One day, I was walking in town, and to my wandering eyes, I saw a garden. It was no surprise. I realized there was something different. I found out very fast. In the middle, there was broken glass. On one side, there were wilted flowers. Yes, it’s true. I saw a police officer with tear-filled eyes. Out of his mouth, he spoke words that came out loose. To him, he was speaking the truth.
Police Officer: They say I am … a horrible person. It’s true. People think I am gunning down every African-American being in this country, and it’s injustice towards our youth. Their hate-filled eyes chant words of grief from “Justice to No Peace.” The truth is, in the words of Eric Gardner, it is I who “cannot breathe.” I am a good person, and I hear these kids scream, and yelp. These
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There is an African-American teenage girl, who is irked, and the hate inside her shows. Her eyes are filled with furry, and they are bright red like Rudolph's nose. The words were coming out of her mouth fast. She spoke about tragic events from the past.
African-American Teenage Girl: They say I am … absurd! I am not! This isn’t bizarre! Police officers are killing teenagers, near and far! They are repulsive! I despise them, like the garbage they are! These people and I have one thing in common, you see! All of these innocent victims resemble me! From Mrs. Bland to Mr. Gray, and many others galore! How many people will be lost? No more! These “supposed community leaders” must immediately go! They are “pigs in a blanket!” Hey! Hey! Oh, no!
These two individuals have both different perspectives on this issue, you see. This shattered glass can be repaired just like the relationship between the police, and the community. The bad police officers must be punished because of the people they have hurt. They try to cover up their wrongdoings just like garden dirt. This process will take time, and we already know. We can take away hate, and make love
In the book Between the World and Me, author Ta-Nehisi Coates shares the experience of a traffic stop through the eyes of a Black man. Recounting a memory to his son, Coates explains, “They took my identification and returned to the squad car. I sat there in terror… At that point in American history, no police department fired its guns more than that of Prince George’s County” (Coates 75-76). Given the increasing number of stories arising of unjustifiable police brutality, when pulled over by the police, understandably, Coates was genuinely concerned that they may take his life away.
He asserts that “Something happens to people in law enforcement...after years of police work, officers often can’t help but be influenced by the cynicism they feel.” He rationalizes but does not deny, the law enforcement’s aggressive actions that the people of color may have seen or experienced. This method of pathos not only diversifies but also fortifies his thesis that there is evidence of racial profiling; however, he once again give reason for their skepticism to execute his primary purpose. Overall, dedicating three of his four “hard truths” to justify the actions of the law enforcement is crucial to his argument as a whole because his audience may have portrayed them differently
Aggressive police culture will not change unless officers hold their colleagues accountable. It is important to check in with one another, to recognize the humanity within us. It is okay to become jaded sometimes, but there must be an awareness of how we treat one another, our motives, and particularly an officer’s duty to protect all American citizens. In addition to officers allowing other officers too much discretion, there needs to be a change in the amount of discretion given to police departments as a whole. The political climate of today’s tension has shifted public trust in the police.
All I could do is stare at the jar in astonishment. Then the cashier said, “ It’s tragic isn't it?” It is tragic, but what is even more tragic is that the murderer is my son, I had thought in my head. My heart started to pound aggressively in my chest. The cashier also said, “ You have to wonder about the parents, I mean how could they have not known?”
Over the past couple of years’ police brutality has played a great whole in the arrest of African Americans and Caucasian officers. Many people may have heard about the unfortunate findings that police have killed many unarmed individuals such as: Michael Brown Jr., Alton Sterling, and Philando Castile; additionally, there is one case where a young lady was found deceased three days after she was arrested. The difference between all of these cases is that this young lady, Sandra Bland, death was eventually ruled a suicide. Ultimately, there still remains questions to why Blands simple traffic violation ever turned into a confrontation. Bland had just moved to Texas in order to get a fresh start on life, she even had a job lined up for herself.
There are good police officers who still believe in what is right. But the ones who do take the lives of innocent victims and disobey their code of conduct makes other police officers who do, do their job look bad. Those police officers who goes against their conduct make other police officers look bad especially white officers who have no intention of killing someone over that person's race. Many people use to look up to the police and view them as perfect role models who follows the law and always do the right thing but now many of those who use to look up to officers now fear them and take caution with every move they make because they fear for their lives. And that problem is not okay because citizens should not fear law enforcement because their race is not white.
No one should ever convey such brutality by people that are supposed to defend, honor and protect us. “Can’t we all just get along?” the famous words of Rodney
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.
Growing up my parents instilled in me that I was beautiful and my skin was beautiful. It was clear to me that everyone else didn’t feel the same way. I went to a couple different schools throughout my life starting with a predominantly black school then a predominantly white school then a very diverse school and at each one I still experienced colorism. At the black school I was not liked because I was darkskin and my hair was kinky and I was just not as pretty as the light skinned girls.
I fear that the police is going to become the new KKK.In the article of Jim Crow Policing Bob Hebert stated,”People who object to the harassment are often threatened with arrest for disorderly conduct”. In other words Bob is saying no matter the police can harass you and you can 't do anything about it which is unfair. The Jim Crow Policing article in paragraph nine basically summarize how police would stop people of color because they dressed like a gangster or dressed like they are suspicious of doing something. The police also stop people of color by the way they move shifty.
Throughout African American history , the police force has been accountable for numerous detrimental deaths in the African American community due to racial discrimination. In 1960s, African American protesters were targeted by the police force because of the their desire to be be deemed as equal. Likewise, in today’s society African Americans are still experiencing active racial discrimination and injustices from the police force. African Americans have expressed their level of frustration with the inhumane actions of the police force. Police brutality of African American protesters has been rebirthed into 21st century by ongoing racial injustices through Henry Louis Gates Jr. and victims of the detrimental equality marches , evidence is presented.
I have had the great privilege and blessing of being an African American female in America. Most people would consider this a curse because of the difficult and challenging journey, but I consider it a blessing. Being an African American female has made me strong and resilient. I stand on the backs of my ancestors who have conquered immense struggle and misfortune but still manage to survive and thrive. African Americans are academics, scientists, inventors, entertainers, and much more.
“Slangin’ Rocks” Objective Summary “Slangin’ Rocks” by Robin D.G. Kelley, is an opinion essay about the treatment of “people of color” by United States law enforcement, in a historical and modern sense. The purpose of the essay is to persuade the reader to agree with the belief of the author, that U.S law enforcement treats “people of color” unfairly, and that the system itself needs to be changed. The essay begins with the author describing his own experience with law enforcement, which provides him with credibility on the topic and provides insight into why the essay was written (Kelley 21-23). The author’s personal story provides the reader with a specific example of how “people of color” are treated unfairly by law enforcement, and that
In the 1960s Police were targeted by the Black Panther party and had at least 13 planned killings of police that the authorities know of. That hasn't happened since then until the past few months where there have been race riots and killings of police. The media doesn't report those stories. They report the stories of police killing teenagers who are “defenseless”, but in reality are armed and dangerous. Police are killed everyday, even though it may not be through a race issue or a surprise attack it still happens and the media won't report the incidents when they happen.
As a result, there is a drastic increase of violent outburst between both sides. For the last years, it was reported that 51.5 percent of black were killed by police officers (ibtimes.com). On the other hand, there have been 51,548 assaults against law enforcement and it resulted in 14,453 injuries in 2015 alone (nleomf.org). In the United States, recently, police brutality has been a popular subject all over the news and social media.