Police brutality has been going on for too long. The public's silence, apathy, lack of complaining and lack of interest has given the government too much power, and it's getting out of control. The public's lack of speaking up is causing harm to democracy and society on issues like police brutality. Being apathetic and allowing the government to take advantage of it for their benefit and power is wrong. The public's apathy has let the government gain more power and get away with their actions such as police brutality.
The people not complaining has let the government to gain more power. Such actions have let the government get away with many issues like police brutality. In his essay "Why Don't We Complain?" Buckley writes about how the people …show more content…
The people's lack of complaining and apathy let the government get away with police brutality. Take Ta-Nehisi Coates essay, "The Paranoid Style of American Policing" as an example. In his essay Coates writes about the time his dad resolved an issue with a "young man...[with] a metal stake" without resorting to violence or force of any kind (99). He states that it "wasn’t the first time" he witnessed his dad solve a dilemma "without resorting to killing them," unlike the police officers (100). Coates adds that resolving issues in a community like his, a Black community, "is part of being an adult" (100). He continues by commenting that he couldn't say the same for those who were not part of such communities. Coates then writes about a young nineteen-year-old man name Quintonio LeGrier who had a mental illness, was wielding a bat, and was killed by a police officer simply because the officer thought that the baseball bat was a "lethal threat" (100). Remember, Coates' father resolved a similar issue with a young man; except the young man he resolved the issue with had a metal stake, not a baseball bat. Coates adds that LeGriers mother questions "'What happened to tasers" or other tactics besides her son getting shot seven times (100). How is it possible that Coates' father, a citizen who is "not paid to protect other citizens," unlike police officers, was able to mediate a conflict peacefully? You would …show more content…
Take in Dylan Rodriguez's article, "Beyond 'Police Brutality': Racist State Violence and the University of California" as an example. In his article, Rodriguez covers the event of what happened at UC Davis, University of California Davis, on November 18, 2011. What happened was that there was a "well disciplined" protest going on at UC Davis where there was an abuse of power on "young WHITE people... [and] people of color who were" there to peacefully protest. These unarmed, innocent, peacefully protesting students were "shot with 'less than lethal' police pellets" and sprayed with "caustic 'nonlethal' spray." Rodriguez adds that there was an abundance of police presence which demonstrated the "massive... force against the students, faculty, staff, and ordinary people" in other words, regular ordinary citizens. This clearly shows the police's dominance in power against the public. Using such force is not right, but police still use such forces as "caustic 'nonlethal' spray" and pellets "because they [can]" legally. Why? Well, because they are part of the group in society that write the law. Courts have allowed police officers to legally use such tactics and then have them go unpunished. Rodriguez questions if events like the one that occurred at UC Davis is supporting "racist police
The people not complaining has let the government to gain more power. Such actions have let the government get away with many issues like police brutality. In his essay "Why Don't We Complain?" Buckley writes about how the people …show more content…
The people's lack of complaining and apathy let the government get away with police brutality. Take Ta-Nehisi Coates essay, "The Paranoid Style of American Policing" as an example. In his essay Coates writes about the time his dad resolved an issue with a "young man...[with] a metal stake" without resorting to violence or force of any kind (99). He states that it "wasn’t the first time" he witnessed his dad solve a dilemma "without resorting to killing them," unlike the police officers (100). Coates adds that resolving issues in a community like his, a Black community, "is part of being an adult" (100). He continues by commenting that he couldn't say the same for those who were not part of such communities. Coates then writes about a young nineteen-year-old man name Quintonio LeGrier who had a mental illness, was wielding a bat, and was killed by a police officer simply because the officer thought that the baseball bat was a "lethal threat" (100). Remember, Coates' father resolved a similar issue with a young man; except the young man he resolved the issue with had a metal stake, not a baseball bat. Coates adds that LeGriers mother questions "'What happened to tasers" or other tactics besides her son getting shot seven times (100). How is it possible that Coates' father, a citizen who is "not paid to protect other citizens," unlike police officers, was able to mediate a conflict peacefully? You would …show more content…
Take in Dylan Rodriguez's article, "Beyond 'Police Brutality': Racist State Violence and the University of California" as an example. In his article, Rodriguez covers the event of what happened at UC Davis, University of California Davis, on November 18, 2011. What happened was that there was a "well disciplined" protest going on at UC Davis where there was an abuse of power on "young WHITE people... [and] people of color who were" there to peacefully protest. These unarmed, innocent, peacefully protesting students were "shot with 'less than lethal' police pellets" and sprayed with "caustic 'nonlethal' spray." Rodriguez adds that there was an abundance of police presence which demonstrated the "massive... force against the students, faculty, staff, and ordinary people" in other words, regular ordinary citizens. This clearly shows the police's dominance in power against the public. Using such force is not right, but police still use such forces as "caustic 'nonlethal' spray" and pellets "because they [can]" legally. Why? Well, because they are part of the group in society that write the law. Courts have allowed police officers to legally use such tactics and then have them go unpunished. Rodriguez questions if events like the one that occurred at UC Davis is supporting "racist police