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Running Head: POLICE BRUTALITY IN THE UNITED STATES

Police Brutality in the United States

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Police brutality is an ongoing problem and an existence concern in the United States and

should be resolved immediately. Police brutality and corrupt police officers has increasing risen.

The problems posed by the illegal exercise of police power, which is an ongoing reality for

individuals of a disfavored class, race or sexual preference. There are so many innocent

individuals beaten or put in jail or prison. There are always good cops and bad cops but the law,

under article 7, states that “No one shall be subjected to torture or cruel, inhumane degrading

treatment or punishment.” Police brutality can be defined as the excessive use of deadly or

physical force made by an officer of the law. It could be through punching, using weapons,

kicking or shooting. Any inappropriate behavior on the part of any law enforcement officer that

is either immoral or illegal is referred to as police brutality. Law enforcement is a career that

requires high demand for ethical standards. As the society grows, police brutality is increasingly

becoming more of an ongoing issue. The issue should be stopped so that police officers do not

forget that their first duty is to serve the public and not themselves. Under the law, even

criminals have certain rights, especially civil rights (Alang, 2017).

Historically speaking, minorities have always been the victims of police brutality in

America. In the middle of the 19th Century the dominant white social class maintained racial

injustice through a police force willing to use excessive force or violence against the minorities

in the United States. The violence expressed itself after the civil war through various forms of

police brutality and the United States has a long and disgraceful tradition of police brutality and

misconduct. In this paper, we will look at how law enforcement officers use excessive force on

the public especially the minorities. Police officers have a tendency to build negative feelings

towards certain races, sexes, or religions. Law enforcement officers tend to get the idea that if

one or a few individuals treat them with disrespect, then other people of that same religion, race
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or sex will also behave the same (Butler, 2018). The paper will also look at how race, sex

preference and religion consistently plays a major role in police brutality in the United States.

Racial profiling against minorities is a huge problem that has created distrust between racial

minority communities and the law enforcement officers. Finally, we will also look at several

steps that could be used to help prevent police brutality and excessive force in the United States.

For instance, so many departments such as the internal affairs should be improved or otherwise

renewed in each police precinct.

Race, sex preference and religion consistently plays a major role in police brutality in the

United States. Moreover, several nations have allowed their police force to use force in arresting

the suspects and also in protecting themselves. Police officers are however supposed to use

rational amounts of force in controlling any situation and in accomplishing their goals. Police

brutality always violates the suspect's constitutional rights and it should be put to an end. This

paper is going to discuss the police brutality in the United States; tolerance of police brutality in

the society and ending police brutality or otherwise police misconduct.

Police officers abuse the poor who have no rights and are in many cases are convicted for

crimes that the rich do not get convicted for. Such groups have no voice since they do not have

money. Most brutality is directed against the powerless populations or otherwise the minority

groups. Police officers claim that they are punishing these groups that threaten to disrupt social

order. Because of police brutality, we see some organizations trying to fight for the rights of the

racial minorities. For example, Black Lives Matter is a group that tries to give all the Blacks a

voice. Moreover, most police brutality goes unreported and most people have been victims of

police brutality.
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According to most research works, black people are much more likely to be brutally shot

by police officers than their white peers. United State police officers kill black people at

disproportionate rates. For instance, in the year 2012, black people accounted for approximately

31 percent of police killing victims. Such data is still not complete since very few individuals are

always willing to come out and report such incidences where they have been brutally abused by

law enforcement officers. However, the data still represents and highlights the vast disparities in

how police officers use excessive force among the people of color and the poor. Moreover, the

disparity seems to be even starker for unarmed suspects and racial minorities approximately

makes 37.4 percent of the general population in the United States (Hannah, 2018).

With that said, such disparities in police use of force reflect a widespread racial

inequality across the entire United States and the Justice system. Minority people are much more

likely to be arrested for drugs, even though they are not more likely to use or sell such. On the

other hand, racial minorities especially the black inmates make up a disproportionate amount of

the prison population. Some of these disparities can be explained by socioeconomic factors such

as poverty, segregation, unemployment and neglect by police when it comes to very serious

crimes. Definitely such neglect could lead to more crimes and violence in most black and

minority communities. Law enforcement officers tend to focus more and are always present in

black neighborhoods, and therefore they may be more likely to take brutal policing actions

especially from traffic stops, wrongful arrests and shootings in such areas.

Over the past few decades, higher crime rates in the black communities only explains

approximately 60 to 80 percent of black overrepresentation in the American prisons. This means

that up to 39 percent of the racially disparate rate of imprisonment is caused by other factors

such as racial bias or past criminal records that influence a prison sentence. Law enforcement
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officers are often quicker to shoot black suspects and racial disparities have fueled criticisms of

law enforcement over the past few decades. As a result, Black Lives Matter movement has risen

to countrywide prominence due to the controversial and brutal police killings. The next victim

of police killing could be just about any black or poor American.

For most minorities, police brutality is the most enduring aspect of the struggle for civil

rights, especially for the blacks, because it has always been a mechanism for racial control. Law

enforcement officers have defended and enforced racism and segregation, attacking civil rights

protestors and disrupting strikes of black employees. Stories of police harassments and brutality

in black communities are very common and black people often view the police as the face of

larger systems of inequality in the justice system, seduction, employment and housing.

Police brutality is an ongoing and concerning problem in the American society that, until

just recently, has been accepted as a sad fact of life by the individuals it affects and is largely

ignored by the rest of society, including politicians and the mass media. Police brutality affects

the individuals that society has come to stigmatize and defame such as minorities, impoverished

people and the mentally ill, more so than the well off or middle to upper class white people.

Moreover, tensions among the public and especially the African-American community are rising

due to the latest and current cases of police brutality. Many individuals believe that the nation

has come far, however to be honest racism is still a factor that also closely related to police

brutality.

The use of brutal and lethal force by some law enforcement officers often leads to

pointless and unnecessary deaths and African American parents are often on edge to send their

children outside for anything. Law enforcement and the police officers whom are trusted with

human lives are the very same who take it. Some individuals would want to argue that all the
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cases such as the shooting of Michael brown and the choking of Eric Garner are isolated

incidents (Jones, 2013). On the other hand, others could claim that the work of the police

officers is too difficult and that sometimes the officers need to use such brutal force in order to

administer the law and protect themselves while on duty. Law enforcement officers often

proclaims to feel threatened however, the primary question is what about the citizens who feel

threatened of becoming the next victim or target? The American society is well aware that not

all the police officers commit such brutal crimes and that the community do still have law

abiding law enforcement officers.

It is more disturbing that a young man’s brutal death at the hands of a police officer is

often found justified in a court of law because of his suspicious appearance. For instance, a black

hoodie or when he has his hands in his pocket. On the other hand, a helpless elderly woman is

often found shot in her home because of her relationship with a suspected criminal. There are

cases where a married man with two children is choked to death after a minor traffic stop by a

police officer who later claimed that his unarmed suspect or victim was having a weapon. The

impact of police brutality has been profound and it had done great damage to the United States.

Not only has police brutality intensified racial tensions all over the nation and created a

culture of fear in certain states, but it is currently becoming increasingly prevalent because of the

lack of accountability taken towards police officers who brutally abuse innocent citizens. In

today’s society, police brutality is a very sensitive topic and there have been so many current

cases of police brutality, for instance, the shooting of Michael Brown (Kendi, 2017). This is the

reason why this issue needs to be dealt with immediately, so that there no more unrests and riots

that will occur in the future and so the reputation of our nation’s law enforcement will not be

forever tainted.
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Social discrimination and police brutality against the people of color have been persistent

problem that has failed to disappear, even after many reforms and changes in society. The reality

is that many African-Americans often and still face the same threats of discrimination and abuse

at the hands of law enforcement officers as their previous generations did several decades ago.

Bias and unequal treatment of citizens by police officers is definitely unacceptable in any

developed or democratic nation that strives to set an example to the rest of the world, such as the

United States.

Allowing police officers to get away with such brutal acts, especially those based on

racial prejudice, Is not only illegal but also dangerous for the democracy of the nation. Having

individuals in power that are abusing the law to their own benefit, and at the expense of the lives

of innocent citizens, is the first step towards an undemocratic and oppressive American society.

Police brutality should have all citizens worried, regardless of their ethnic background. The fact

that a police force would nurture or have officers that are willing to break the law should be a

huge concern on its own ("Law Enforcement and Violence: The Divide between Black and

White Americans Issue Brief | APNORC.org | APNORC.org", n.d.).

The police officers serve an essential part in society and as the protectors of all the

citizen. All over the world, a career or profession of a police officer is often considered

honorable and noble since they save lives, catch offenders and are concerned with the

preservation of order in the society. The ideal police officer does not always resemble and abide

with reality and in addition there are very few good police officers who save lives and are always

ready to help. In the United States, there is always a bad police officer who is not noticed by the

bosses. Sometimes individuals, obsessed with power, who did not have the opportunity to realize

their desire, fall into the ranks of police officers. Just like everyone other person, Law
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enforcement officers, have drawbacks, and considering the situations they face, which is always

dangerous and require a rapid response, they many end up acting irrationally.

Victims of police brutality have several different ways of complaining about police

violence. However, the chances of seeing their abusers arrested or take responsibility is really

low. Most American victims file for a civil claim, however their chances of success vary from

state to state and city to city as well as, the rule, financial responsibility and capability. Victims

are frightened by the prospect of filing a complaint with the Police Internal Investigations

Department. Moreover, most of the police department’s secrecy regime in practice simply

means that the victims learn nothing about whether any disciplinary action has been taken

against the guilty police officers (Lopez, 2018).

With regards to the initiation of criminal proceedings at the local or federal level, most

victims or citizens rightly believe that such an action is unlikely, a part from the cases that have

been widely publicized in the media and most civil rights organization have come out to protest.

As a result, the damage caused by police violence and brutality is intensified by the feelings of

hatred and fragility of the victims. It is common knowledge that police abuse control procedures

are not effective enough in America and the victims of excessive violence do not even try to

complain or report such cases. All these factors often lead to the fact that the guilty police

officers remain in the positions held.

The police brutality in the United States leads to the most serious and human rights

violations. Police brutality is of a national and institutional nature. Police officers throughout the

United States use firearms, beat prisoners and suspects, use methods that are inhuman and make

them choking, as well as apply and use unreasonably brutal measures of physical pressure

without sufficient justification. The systematically cruel law enforcement officers make up only
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a small part of the police force, but they really affect the entire police system. They are subject to

numerous complaints, but the silence of coworkers and the bias of internal police investigations

hide them from responsibility. The victim, who seeks compensation, faces obstacles at every

stage of the process, from open intimidation to the unwillingness of the federal or local

prosecutors to take cases against the illegal and excessive use of force by the police (Rose,

2014).

The police brutality in the United States has become a dangerous trend in the current

world. Most of the times, police officers build up negative feelings towards certain races, sexes,

or religions and the racial subject continues to play a central role in most police abuses. Despite

the development and progress made since the civil rights movement for the equality in the years

1950s and 1960s, only one area remains problematic to change: police officers’ behaviors with

regards to racial minorities. This still remains the big issue in the American society. Police

officers expose members of ethnic minorities to discriminatory treatment, unlawfully apply

physical force to them and allow racist statements. Every new case of police brutality against

African-Americans, Hispanics or other minorities as well as cases covered in the media further

reinforces the current belief that some people are particularly abused and racially discriminated

(Smith, 2018). Police officers have brutalized black and Latino individuals as a means of

consolidating and advancing white supremacy.

In the United States, the cases when police officers use excessive force are very often

revealed through surveillance camera technologies and an active community of online protestors

and civil rights advocates. Although this creates problems among police officers, it allows the

disclosing cases of police brutality that might remain hidden from the public eye. There is no

effective system of bringing wrongdoers to justice and informing people about such cases. In
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most cases, police officers do not investigate human rights violations, and the criminals escape

punishment hence there are obstacles to the implementation of justice.

For many years, racial and sexual minorities have been targets of police brutality in the

United States. Only one percent of complaints about police officers using excessive force are

acted upon in most states. The federal government needs and has to make thoughtful and serious

structural reforms, as well as recognize and protect the victims. Law enforcement officers never

get to interpret the law or otherwise make a decision on what is excessive and what is not,

however, the law and rules of the nation should do that. The first and probably one of the most

famous cases in America related to the police use excessive force and brutality happened back in

the year 1992 in Los Angeles where five police officers beat an unarmed African- American.

Such an incident became known due the fact that all the five police officers were fully justified

and after the public confidence in the police officers greatly fell.

After the incident, mass protests began, which turned into riots that lasted for three days

and lead to 53 individuals losing their lives, along with catastrophic levels of property damage

and looting. The incident prompted the authorities to take action and, as a result, four out of five

police officers were brought to justice. The cases when police use excessive force began to

concern those on whom they were directly affected and also became widely covered in the press.

Before Rodney King incident, only a few people knew about such cases of police brutality, and

there were only a few such videos where police officers abused citizens. However, such videos

will never lead to the disappearance of racist police brutality. Most reports about police brutality

against people of color are rarely shown on Televisions in the United States, and they focus on

young, innocent victims. However, such cases of police brutality are becoming more and more

well-known in the current American societies.

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Moreover, the statistic on white police officers on black suspect’s shootings is alarming.

However, while race plays a critical role, the number of white cops shooting black people is just

part of a larger problem. Black people across the United States are more likely to face

discrimination in the criminal justice system and be harassed, arrested and shot by police. Sadly,

even the most extreme cases of police excess often end in little punishment. The constitution of

the country granted its citizen freedom and equal treatment by the law. The ideal value of a

nation also augments the very constitutional rights that have been granted. However, the actual

values and practices that have seen ever since the country was founded have been inconsistent

with the ideal values of America. Particularly, in recent days, America is a mess, and seeming to

be full of contradictions.

Across the country, police officers are constantly chasing African Americans for

suspicious crime, because, in most parts of the country, either the law permit racial profiling or

does not explicitly state and inhibit racial profiling. This nonexistence or incompleteness of the

law created suitable condition for police officers to practice their own belief, and such a belief is

adversely affecting African Americans. The criminal Justice system is serving as a tool to

oppress African Americans, and to sustain the power structure of the dominant group. Court and

the criminal justice system operate in complex and subtle mechanism to discriminate and harass

African Americans. Because of the existing democratic, civil and human right laws, the

dominant groups are not directly attacking African Americans, as they did in the past. They

constrain the advancement of African Americans by using indirect strategies. The criminal

justice system has been meticulously planned and established, and cautiously implemented to

attain the intended aim of the dominant group.

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In modern America, African Americans are not treated equally by the law, and have been

abused by police officers. The abuse is mainly caused by racial profiling, police officer’s implicit

bias, and putrid criminal justice system. African Americans are searched and pulled over at

traffic stops for no ostensible reasons. Even though the profiling is violation of the victims’

constitutional right, the existing law is not explicitly demanding the police officers to be

abstained from racial profiling. Officers who are engaged in racial profiling are not penalized for

their misconduct. Long existed racial disparities in the country created tilted perception in the

police officers mind that even unconsciously associate African Americans with crime.

Sometimes police officers are unaware about their misconduct towards African Americans which

is the product of implicit bias. Police department and criminal justice system are the main tools

used by dominant group to ill- treat and hinder the advancement of African Americans. Police

officers’ harassment and killing, and prejudicial judgment of the criminal justice system is a

common phenomenon in modern America (Zaru, 2017).

To address the problem and lower the rate of police brutality, police officers should pass

through thorough recruitment procedure, and sign strict rule that make them accountable for

every single misconduct they will commit. Customized training should be developed, and

consistently provided to law enforcement officers at every stage, and monitoring and evaluation

of the officers’ interaction with the community should be part and parcel of police department

job performances. Moreover, the countries criminal justice system should be revisited,

ineffective parts should be pinpointed, and enormous reform should be made in a way that serves

all citizens equally.

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References

Alang, S. (2017). How to dismantle racism and prevent police brutality? Retrieved from

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/policing/2017/05/12/how-dismantle-racism-and-

prevent-police-brutality/101481438/

Butler, P. (2018). The policing of black Americans is racial harassment funded by the state.

Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/jun/06/america-police-called-

on-black-people-everyday-racism

Hannah, N. (2018). Taking Freedom: Yes, Black America Fears the Police. Here’s Why.

Retrieved from https://psmag.com/social-justice/why-black-america-fears-the-police

Jones, C. (2013). The System Isn't Broken, It Was Designed That Way: A Critical Analysis of

Historical Racial Disadvantage in the Criminal Justice System | Chenelle A. Jones.

Retrieved from

http://www.hamptoninstitution.org/systemisntbroken.html#.XBAMXmgzbs1

Kendi, I. (2017). Opinion | Sacrificing Black Lives for the American Lie. Retrieved from

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/24/opinion/sunday/philando-castile-police-

shootings.html

Law Enforcement and Violence: The Divide between Black and White Americans Issue Brief |

APNORC.org | APNORC.org. Retrieved from

http://www.apnorc.org/projects/Pages/HTML%20Reports/law-enforcement-and-violence-

the-divide-between-black-and-white-americans0803-9759.aspx
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Lopez, G. (2018). There are huge racial disparities in how US police use force. Retrieved from

https://www.vox.com/identities/2016/8/13/17938186/police-shootings-killings-racism-

racial-disparities

Rose, A. (2014). 99 Percent of Police Brutality Reports in Central New Jersey Never See the

Light of Day. Retrieved from https://www.alternet.org/99-percent-police-brutality-reports-

central-new-jersey-never-see-light-day

Smith, D. (2018). Where does police brutality fit in America's first law enforcement museum?

Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/oct/10/national-law-

enforcement-museum-police-brutality

Zaru, D. (2017). T.I. speaks out on police brutality. Retrieved from

https://edition.cnn.com/2017/04/24/politics/ti-us-or-else-movie-police-brutality/index.html