Policing Black People - Assignment Example

Renata Campbell Mr. Zimmerman English 102 November 11, Policing and the Black Community The instances of black men being killed under debatable circumstances by the police have always placed the strategies of the police on the hedge. Policing of United States of America have always targeted the poor and the minority communities and fostered the culture of brutality in the community of black people. There is racially selective enforcement of the law that focusses on the black communities that have run a serious risk of violating the federal and constitution law. Criminal offenses are subjected to legal punishment, but there can never be offenses enforced on a specific community while being sidelined in other races and communities. One case of black community mistrust was the case of Eric Garner. Eric Garner was chocked and slammed the head to the ground. According to the police, they stopped him from selling cigarettes that were untaxed, something that he was arrested before. Sean Bell and Amadou Diallo cases, makes one to feel desensitized by the insurmountable injustice that has always plagued the black community. It is recognized that the black people have always been abused by the police. The presence of respected justice system in the country can be core in differentiating between a criminal and the one who is not. Blacks have been considered as criminals on various occasions because of the many blacks involved in crime as per the American statistics. Studies conducted by Sharp &Atherton shown that white people consider blacks as among the people who abuse drugs more often, engage in crime, and are more violent. The United States may not be the only country that links blacks to criminal activities. A research conducted in Canada revealed that most Canadians believed that blacks are more prone to crime (Sharp & Atherton 746). In fact, on some occasions more blacks have been involved in crime compared to the white people. On the other hand, in the past few years America has registered more white criminals than blacks in countrywide arrests. The black community has also faced many challenges in the justice system (Winter 100). Most of the black people who are charged in court, receive more severe sentences than criminals from other ethnic groups. Prosecutors charge blacks with the mentality that they are prone to crime. Tough policies targeting black men, communities, and families have been developed. Normally, black communities usually socialize with their peers. The black boys have always been careful around law enforcement. For instance, the latest Ferguson shooting of Michael Brown has erupted the tension between the police and the black community. The death of Trayvon Martin and other young black men has perpetuated the entrenched and pervasive feeling of the mistrust that the black community has had on the police. Since the shooting of Brown, another black man was shot in South Carolina. Radically speaking, there is a level of mistrust between the black community and the police. This can only be reduced through forums pushing for accountability among the police. The issue has further assimilated the white community where the black’s psychology is rooted on the cultural mistrust that exists with white people and their perceived white institutions. According to the pioneer of black psychologists, all blacks need to embrace a healthy relationship with the whites (Cashmore 20). Societies that dehumanize and devalue the whites, then do not trust the white people and their correspondent institutions. The tension between the black’s people and the police is rational because the black boys are not issued similar protection like that of the white peers. In one study the participant revealed that the black, Latino, and White photos are matched with the similar attractiveness (Winter 64). There is disturbing history that has always been there between the women and black men suffering in the hands of police officers, therefore, the black people have always mistrusted them. The worst history of innocent black community members dying at the hands of police officers has continued to create poor relationships between them. Most black parents keep on advising their children to be careful around police officers for fear of victimization. It is hard to believe that police officers have continued to shoot down unarmed black men and women in various regions of the country. Most of these incidents are linked to police profiling whereby some police officers base their judgment on a belief that most black people are criminals (Cashmore 20). Policing is becoming more challenging due to strained relationships with the black community. Despite continuous training on prevention of discrimination among the recruit police officers, some of them have continued to be biased against the black community. Tension rises in the community at the sight of a police officer. Many black families have always believed that the police are enemies rather than friends who are entitled to protect their lives. Recent events involving the police and some black people have led to mistrust. Several cases of police brutality in the black community have been witnessed in various parts of the United States of America. The shooting of Michael Brown is just one of the several cases encountered in the recent past. Research carried out by Rio indicated that most crimes in the country are committed by Black people. The findings of the study also showed that the majority of the white population believed that black men are more violent and street thugs. Such perception has continued to create a rift between the black people and the white police officers. This connection between crime and the black community has never been welcoming. In American history, black people have been stereotyped as criminals. Racial profiling is most often rooted to inaccurate information Black people were also found to be involved in crimes that are more violent. The evidence, however, should not provide a platform of judging the black people collectively. The police involved in such cases should understand that black people are to be treated equally like any other American. Such brutality has to be stopped. Finding a long time solution to such a problem will help revive the trust. Black people should be made to have a sense of belonging. (Cashmore 34). They do not have to walk in fear during their day-to-day activities. The police and the black community have to come together. Forums with intentions of bringing the black people and the police together can be organized by neighborhood watch committees and the department of police. The members of the black community should be allowed to raise their problems and concerns. Together with the police, a long-term solution can be developed. The goal of such forums has to focus on repairing the poor relationship that exists between the two parties. They must join hands and come up with effective solutions to the problems in context. More young men from the black communities should be recruited into the police force. Having one of their own in the department creates trust and does not make it look like the white police officers are against the blacks because of their race. The killing of black members has ignited series of demonstrations with the blacks seeking justice and protection from the American government. Similar incidents have happened in the past. What makes it worse is that the offenders are never charged with a crime at the end process. Trayvon Martin’s shooting, plus other countless deaths only proves the deep feelings of mistrust the black community posses toward the police (Kappeler, 67). After Brown was killed, another incident occurred when Von Derrit Myers Jr. was gunned down by police. The incident happened in St Louis. The black people in America believe that such cases have not been treated with the required seriousness. The police officers involved in such incidences are never demoted but only transferred to other states in the country. The black community feels as if such police officers should be brought to justice instead of being protected The police have to accept that black people have suffered because of poor judgment by some of the officers this is because policing in have employed racial profiling in dealing with the black community. The mistrust that exists between the black community and the police is not justified. In order to revive this mistrust, the police should listen to the black community and admit to have wronged them in the past years. It is true that trust is earned and not given. If police have to settle issues that exist between them and the community, then they should admit their mistakes and promise to work together with the people. Additionally, they have to pay attention to issues raised by the community and promise to protect them (Winter 64). The actual deaths of black people like Eric Garner are a blatant reminder that under the law, the lives of black peoples are worth less in the country than other races. People black communities are still killed by white police. If someone is black, the harsh reality is the scenarios that haunts so much and seems easy to acquiesce. Therefore, Joseph White, regarded as the father of the black psychology, advised that black people are to have a healthy relationship toward the white people (Winter 100). He explained that, in a racist community where the blacks are devalued, a black person who continues to mistrust the white institutions and people would only be regarded as uncivilized. He directed that the black people should forget about focusing on racism and concentrate on improving their lives. “Policing and Mistrust in black community has a corrosive effect—not just on the black community; it has a corrosive effect on America,” Obama said, “It harms the communities that need law enforcement the most. It makes folks who are victimized by crime and need strong policing reluctant to go to the police because they may not trust them. In addition, the worst part of it is it scars the hearts of our children. It scars the hearts of the white kids who grow unnecessarily fearful of somebody who does not look like them. It stains the heart of black children who feel as if no matter what he does, he will always be under suspicion. That is not the society we want. It is not the society that our children deserve. Whether you’re black or white, you don’t want that for America” Works Cited Cashmore, Ernest, and Eugene McLaughlin. Out of Order? Policing Black People. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. Garmire, Bernard L., Jesse G. Rubin, and James Q. Wilson. The Police & the Community. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1972. Print. Kappeler, Larry Gaine & Victor. Policing in America. Chicago: Adventure Works Press, 2013. Print Rios, Victor M.. Punished: Policing the Lives of Black and Latino Boys. New York: New York University Press, 2011. Print. Sharp, D., and S. Atherton. "To Serve and Protect?: The Experiences of Policing in the Community of Young People from Black and Other Ethnic Minority Groups." British Journal of Criminology 47.5 (2007): 746-763. Print. Winter smith, Robert F.. Police and the Black community. Lexington, Mass.: Lexington Books, 1974. Print. Read More