Police Brutality In The US

Superior Essays
From Private Problem to Public Problem
It was not until the 1931 Wickersham Commission Report that policymakers realized that policing in America had become a major problem (Rushin, 2014). Still today, according to Justice Together (n.d.), “one dimensional stories about victims of police brutality make it far too easy for policy makers and leaders to ignore the true impact of police violence in America.” In addition, pressure from the public and extensive media coverage impacts the decisions of policy makers to found a solution as well (Dowler, 2003). The lack of statistics regarding police brutality and mainly the trend of violence against African-Americans has propelled policymakers to propose reforms that address the issue, “following the deaths of Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice and Freddie Gray” (RT Network, 2015). There are various organizations protesting on behalf of victims of police brutality (misconduct). Such organizations our voices for many people, especially for families who seek justice. Per Groden (2014), “media coverage of police brutality has been an important public service, giving voice to victims and forcing change.” Politics Stream Most would concur that police brutality (misconduct) has become a national crisis. Thus, this issue involves an array of actors such as policymakers, individual citizens, the president, advocacy groups and more. For the most part, all policy actors involved agree that all Americans should be treated equally within our legal and judicial systems. Also, policy actors involved would like to secure “improved police training; data collection and accountability; repairing the fractured relationship between police and community; and, in instances where lives are taken, the promise of a diligent, independent, and thorough investigation and prosecution, when appropriate” (Jawando & Parsons, 2014). Police brutality is an enduring issue within our culture and thus contributes to the dark nation’s mood, as people have grown impatient and resistant. Specifically in regard to the police brutality trend against unarmed African-American males and females. In addition, the treatment of law enforcement officers alone is enough to affect the public’s mood. According to Crockett Jr. (2015) One of the officers, Caesar R. Goodson Jr., who is facing second-degree-murder charges, appears to hug someone before entering central booking. Three of the Baltimore officers arrested and charged with various crimes in the death of Freddie Gray are seen in a new video walking from the police van into the jail without handcuffs. Such instances validate the public’s lack of trust in the judicial system, as the aforementioned embracement is “not common practice for suspects…enter[ing] central booking (Crockett Jr., 2015). Policy Stream There are several policy alternatives to combat police brutality. Moreover, measures such as the usage of body cameras, supervision of supplied law-enforcement equipment, updated standards on racial profiling and a task force that examines crime reduction is currently underway (Jawando & Parsons, 2014). Though these measures are not salient remedies in curing the issue these competing ideas
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Also, in some instances people are losing their lives. In his opinion, the use of “body cameras, extensive teamwork and better training are important policy solutions.” Furthermore, due to the sensitivity of the subject, they issue of police brutality will “continue to progress and accountability will be held on both ends.” To conclude, TD recommends “extensive background checks for officers, checking more into the community rather than just running record[s] to find out what kind of person they are (asking family members, friends, teachers from when they were in school, …show more content…
It seems that whenever crisis affects our country methods are put into place for the moment however long term remedies are not always considered. Per Rutkin (2015), “police departments are good at making reactionary policies in times of crisis, but not making substantive changes,” Ghani says. “My greater fear is that things will calm down and police departments will go back to the same old, same old.” My hopes are that people continue to fight for what they believe then and do not let this become a trend of fighting for the moment. As a social worker, one must fight for all inequalities within our society and thus the entire world. The role of the social workers to advocate, increase public awareness, and essentially make sure that this issue does not

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