“It begins with a relatively minor incident: A traffic stop. A burglary. A disturbance. Police arrive and tensions escalate. It ends with an unarmed black man shot dead” (Somashekhar). Already a total of,”896 people shot dead by police this year” (“Investigation: Police shootings”). The 31 of which were of a weapon unknown, which means,”could not determine whether a person was armed because of conflicting accounts from witnesses or a lack of information,” (Somashekhar).
The majority for the weapon unknown deaths are 11 blacks. The 82 shot to death this year were unarmed civilians, of whom 29 were white, 31 black, 17 hispanic, and five of other race. “However, black men accounted for 40 percent of the ‘82’ unarmed deaths, even though they make up just 6 percent of the U. S. population. The Post’s analysis shows that black men were seven times more likely than white men to die by police gunfire while unarmed” (Somashekhar).
Police act with too much brute force, and most of which is directed to the unequal treatment based on race, which is mainly directed towards the black population. Police brutality is an american epidemic that affects every race and gender but mostly it affects the black race. Blacks are strongly affected by police brutality and biased judgments. Recent months have made police brutality hard to ignore and pose an unexpected challenge to the government, thanks to the black community that isn’t willing to put up with the corruption in the Police Departments.
A black movement for the social problem has erupted since the shooting of Michael Brown on August 9, 2014,” That incident sparked a national movement to protest police treatment of African Americans and turned 18-year-old Michael Brown into a putative symbol of racial inequality in America” (Somashekhar). “The disproportionate number of unarmed black men in the body count helps explain why outrage continues to simmer a year after Ferguson — and why shootings that might have been ignored in the past are now coming under fresh public and legal scrutiny” (Somashekhar).
Prior to Ferguson, police were politically untouchable. Ferguson changed that calculus,” said Georgetown University professor Paul Butler, a former federal prosecutor” (Somashekhar). “Ferguson was a watershed moment in policing. Police understand they are now under the microscope,” said Mark Lomax, executive director of the National Tactical Officers Association, which represents police rank and file. “So far this year, three officers have been charged with crimes after fatally shooting unarmed black men. All three were caught on video.
One — the April shooting of Eric Harris in Tulsa — appears to have been an accident. But in the other two, the footage contradicted the officer’s initial account of what happened” (Somashekhar). Issue of police brutality was addressed but the problem hasn’t went away. “A year after Michael Brown’s fatal shooting, unarmed black men are seven times more likely than whites to die by police gunfire” (Somashekhar). Police tactics haven’t changed and even have been elevated, due to the fact that the the prejudice and aggressive police saw the social call for change as a call out.
If no social change occurs then there is a high potential for a riot to occur. There can be more activists and more movements calling for equal and humane treatment that can put United States on spot before the world. Eventually the call for social change can reach international levels, if the movements persist to stand strong using right tactics such as that of nonviolent protests. President Barack Obama stated,” that he knows racial profiling by police is a real concern — in part because he’s experienced it firsthand” (Bendery).
Eugene Thomas a writer has said,”We black folk are reduced to teaching our children a bitter and demoralizing lesson: how to get arrested, how to respond if stopped by the police, how to decrease the possibility of being shot and killed for the crime of being black. I was taught what to do, and I have taught my son the same lessons. I suspect this father-to-son inheritance is all but unfathomable to most white Americans” (Thomas). “Every day in America police are too tough; Every day in America police cross the line and abuse citizens; Every day in America police get away with that.
White America was shocked at what they saw police doing to Rodney King. Black America would have loved to have been shocked but black America only could have been shocked if what the police did to Rodney King was something completely alien to their community experience, was something they couldn’t imagine the police doing in their community. There’s a Rodney King every day in this country and black America has always known that. Everything those cops did to those protesters they’ve done to someone else when there were no video cameras rolling; They’ve done it and they’ve gotten away with it.
They know just how much assault and battery their Department will let them commit; They know just how many false arrests their Department will let them do; They know just how much latitude their dept gives them on abusing citizens. They do it because they know they can; They do it because they know they will get away with it. None of these officers will be disciplined in any way; None of these officers will be charged with the assaults and batteries that they committed; None will be charged with false arrests; None of them will lose a day’s pay.
The Police Department doesn’t need an investigation; They’ve already said the officers acted appropriately. If the Department does, by some miracle, discipline anyone for what happened this weekend I will immediately rewrite my mistaken presumption tonight that American police have, once again, gotten away with another crime against the American people they are sworn to serve and protect” (O’Donnell). If by any chance a police officer gets many reports for abusing his power then they are most likely to be transferred to a different department.
From this I conclude, if the police officer has abused their power and acted with brutality, shot and killed then they are still out there working hard, in a different Police Department, to protect you and I. The problem isn’t just the police that cross the line but the Department that allows that to happen. Police Department work hand in hand with the prosecutors, and thus have mutual relationship goal. For these acts to end there needs to be independent investigation to police the police. There needs to be independent prosecutors that do not work hand in hand with the Police Department.
Since not all the police officers and I am hopping that the majority of the police officers can act according to the situation by following the procedures, there needs to be a recognition to those good acting officers. One way to protect the citizens from bad police officers, and to protect the good police officers from bad public, is to implement body cameras as soon as possible. Video technology worn by the police will pose a unique opportunity and unique challenges for all of public and the police.
If body cameras become a standard part of interaction with citizens, then those protect and serve may be forced to make some difficult changes, on how they execute their public responsibilities. The honest evidence that a video can provide is all too absent from any of the law enforcements most intense interactions. Many things would change is the police wear body cameras. But for now it is our responsibility to videotape any police interactions that we come to, especially if the police officer’s actions are out of line.
Video recording can help to protect and justify the good policing, and can be a valuable tool for actions to be taken against the wrong policing. Several strategies that will be effective in accomplishing the social change are good leadership, a clear message, and the use of media. Having a good leadership creates a stronger bond of people and an idol for many to look upon. Choosing a right leader that is loyal and strategic provides a bigger coverage and gives power not only to the movement but to the leader.
When a leader has many followers it gives him/her a power to speak on behalf of the whole group and when one person can speak on behalf of others, then other can reach out to come to a compromise or to work out a change that would work. A clear message provides a good understanding of what one is trying to accomplish, how one is trying to accomplish such a change, and why one is trying to accomplish such a social change. A clear and good massage lets others have a good understanding of the social problem at hand.
Using media is the best way to put the leadership and the message together, to reach out to all of the citizens, to expose the social problem and even reach the international exposure of the problem. Of course there will be those who want to resist the change but to counteract their resistance the change should be legal. Police Departments could be against the change if it might hurt them or expose them in a bad way. To prevent any bad outcomes both the social activists and the law enforcement authorities should work together to reach the change.
A new change can bring confusion to the public and authorities. Law enforcements might need to clarify the actions and the change of actions that such a change might provide. New training might be necessary in order to protect both the police and the citizens. Additional cultural training for the law enforcements will help to make the right judgments of the situation. Body cameras will help the judicial system to make the right conclusions and see the situation in different prospective.
Video recording will aid in understanding a full story, which can eliminate any confusion in any report or case. False police report will become an issue of the past. Less innocent americans will be behind bars or shot to death by an officer of the law. Innocent people will have more chance of proving themselves innocent and the perpetrators will have a harder time to get away. The truth will come out and rule in favor of the innocent and justice will come to those who deserve it. Justice will be able to rule better than before if a social change occurs.
