A democratic police force has been difficult to achieve, especially when it comes to relationship between the police and people of color. Notably, the United States has witnessed protests, and calls for action all in efforts to fix the broken police service, which has made life unbearable for the people of color. Believably, blacks have been unfairly targeted by systems owing to their skin color, and consequently, Black Lives Matter movement was formed in 2013 (Merrill, 2019). Notably, the most notorious systems associated with oppressing the black people are the law enforcement and justice system, especially when it comes to sentencing. Reports indicate that, police brutality on people of color has led to torture, murder, mayhem, and assault in some cases. Although various groups of people have had fair share of police brutality and oppression, the major victims are the blacks. The ensuing discussion delves on relevancy and impact of black lives matter, police use of force, reallocation of police resources, and the challenges of being a democratic police, and expectations of police in a democratic society.
In its context, Black Lives Matter (BLM) is relevant in the sense that, it has helped to organize demonstrations that have brought to the attention the killings of blacks in the hands of police officers. The movement has pushed for various changes in policies that include body cameras, transparency in policing, and independent special prosecutors among others. BLM impact on policing is evident in the way they have been fighting the injustice and inequality with which policing is done in the United States (Adames, 2019). The movement was formed with the purpose of voicing police brutality and the issues of extrajudicial killing. It has helped to change the way policing is done, and triggered a notion that policing can be improved to become safer than it exists currently. For instance, the Minneapolis City Council agreed unanimously to discard the police force and substitute it with a ‘‘Department of Community Safety and Violence Prevention (Adames, 2019).’’ At national level, the impact is evident through the signing of an executive order by President Trump, demonstrating his government support towards police reforms, which includes establishing a database that keeps a record on police misconduct.
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Factually, police tend to use force while dispersing violent crowds, mitigating an altercation, making arrests or while performing other official duties in their daily routine. The force may involve the use of firearm or simply pushing an individual to spark their attention. Use of force by the police is not fictional but factual (Merrill, 2019). For instance, during the protests following the murder of George Floyd, police hit the protesters with rubber bullets, tear gas and spray pepper. Consequently, demonstrators became even more aggressive in Oakland, New York, and Dallas among other places, calling for defunding the police force (Sample, & Irvin-Erickson, 2020). Sections of legislators have pushed for bills to minimize the use of choke holds, and a stoppage of no-knock raids.
Revealingly, the excessive use of force on civilians has led to the debate and talks on defunding and reallocation of police resources. Appropriately, the resources can be invested in the communities to ensure the people of color thrive instead of being killed. Following the killing of George Floyd, advocacy groups issued statements that it was a reminder law enforcers do not protect lives, but instead take them (Sample, & Irvin-Erickson, 2020). In fact, action to reallocate police resources has been witnessed in some states. For instance, in New York, the mayor Bill de Blassio stated that part of the resources will be channeled towards social services (Sample, & Irvin-Erickson, 2020). The reallocation is appropriate as it serves as reforms on policing and giving support to communities in handling issues that do not require police presence (Adames, 2019). The resources which would have gone to cater for police salaries will be used in paying community interventions for situations that police presence is not needed. On their part, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and BLM advocate for parts of the police resources to be invested on manpower in brown and black communities, as they are scrutinized by the police more often (Adames, 2019). Even so, the reallocation of resources does not mean that the police force will be disbanded entirely.
In the United States, the oppression, injustice and mistreatment the blacks have been subjected to by the police are a clear indication that their lives does not matter. The recent deep racial divides witnessed in the United States indicate that the people of color are not valued. According to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, blacks are mistreated more than the white people in different life spheres (Merrill, 2019). Blacks are subjected to unfair treatment while dealing with police and even in cases such as applying for a loan. Racial equality is a mirage for blacks, with 88% suggesting more changes are needed for blacks to have equal rights with the whites (Merrill, 2019). Such findings indicate the lives of blacks in the United States do not matter.
Although police officers have been associated with oppressing people of color, it is challenging being a democratic officer. Notably, police officers find it difficult to give all citizens their equal rights, especially in situations where citizens have resisted arrest. Police are expected to work closely with the community to identify and solve crime issues. However, they face a challenge of winning public trust, especially among the people of color (Merrill, 2019). It is impossible to have more order and security without a democratic police. A democratic police is vital because law enforcement officers remain accountable to their actions, and are guided by principles of proportionality, necessity and legality (Merrill, 2019). In a democratic society, individuals expect the officers to observe equal rights among all citizens irrespective of their ethnic background. In addition, the police are supposed to provide security to all persons irrespective of their tribe, and ethnic affiliation. The officers should focus on serving the public as opposed to repressing their freedom.
In overall, black people through the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement continue to push for police reforms, and especially in defunding the police. They feel that, they are unfairly targeted, and racial equality is impossible to achieve. In the United States, black lives do not seem to matter, considering the number of black people killed in the hands of police. In a democratic society, police are supposed to protect life and respect human rights, which do not seem to be the case in the United States.
References
Sample, E. & Irvin-Erickson, D. (2020). Building Peace in America Peace and Security in the 21st Century. Rowman & Littlefield
Adames, H.Y. (2019). Law Enforcement in the Age of Black Lives Matter: Policing Black and Brown Bodies. Lexington Books/Fortress Academic
Merrill, M.C. (2019). Why Black Lives Matter (Too): A Revolutionary Call to Action. AuthorHouse
