According to the Declaration of Independence signed on July 4,1776 “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” The Declaration of Independence says that all men are equal; all men are equal means that every man’s life has the same value. Police brutality has been an ongoing problem since the beginning of time. The conflict of the police versus the people has become a mass media problem as well as a personal problem. Back 1992, Rodney Glen King was the first African American to go viral for being the first victim of police brutality. “King was caught by the Los Angeles police after a high-speed chase on March 3, 1991”. “King, who was intoxicated, had been caught speeding and initially tried to evade the police. When he finally pulled over and exited his car, multiple LAPD units and a helicopter were pursuing him. Taken by bystander George Holliday from across the street, the footage shows four officers tazing, kicking, and hitting King with their batons upwards of 53 times… the bruises, broken leg, and the scar from the stun gun, which jolted him with 50,000 bolt shocks… The officers involved, Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Theodore Briseno and Stacey Koon, were put …show more content…
However the term “All Lives Matter” has become the counter argument. “All Lives Matter” believes that no one particular live should be singled out, but they fail to realize that “Black Lives Matter” is not saying “Black” lives are more important it is saying the focus right now is “Black” lives. If all lives truly mattered “Black Lives Matter” would not have to be headline. Also, if “All Lives matter” were true, everyone would be outraged about the fact that there has been no justice for these ruthless executions. Instead
The four officers were brought to court and tried on charges of assault. During the trial, an officer argued that Rodney King resisted arrest, and that they believed King was under the influence of Phencyclidine (PCP) which caused him to be very aggressive and violent toward the officers. When the police thought King was reaching for a weapon near his waistband, they thought the use of force would be “necessary”. The officers did not handcuff King until he lied still.
However, research demonstrates that often times men of color are treated harshly which leads to negative perceptions of police officers. Police brutality is a crime that is has been surfacing in the news recently. Some people are just starting to realize that these injustices against the black community really occur, while others are well aware. The recent shootings, different run-ins with officers being filmed while doing such harmful actions against African American men is an example of police brutality and, that reminds us that as a society work needs to be done to improve police and community relations. A black male cannot even walk down the street on a cold night because he might be a suspect from something or he may be of danger to the people around.
It all began on Saturday August 9, 2014 in the town of Ferguson, Missouri, which is a small suburb of St. Louis, Missouri. A young African American male was shot by a white police officer, which ultatimely led to his death. His name was Michael Brown he was only 18 years old when he died from a gun shot wound by officer Darren Wilson. The story begins when Brown and his friend decided to go rob a store where they sold cigarillos.
On July 17, 2014, 23 old, Ramsey Orta recorded the public killing of Eric Garner. The recording displays a six foot three inch, three hundred sixty pound unarmed black male being boxed in between a convenience store, located on a busy New York street and uniform as well as plain clothed officers. You can hear multiple offices persistently questioning Garner before the tattooed officer on his far right wearing a black fitted baseball cap takes charge of the situation. All though out the recording Garners body language shows him to be deeply vexed by the officers, however, not aggressive. The next scene depicts the officers on Garners far left attempt to put Garner in handcuffs without verbally warning Garner what he was doing before making the physical contact.
James Earl Ray was born in Alton, Illinois, on March 10, 1928. known for being racist and a criminal, Ray began plotting the assassination of the civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in early 1968. He shot and killed Martin Luther King in Memphis on April 4, 1968, confessing to the crime the following March.in April 1968, Ray rented a room at a rooming house under the name Eric Starvo Galt, near the Lorraine Motel, where King was staying. Just after 6 p.m. on April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King Jr. is fatally shot while standing on the balcony outside his second-story room at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, while Ray rented a room at a rooming house under the name Eric Starvo Galt, near the Lorraine Motel, where King was staying.
Twenty-three years after Rodney King’s beating, police brutality is on the rise more than ever. On March 3, 1991 Rodney King led police on a high speed chase through the streets of Los Angeles County before finally surrendering. An intoxicated Rodney King resisted arrest and upon doing so he was brutally beaten by police officers. An 89-second video of Rodney King being beaten was filmed and released to the press. The video shows police officers Laurence Powell, Theodore Briseno, Timothy Wind and Stacey Koon, beating King with their batons.
The quote stated above by Rodney King is an interpretation of how he feel towards police brutality. Rodney King was an African American male who was brutally beat by police officers when he refused to pull over. This incident showed that officers can be cruel and as a future criminal justice professional, it makes me question the understanding of ethical practices in the criminal justice system. Unlike Rodney King, the man in the video was not beat but he was tortured –twisting of his arm. Both Rodney King and the man in the video were helpless as they continued to scream for help.
Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Theodore Briseno, and Stacey Koon were the four officers who beat up Rodney King on March 3(Biography). Although not all of the officers were being accused of the same crime they all still faced many difficulties. The officers received many death threats because of how they treated King. Many people believed the officers did not deserve freedom and threatened their lives. Most of the officers were being accused of assault with a deadly weapon which would result in years of prison if convicted (Biography).The jury for the Rodney King trial threatened democracy and the fairness of the trial.
The police then beat Rodney King for about 15 minutes, which lead to him having skull fractures, broken bones, broken teeth, and permanent brain damage. The police didn’t know that they were being filmed for most of the beating. The person that filmed it brought it to a local news station, and within days the film was seen through all of America, Police brutality had been a problem for a while in LA, but this was the first time it was filmed. Four white Los Angeles police officers were charged with assault with a deadly weapon and using excessive force. On November 26, 1991 the trial was moved from L.A. to a mostly white town in Ventura County.
When a police officer attempted to pull over King, he chose to flee which resulted in a police
The Justice system has shown a pattern of taking the side of law enforcement. As of today, police brutality, specifically excessive force still remains as one of the most serious human rights violations. From the severe beatings, to the unjustified shootings, and inexcusable aggressive rough treatment all contribute to police officer misconduct. Many officers need to be opened minded about the way they address victims, suspects, and criminals. Yes, they have the upper power, but in any situation everyone is a human being and should be treated as such; the majority of this unacceptable behavior goes unnoticed or unreported.
For every 1,000 people killed by police, only one officer is convicted of a crime. In “MLK Freedom Rides Speech” MLK argues that we should always use peaceful methods to have change. In contrast, in “By Any Means Necessary” Malcolm X argues we should use peaceful methods but if violence is used upon us we should also fight back with violence. Indeed, some argue that if we are using peaceful methods and violence is being used upon us we should fight back with violence while others believe we should fight back with peace.
Rodney King was the victim in a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) on March 3, 1991. A bystander, George Holliday, videotaped much of the incident from a distance. The footage showed seven officers surrounding the solitary King, with several LAPD officers repeatedly striking a helpless King with their batons while the other officers stood by watching, without taking any action to stop the beating. A portion of this footage was aired by news agencies around the world, causing public outrage that increased tension between the local black community and the LAPD and increased anger over police brutality, racism and social inequalities in Los Angeles. Four LAPD officers were later tried in a state court for
According to “The Washington Post”, Last year 963 African Americans were shot and killed by police. Ever since the 1960s Africans has been fighting for equality; in the Eric Garner case and Michael Brown, it demonstrated how White police officers abuse and misuse their power towards African Americans. Since the increase of police brutality communities has had marches, rallies, and even the Black Lives Matters movements as a response to show that Polices’ abuse of power is unacceptable. The Black Lives Matter movement was created after radical discrimination it is a political movement to inform and protect Black Lives. (Wesley Lowery.
However, in spite of the fact that the Rodney King verdict catalyzed these riots in 1992, there were other contributing factors to the riots. One such contributing factor was the rampant escalation of police presence in response to the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The games, while they were incredibly profitable, on the other hand, were also responsible for the militarization the Los Angeles Police Department. The 1984 games served as a spectacle of American prosperity and success; an image which was threatened by the rising gang violence and drug crimes in nearby South Central. The local law enforcement.