George Floyd, the article intends to inform its readers about what is being done in response to racial disparities and police involvement in Nashua, New Hampshire, to see what methods may be employed elsewhere

The discussions surrounding modern concerns about racism hold a wide variety of opinions, it would be impossible to find a single person to properly represent them all. Luckily, the author was aware of this and made sure to include the thoughts of several qualified people with diverse perspectives. Early in the article, McIntyre introduced Police Chief Michael Carignan, a key part of the Nashua Community Conversations on Race and Justice initiative. Not long after, the audience meets Jordan Thompson, one of the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement in Nashua, who voices his thoughts on the impact the initiative has had. These two people represent stark ends of the spectrum, but they are far from the only ones interviewed. Not only are the multiple individuals quoted in the writing extremely reputable, making it easy to trust their opinions on the situation, but the wide array is imperative to the success of the

Now, since the author has shown to not favor one side over another, it can be discussed how they then start pushing the audience to build a rapport with each other. Lastly, the key to uniting opposing views is to try to help them see eye to eye, so that people may be able to sympathize with each other. Here, one way that is done is through personal accounts. McIntyre quotes Thompson once again when he notes that, “for many people of color, police departments do not feel like safe spaces, so it’s important for law enforcement to recognize the sacrifices those residents are making in coming to the table.” Following that, the point of view of officers is then given when the Police Chief says, “We train (officers) as best we can, we hire the right people, we work so hard to make sure we’re able to de-escalate. But it can’t be a one-way street." By using personal statements from both Carignan and Thompson, it allows the readers to see from a perspective they may not be familiar with. Being able to understand why there exists a level of apprehension on both ends of the debate helps the audience develop a deeper sense of