ktmeng/mec huggingface dataset:
Topic: police-brutality

Had the suspects been white, would the situation been different? Probably so. There is a need to change law enforcement policies thus far. The motto “to protect and to serve” is basically true. To me, “to protect” means to protect me from criminals that may cause harm and “to serve” means to serve the public 24 hours a day. It’s when corrupt officers go beyond the legal limits of the law to victimized minority citizens such as, their “code of silence.” When a white officer “turns the other cheek” as other white officers brutalize or harass suspects; even though the officer may feel it was not proper police procedures, he cannot “rat” on fellow officers for fear of reprisal from fellow officers. The minority victim, on the other hand, has to have proof if the alleged incident took place, if they are to file a complaint against the police officer(s).
Topic: police-brutality

Even if proof was established, the court system will likely believe the officer(s) testimony over the victim. Only until recently, the power of a video camera was police brutality a reality.According to the New York Times, “not until recently with the Rodney King incident has police brutality really surfaced with King being awarded with a court settlement. Hundreds of complaints have been filed against the offending police department. The New York City police department is just one example. Between 1989 and 1993, more than $1.3 billion in claims were filed against them and more than $67 million were paid to the victim charging police misconduct by the city. In 1995, the City of New York paid out $9 million in claims alone”(13). The police now quickly settle out of court, even when guilt has not been established.
Topic: police-brutality

In the wake of the Rodney King beating, Municipalities are more anxious than ever to pay up. When I see figures like these, it is a senseless waste of taxpayers’ money. The money could be best be spent on solving the problems. Currently, federal prosecutors have made positive steps to investigate local authorities who turn a blind eye to illegal practices or went to trial with evidence they knew to be tainted. Federal prosecutors serve mainly as a back-stop to seek justice when local law enforcement fails. The Justice Department can proceed against officers under longstanding criminal status or under provisions of last year’s crime bill, which gave it authority to look for  “patterns of practice” cases against police departments with bad records. Federal officials report that they have indicted 300 police officers around the nation over the past 5 years and convicted more than 200 of them. Federal prosecutors are stepping up the pressure on local goverments that are unwilling or unable to root out police criminality on their own (New York Times 1995). What we as citizens need to do is put a stop to police misconduct on citizens, and ease the scarring that has been instilled in our lives.
Topic: police-brutality

On November 9, 2014, a Black person was shot and killed by the police within minutes of receiving a 911 call about a domestic violence disturbance. The victim was armed with a knife, apparently putting two trained police officers’ life in imminent danger, according to the local police department. On January 31, local prosecutor Brian Mackie determined that David Ried, the white police officer responsible, acted in “lawful self-defense” and that no charges would be pursued. The shooting occurred in Ann Arbor, Michigan, a college town home to the University of Michigan, a bastion of radical activism since the 1960s, and considered to be a progressive-minded city likened to Berkeley, California.
Topic: police-brutality

She criticizes the notion that being targeted and killed by the police is exclusively or primarily a concern of Black men: “This pervasive attitude is why we can rattle off a list of unarmed Black boys and men killed by cops or vigilantes while barely knowing any of the women’s names. The erasure of Black women and girls from the police brutality narrative must stop.”2 She writes about Aiyana Jones, Kathryn Johnston, Yvette Smith, Tanisha Anderson, Eleanor Bumpers, Michelle Cusseaux, and, yes, Aura Rosser, and how their stories must be remembered. But more than that, Viera argues not only that Black women’s voices should be heard and remembered, but that their work should be acknowledged as an essential and foundational part of the pro-Black struggle.
Topic: police-brutality

She points out that three Black women created the #BlackLivesMatter movement.She writes about how Black women were heavily involved in the Civil Rights movement and in the Black Panther Party, yet their contributions are rarely acknowledged, let alone celebrated. Surely, if Black women victims of police violence are not being remembered and demands for justice are not being made on their behalf, it is not because they are at the margins of the problem, but rather that, just like the problem of Black people being explicitly targeted and killed by the state, the silencing and erasure of Black women specifically is a systemic issue that must be tackled as such.
Topic: police-brutality

Aura Rosser’s tragic death shows several painful ways in which Black women are ignored, thrown under the bus, and blamed for their own suffering and death. On the night she died, Rosser had entered into a dispute with her boyfriend, Victor Stephens, in their Ann Arbor home. All we know from news reports and media sources is that Stephens called the cops to “come and get her,” and that Rosser was wielding a knife. These facts alone, that her boyfriend called the cops and that she had a knife, to most of the general public (including many white liberals who would say she should not have had lethal force used against her) constitutes reasonable justification for the cops entering her home to resolve the dispute.
Topic: police-brutality

Though the fact that the police used lethal force against a Black woman with mental illness when it was not necessary is a violence loaded with racism that needs to be combated, much of the problem starts way before this point, at the point in which we make racist and sexist assumptions about Rosser’s position. As I have mentioned, all the sources I have found say nothing of the situation before the cops arrived. Because of the fact that Rosser had a knife and her boyfriend felt threatened enough to call the cops, as well as the way our patriarchal society is organized in which a man is the head of the household, should exert control over a female partner, and whose voice should be recognized, she gets no say in the story.
Topic: police-brutality

No one bothered to look into Rosser’s condition of mental illness, and the state surely didn’t do anything to help her get to a better place. No one bothered to look into her relationship with Stephens to see if there was any precedent to the dispute on November 9. No one bothered to look into whether or not Rosser was having trouble at work, was being harassed, or anything else. Shouldn’t the person Aura Rosser was, the way Mike Brown was ready to enter college, the way Trayvon Martin was a straight As student, the way all of the white mass shooting perpetrators were “good kids,” be looked into? People do not take up knives for no reason, yet no one bothered to look into this aspect of the story.
Topic: police-brutality

Audre Lorde helps us visualize the violently unique and layered oppression that Black women face, and why it is so important to center their experiences when discussing issues of race and gender instead of sweeping their perspectives under the rug, like any trace of Aura Rosser’s life was. “But Black women and our children know the fabric of our lives is stitched with violence and with hatred, that there is no rest. We do not deal with it only on the picket lines, or in dark midnight alleys, or in the places where we dare to verbalize our resistance. For us, increasingly, violence weaves through the daily tissues of our living”5 Aura Rosser battled racism and sexism in her life on a daily basis, on an hourly basis.
Topic: police-brutality

Her lived experience, as someone who was ultimately killed by institutions of racism and sexism, was the grueling reality of the harshest consequences of racism and sexism in our society and should be the forefront of what we fight against. But beyond that, her knowledge – and the knowledge of all Black women and girls who have to understand the world and innovate and create in order to survive in it – is something that should be valued, something that should be centered in these discussions, it is a voice that should be heard. And it rarely is. Back to Rosser and the knife at the time of the police’s arrival.
Topic: police-brutality

We don’t know whether or not Stephens had a history of abuse toward Rosser (my raising the question is not accusing him of this, but rather raising a question regarding an issue that many women face). We don’t know if Rosser wasn’t on her medications because she couldn’t afford them. But something caused Aura Rosser to believe she had to take up a knife in order to protect herself. And for a Black woman who had to go out and face a racist and sexist world every day, Audre Lorde’s words resonate: “I’m saying if my blood is being shed, at some point I’m gonna have a legitimate reason to take up a knife and cut your damn head off, and I’m not trying to do it.”6 And as we ultimately see in this case and many others, the state is far more willing to shoot a Black woman in distress than to provide her with institutions and services that would seek to provide her medical, domestic, and mental safety and health.
Topic: police-brutality

Aura Rosser’s voice was not heard, and no one cared to look for it in the aftermath of her death. Rather, we are supposed to accept the subtle assumption that she was a crazy, angry, and dangerous black woman with a knife, and not question the police’s presence on the scene. From that point, we can critique the institutions of state violence (Ann Arbor Police Department) that killed her, and white liberals can debate whether or not lethal force was warranted in the particular situation. Aura Rosser was angry. And that anger was something our society should find a response to, one that does not involve extermination. “Anger is loaded with information and energy,” writes Lorde, “To turn aside from the anger of Black women with excuses or the pretext of intimidation is to award no one power – it is merely another way of preserving racial blindness, the power of unaddressed privilege, unbreached, intact. story, and even fewer will remember her a few years from now. But her story shows perhaps as well as any other the extent to which our society silences Black Women and then kills them. The only way Black women and girls will receive justice is if voices like Aura Rosser’s are heard and centered before they are killed. Only in this way will they be remembered and fought for after the fact.
Topic: police-brutality

In the United States, people fear the police. When there is a police presence, people are anxious because of what could happen. The police force seems as if it is its own bureaucracy that is separate from the public. The police are full of corrupt officers that are far too aggressive. To solve a problem, even if it results in the death of many people, the police will stop at nothing. The police are just wild pigs that cannot be controlled.
Topic: police-brutality

Officers just ignore that crimes are being committed and accept bribes. Police officers target minorities and racially profile suspects. Officers protect each other by keeping quiet, and there are benefits for doing so. The police are a corrupt force, yet nothing can ever be done to hold offending officers accountable for their actions. When the words “police brutality” are mentioned, these are the actions being discussed. These are thoughts that exist in America, and only in American society; the sad fact is that some, if not all, of these arguments are valid and contain elements of truth.
Topic: police-brutality

Awareness of police brutality in the United States began in the 1960s, during the civil rights movement in the South. This was the time of fire hoses, attack dogs, and baton-wielding police. During this time the police justified this treatment by stating that youth of color were more likely to commit crimes than other groups because it was a part of their culture and a part of their nature. (Leonard) In the 1990’s, several highly publicized events occurred that involved police brutality.
Topic: police-brutality

The earlier, and far more notable, incident was that of Rodney King. When King was going to be pulled over for speeding, he led police on a lengthy car chase and was eventually stopped on a secluded street. King was kicked, hit with nightsticks, and was twice shocked with 50,000 volts of electricity. It was determined that he was struck a total of 54 times. King was taken into custody with 11 skull fractures, a broken cheekbone, a broken ankle and eye socket, kidney damage, and external burns.
Topic: police-brutality

The four officers involved were all tried. All of them received an innocent verdict. As a result, the city of Los Angeles erupted with violence. There was an estimated one billion dollars worth of damage done to the city along with forty deaths and 2,383 injuries. Those involved with what is now known as the Los Angelescases in just three years. That money is an amount that many many people will never see or make in their lifetimes, yet that does not mean it is enough to cover the police’s brutal actions. Money can never replace the value of citizens’ lives, no matter the amount of money. American culture must adapt even more to the police brutality in order to completely eliminate it.
Topic: police-brutality

The only way this can be solved is from major friendly protests, due to corrupt local governments. riot were calling King’s civil rights into question, and whether or not they had been abused. (Leonard) Along with Rodney King, in the 1990’s, was the story of an African immigrant, Amadou Diallo. While searching for a rape suspect, four officers knocked on Diallo’s door, when reaching into his pocket for his wallet, the officers opened fire. Together, all four officers fired off over forty rounds, nineteen of which entered Diallo’s body. (Leonard) The Human Rights watch, an independent nongovernmental organization, looked at instances of police abuse in fourteen cities. This research was conducted from 1995 until 1998 in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Minneapolis , New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Portland, Providence, San Francisco, and Washington D.C. The organization concluded that police abuse and brutality was not only present, but consistent in all of the cities.
Topic: police-brutality

They found that, what exacerbated the problem, despite the officials heading each city saying that offending officers would be punished, very little has ever been done to correct officer behavior. Upon further research the organization also discovered that the New York Police Department has a scandal approximately every twenty years. (Leonard) The American police are often accused by other nations and international organizations of shooting, beating, and choking suspects that posed no threat to the officers. It is estimated that every year, United States police officers cause over 2,000 unnecessary deaths. (Wilson) This situation has not only been an issue, it has been a consistent issue that has shown no decline in over three decades. (Weitzer) In other countries (excluding those in Latin-America) police brutality is less of an issue, or not an issue at all. Countries that have very few reports of police brutality, or have corrected the problems involving the police include Germany, the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, and Kenya. In other countries, however, their officers don’t use guns nearly as often as the American police. Canada has reported 12 fatal police shootings between the years 1999 and 2009.
Topic: police-brutality

British police have fired their weapons on just 51 occasions between the years 2003 and 2013. In Japan, the last time a suspect was shot by the police was 2012. So far this year (2015) in the United States, there have been 860 people killed by the police. (Llana) In England, there was a suggestion that the police officers should begin to carry firearms and the first people to deny this were those serving on the police force. The British bobbies are given a different uniform than that of the militia to show that they wish to fight violence; they feel that carrying guns would achieve the opposite. (Llana) If the problem of police brutality remains unsolved, there could be massive repercussions.
Topic: police-brutality

When an officer protects a fellow under appreciated serviceman that abuses their power, there are benefits to protecting their colleague. (Wilson) If the police do not see the upsides to protecting fellow officers, and have a duty to report an abuse of any power, the chances of the police being held accountable increases massively. If there are serious consequences to their actions, the chances of an abusive encounter between the police and civilians would decrease rapidly. (Leonard) For example in Kenya, an outside organization known as the IPOA that is responsible for “policing the police.” This organization tracks most of the malpractices committed by officers and holds them accountable for their actions. (Police Accountability)
Topic: police-brutality

Establishing such a force in the United States would be only a part of the solution. Another piece of the solution would be to pass legislation that determines exactly when physical violence is necessary. Again in the country of Kenya, the violent means of doing something to subdue a suspect may only be used after the non-violent method has been tried and has failed. (Police Accountability) More legislation would also be passed to ensure that those officers who perform acts of misconduct would be punished appropriately. Because, as it stands now, in the United States, police incarcerations are typically handled privately. And behind these closed doors, corrective measures are almost never actually taken. (Police Accountability)
Topic: police-brutality

While this three part solution would certainly lessen the probability of police malpractices, it would also cost an awful lot of money. The costs for the legislation alone would be very high, let alone the outside agency. The outside agencies cannot possibly see every instance of police brutality and are therefore often ineffective. On top of all of this, the legislation controlling the police officers, and also police officials, would most likely not be passed, or even considered. (Police Accountability) Another solution to correcting the problem of police brutality is something known as “community policing.” This is a system of policing in which officers provide more opportunities for positive interactions between themselves and the general populous.
Topic: police-brutality

Presently, in this nation, the only interactions citizens have with police officers are negative ones. The police are given a negative connotation as the “disciplinarians,” which puts them into a situation where they feel under-appreciated. (Weitzer) In other nations, this is not the case. The officers are well-respected servants to the law. In Germany, a police presence brings a sense of calm to a situation or place. In America, in most situations, the police cause tension or fear to rise. (Llana) A system of community policing is achieved through personal relationships between the police and civilians. (Wilson) The officers that become involved with organizations, outside of the police force, tend to feel more appreciated, and therefore satisfied with their jobs.
Topic: police-brutality

Those who become involved in their community outside of their required workday are typically working with the community. (Weitzer) un Police departments that have taken a liking to the community policing style have moved away from catching and punishing criminals, but instead have chosen to focus on preventing crime in the first place. The quality of life has been shown to rapidly improve in areas where community policing has been implemented. In Newark, New Jersey, where community policing has been implemented, the fear of crime has been reduced and people reported that they felt safer. The increase in police visibility, caused by community policing, resulted in the discouragement of disorderly conduct. (Wilson)
Topic: police-brutality

There are very few downsides to the system of community policing. This system of policing may be difficult to transition to. However, in other nations, as well as in some departments in the United States, it has been successfully done. (Llana) The only possible increase in cost that a department could face would be the need for an increase in officers. I know that there are many issues surrounding this topic including general abuses of power, the use of excessive force when subduing suspects, and other major revilement such as sexual abuse. The problem is made visible in the eyes of the public for a few reasons: race is often a contributing factor, other minorities, such as the LGBT+ community, are always at risk, and the police are not held accountable for their actions. This makes the issue relevant to me, as a member of the LGBT+ community. I was made aware of the problem of police brutality through very recent events, such as Ferguson. I know that this has been a prevalent problem, primarily in the United States.
Topic: police-brutality

The issue is often associated with the police and their easy access to firearms. I personally think that the police don’t need their firearms for their patrolling; if they feel that level of force may be necessary, they can easily call for back-up. (Leonard, Llana, Wilson) I feel that the solution may be easier than the law-makers are making it out to be. As a member of the LGBT+ community, I am interested in possible solutions to this problem. I know many individuals that have run into issues with law enforcement, and have felt that it was a result of their expression, gender, or race. This profiling system that the police and other law enforcement use is often inaccurate, as it is based entirely on stereotypes and statistics of the past. Not only is police brutality in itself affecting the officers, it also affects the general population as it increases the amount of distrust in the police greatly. The distrust of the police is something that could affect the crime rates, as well as the incarceration rates. (Llana, Police Accountability)
Topic: police-brutality

More rigorous training and better community relations limit police shootings in Germany, Britain, Canada, and other nations. In the United States, officers train for a maximum of nineteen weeks. Compared to the 120 weeks that officers in Germany train for, it becomes very clear that the officers in our country are not nearly as prepared as those elsewhere. The simple fact of the matter is that police shootings are not an issue in other advanced countries around the world. (Llana) Community policing is a probable solution to the problem of police brutality. Community policing describes neighborhood residents working together with officers to identify neighborhood conditions that promote criminal activities.
Topic: police-brutality

Community policing is much more collaborative and proactive than the old methods of policing. Through the use of foot patrols, community meetings and school programs, the “us versus them” mentality of officers could rapidly dissipate. The “us versus them mentality seen in police officers communicates that the police are under-appreciated and are constantly under siege from the public. Community policing would also increase the force’s knowledge of neighborhood problems. The increased knowledge of what specifically impacts their “beat” could open up doors for special training in solving the problems. Meaning, if an officer notices that they don’t have an issue with vandalism, but they have an issue with prostitution, then that officer can learn how to effectively solve the local prostitution issue, as opposed to learning about a vandalism problem that is non-existent. Community policing could be effective in eliminating police brutality as it increases police and community knowledge and collaboration, while eliminating the “us versus them” mentality. (Weitzer)
Topic: police-brutality

There have been many instances of police brutality in American history. The issue of police misconduct became well-known during the civil rights movement, during the 1960s, but has since continued to the present. Many highly-publicized events that occurred during the 1990s, such as Rodney King and Diallo called even more attention to the subject, along with the very recent Ferguson case and the incident involving a teenager in a South Carolina school. There are many proposed solutions to fix the corruption that exists in various police departments. While some may be impractical, and others simply too expensive, there are some viable solutions in existence. One of the solutions is known as “community policing.” However, any proposed reform will remain meaningless if it is not backed up with sufficient resources and a firm commitment from departmental leadership. When top police officials wholeheartedly embrace reform, the more likely it will be that a solution can be found.
Topic: police-brutality

Americans have multiple different views of their beloved country’s’ police. Many consider the police to be completely brutal and racist. However, others are aware of the policemen and policewomen that are considered to be heroes. The mixed views of the police clarify that American culture has shifted their attentions to the acts of the police more and more. Uproars over police brutality show that Americans have had an increase in prioritizing racial equality. The first thing that comes to the minds of many is police brutality towards African Americans.
Topic: police-brutality

The protests for Ferguson and Staten Island have not been about single incidents of black man versus white officer. These protests regard institutional racism in the United States, along with the excessive use of police force that ends with the murder of a black man by the “defender”… (Huffington Post) Let’s forget about the big-name cases for a second. Victims not covered by the media include 15 year old boy riding a dirt bike, a 26 year old pregnant accountant who had witnessed a police brutality beating, and even an 87 year old grandmother helping her wounded grandson who was shot.
Topic: police-brutality

Not these pathetic, pity officers! As expected, the American people, of all races, want justice. They want the police to be punished. They want to protest. They want this madness to end. Poor, innocent people are being abused without any reason.. I think that the “trained” police officers can take down a grandmother and a pregnant woman without hurting them. Am I wrong?(Atlantic) This type of justice would be retributive justice, a system of criminal justice based on the punishment of offenders rather than on rehabilitation. Is this type of justice correct? In most cases, I believe that it is not. However, some of the actions taken by the police are just incredibly hard to understand. These policemen should be stripped of their jobs, and even serve time in prison. They are not defending themselves…they’re abusing their powers, and causing unneeded protests and violence. Now, how are the victims and their families actually given “justice”? Simple answer.
Topic: police-brutality

Money. 5.7 million dollars is the amount the city paid to victims of brutality between 2011 and 2014. (Atlantic)Instead of spending that money after uproaring protests, why not just train cops properly by using more money? The justice that involves money is distributive justice, which is about fairness in what people receive, from money to goods. But money sadly does not replace the lives of victims. Keep in mind the millions of dollars spent on the cases in Baltimore. The payout for the pregnant lady was just 95,000 dollars. Are two people’s lives worth just $95,000? It is too bad that it had to take so many deaths before we were even willing to admit that there may be something wrong with the system. What’s crazy is that even though millions of dollars are being spent after people that are brutally murdered and assaulted by police, law agencies in big cities such as New York, Chicago, and Baltimore still do not have body cameras on the police.(Huffington Post)
Topic: police-brutality

These agencies claim that this would be very costly, but in reality, know that this would cause even more money spent on the settlement cases. In other words, governments want to have the system just the way it is. Policeman are rarely prosecuted, and if they are, little to no evidence exists to contradict police when they use brutality. History will tell if we are heading toward the change that almost all Americans have been desiring. But, we cannot be too optimistic as changes can be made with little to no effect, since racism is a “man-made construct” that took years and years to build and preserve. What is more likely is that in the near future, we may see changes to the excessive use of police force, which is only a symptom and not the cause of the actual problem. The actual causes such as structural and historical racism and separation of social classes will be too difficult to fix, even if the political will to do so should present itself.
Topic: police-brutality

And with a racist president candidate of Donald Trump, the problem of police brutality may not be fixed anytime soon. In Alabama, during a campaign rally, Trump supporters physically attacked an African-American protester after the man chanted “Black lives matter.” Video evidence proves that the attackers kept on assaulting the poor man after he had already fallen to the ground. Trump replied to this with, “Maybe he should have been roughed up. It was absolutely disgusting what he was doing.” (Huffington Post) If Trump or a supporter is asked about police brutality, they may have a very simple answer. Some people will argue that police brutality is not an actual thing. While some media does portray the police as the “villain”, most media is true to the fact that the innocent person is the victim. Eric Garner’s video is what affected many people the most.
Topic: police-brutality

In the video, it is clearly shown that Garner is saying that he cannot breathe, while being strangled for doing absolutely nothing wrong! Hand shot videos such as these prove the fact that police brutality is in fact a real thing, and it is not going away anytime soon, unless all of America acts on it. Instead of brainwashing the American citizens to believing lies, the truth of brutality will be revealed, along with some solutions. Let’s take a step back from all the negativity for a little bit. Now, there are many very sympathetic cops that commit not acts of brutality, but acts of heroism, risking their own lives in many cases.
Topic: police-brutality

The famous one that many have heard of is the one of Florida officer Bobby White. White was called due to a noise complaint. When he arrived to the scene, the noise makers turned out to be a group of teens playing basketball in the street. Bobby White, instead of breaking up the game, decided to join the kids to a game of basketball. He said that he would bring his friends next time to play, and showed up with basketball legend Shaquille O’neal! What a great act by a policeman. To relate this to police brutality and racism, officer White was a caucasian police officer, while the kids playing were African-American. Clearly, there are good policeman in the United States that can and are willing to do the right thing.
Topic: police-brutality

The kids that received this act by the kind policeman will forever remember this. There is also something known as reverse racism, which is more rare than racism towards African Americans. “Reverse racism” can refer to the idea that the police tend to look the other way when they are in similar situations with white criminals rather than black. Forget criminals, this rule applies to politicians, teachers, students, almost everyone. Now, most people obviously try to be politically correct and egalitarian as that is the correct thing to do. I strongly believe that every man and woman is created equally, no matter his or her race! The other way reverse racism can work is that blacks can be racist towards white people.
Topic: police-brutality

This can be an argument many may focus on to oppose police brutality. Doubters may argue and say that the victims of the “police brutality” were being rude or hateful to the police, or in other words utilizing their beliefs of reverse racism. The American culture towards racism has changed significantly throughout history. Today, Americans have many different views of the policemen and policewomen of their county. It is well known that police brutality exists due to intolerance and racism. However, there are some police that are very good citizens who are role models to these kids such as Bobby White. Although there are many that are aware of the brutality and the racist police, it is not an adequate amount. Millions, if not billions of dollars are paid to settle brutality cases throughout the United States. Baltimore alone had about 5.4 million dollars spent on theses cases in just three years. That money is an amount that many many people will never see or make in their lifetimes, yet that does not mean it is enough to cover the police’s brutal actions. Money can never replace the value of citizens’ lives, no matter the amount of money. American culture must adapt even more to the police brutality in order to completely eliminate it. The only way this can be solved is from major friendly protests, due to corrupt local governments.
Topic: police-brutality

Brazil has a lot going on – a crumbling economy, political turmoil, overpopulation, and, most recently, preparation for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. Police brutality is a major issue in Brazil, but it seems to stem from one major source: drug trade. Since the 1960’s, the Brazilian government has been vehemently fighting the distribution, creation, possession, and sale of street drugs, and it seems like a never-ending conflict. Gangs are a major player in the underground drug trade industry, and are also heavily involved in other illicit practices, such as human trafficking and prostitution.
Topic: police-brutality

Others argue that while the increased police involvement may reduce the drug violence, life in the communities can be improved and drug trade can be reduced by other means, like “opportunities for our young people, like job training and internships,” according to a local community planner (Darlington, 2014). With over 10,000 police killings between 2001 and 2010 over “suspicion of confrontation,” something has to be done about this (Gorman, 2014). One death is one too many, but when we are talking in the thousands, clearly there is a problem in the practice of this “law enforcement,” and the justice system would be a good place to start improvements.
Topic: police-brutality

Another case of police brutality was the Terence Crutcher shooting. On September 16th 2016, officer Betty Shelby fired a gun at Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Both officers Betty and Tyler Turnbough were involved in an incident. This all led to Crutcher losing his life. . On september 16th, the police received a 911 call about an abandoned car in the middle of the street at around 7 pm. It was reported that Crutcher was not in his car and supposedly his car broke down.
Topic: police-brutality

The police also stated some things that Crutcher failed to do: kept reaching into his pocket, refused to show his hands, and was walking towards his car despite the fact he was told to stop. Officials also said that he leaned towards his car and reached into it. There were four police officers present at the time as well. Three out of the four officers had body cameras but didn’t release videos yet. The only reason why officer Shelby didn’t have a body camera was because she wasn’t supposed to be at the scene. Officer Shelby stated that she and Crutcher got into a verbal disagreement and he was not complying to her commands. Shortly after that Officer shelby shot Crutcher while Turnbough tasered him.
Topic: police-brutality

Officers in the helicopter were conversing while this event took place and even one of them said, “That looks like a bad dude, too, maybe on something”(CNN). Shelby claimed that Crutcher was armed when afterwards it ended up Crutcher had no weapon. After Crutcher was shot, the police officers attended to him a couple minutes later and officer Shelby had a first aid kit in her police car. The aftermath is that Shelby got administrative leave without pay and was charged with first degree manslaughter. She was turned into the Tulsa County Jail but released on a $50,000.00 bail around 20 minutes later. (abcnews) There have been protests in Tulsa but they were reported “peaceful”.
Topic: police-brutality

The protest in Charlotte were reported violent and have been going on for several days. The first two nights of the protest resulted in property damage. Even the interstate was temporarily shut down. Some protesters were injured and one even died. This all led to the governor of North Carolina to declare a state of emergency and curfew. Recently it was reported that curfew lifted and things became more peaceful over the weeknd. (npr) My opinion of the cases is that both were shootings of African American males and that both police officers involved were not sentenced to prison. The huge issue with these cases that bothers me the most is that both that was killed were unarmed. So the only solution that could honestly settle this is if police officers are trained better to avoid situations like these. If police officers are trained better, this could help avoid police officers shooting unarmed suspects. So if an officer is in a situation, using a gun would have to be the last definite option unless the suspect poses a possible, legitimate danger. There have been too many police shootings of African American males going on lately and it needs to stop.
Topic: police-brutality

Police brutality has become such a large problem in today’s society. There have been many controversial incidents that have involved unexplainable deaths in the media. Body cameras would be able to provide the public with evidence that proves police officer’s innocence. Many cases that have occurred over time have challenged police officer’s motives. The public questioned whether or not the police are actually here to protect the public. Police officers should wear body cameras to ensure other police officers and civilian’s safety and well being.
Topic: police-brutality

It was said that Zimmerman who was a police officer, felt uncomfortable and very suspicious of Trayvon Martin. Trayvon Martin at the time was just walking on the streets at night next to Zimmerman. Zimmerman followed Trayvon Martin to see if he was doing anything illegal. The two had a conflict and there were shots fired from Zimmerman’s gun, which resulted to Trayvon’s death. Nobody knows exactly what happened that night because there was not any specific evidence that proved Zimmerman’s innocence or showing him being guilty. Since there was not any direct evidence, there is no way to know for sure who actually started the fight that night.
Topic: police-brutality

If a body camera were put to good use, then there would be some clear evidence and complete and fair justice. The evidence would be able to show who was truly at fault. There are many types of disadvantages that involve police officers wearing body cameras but I don’t agree with the. Body cameras might invade privacy of civilians but I still believe they are needed. For example, if there was a police officer that entered someone’s home with a camera, that would be a major invasion of privacy. The video footage from the body camera could be leaked out to the public. Some people might think that the video footage would be the government surveying their citizens.
Topic: police-brutality

Civilians might start believing that the government and police are trying to spy on them. People would start to have a problem with their privacy being invaded and start to lose trust in both the police and the government, There is also no telling whether or not police officers would obey the rules that go along with the body cameras. Police officers should have a duty to tell civilians that they are filming because then they would not cause any unnecessary drama with each other. Body cameras are needed in today’s world. The long-term goal for body cameras would be keeping the world a lot safer. There are other countries other than the United States that use body cameras and have found out that the use of them have helped out their own communities. Body cameras have changed the way that some police officers and civilians act towards one another. The body cameras can make people more civil because they do not want to be seen as someone who causes trouble. Body cameras are also needed in the world because they show evidence to crimes. They make sure that cases are fair and serve justice.
Topic: police-brutality

Police brutality has plagued American minority communities in both the past and the present years of American history. The countless acts of aggression, brutal force, and unjust treatment towards African Americans has been an issue for quite some time and seems to reoccur on occasion throughout history. Racial discrimination between African Americans and the criminal justice system is creating a wall of tension that is tearing the nation into two. The unnecessary roughness carried out by men of justice has led to the loss of valued family and friends and the tensions to rise within the nation.
Topic: police-brutality

For the African American community this is an issue that is known all too well. Blacks have suffered at the constant oppression from the justice system and those who swore to protect and serve them from the beginning of time. In the 1960s the Civil Rights movement began the fight for African Americans to receive full citizenship rights as Americans and end the constant oppression of their people (). Leaders of the black community took a stand, holding peaceful protests and creating organizations that stood for the rights of African Americans.
Topic: police-brutality

However the rebellion of African Americans caused the justice system to retaliate in more aggressive ways. Using excessive force to disrupt protests and keep blacks from fighting for their rights is where police brutality was born ( ). No matter how brutal the punishment or the treatment received from police officials, black communities stayed committed to the cause and could not be silenced. The March from Selma to the state capitol in Montgomery is a prime example of excessive force used in unnecessary times. Leaders and supports of the civil rights movement planned a peaceful march from Selma to Montgomery where they were unfortunately met by mounted police, who used tear gas and clubs to attack unarmed African Americans (). The event sparked a fire in many Americans to join the fight against violence towards blacks and their mistreatment by police force. Leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., who was also a part of the march to Montgomery, challenged the justice system by promoting more protest for the African American freedom struggle ().
Topic: police-brutality

Other races also joined in the fight to show their support for the black community. It would seem that an issue that was tearing apart a nation was also bringing together a nation to support American citizens. Over time African Americans were able to make some major accomplishments, gaining the equal rights to vote and ending segregation, but unfortunately not the oppression of the African American community. In times of crisis, the African American community has suffered from the racial stereotypes that has labeled them as the lower and hostile race of America (). Racial profiling has played a major role in the spark that ignites the violence between blacks and police officials. Although segregation is long gone, the oppression of African Americans continue to grow and become worse over the years. Police officials are using the power of the justice system to target African Americans and commit countless acts of violence against their race. Offices are using their powers aggressively to discriminate against the African American race (J).
Topic: police-brutality

In the late 1960s, police brutality against African Americans began to reach a height of aggression that would soon divide a nation in two. Rodney King, an African American male, was brutally beaten by police officers after being apprehended and the event was videotaped and broadcasted to the nation (). The incident sparked a fire in the nation becoming a symbol of racial tension and protestant movement. Officers involved and charged in the incident were unfortunately acquitted of all charges, a decision that did not suit the African American race within the nation. The incident sparked riots in the streets of L.A, causing many too be injured and even worse death (). Police officials used aggressive force, spraying protestors with water hoses, beating them with clubs, and many other over excessive tactics (). The black community took a major loss but also a major gain by taking a stand against the oppression of their race. Showing the justice system that their voices could not be silenced no matter how hard they were beaten. Since then, many leaders have risen to the occasion in the fight for the civil rights of the black community.
Topic: police-brutality

Al Sharpton, both Baptist minister and civil rights activists, has defied the structure of power and given a powerful hand in the fight for equal rights. Sharpton has headed many rallies and protests to fight for the justice of blacks mistreated by the justice system (). Such as the case of Trayvon Martin, where an unarmed teenage boy was shot by his neighbor on his way home from the store. George Zimmerman, the man accounted for the death, was acquitted of the charges and found not guilty (). This verdict would cause Al Sharpton to head several rallies and protests in pursuit of justice for Trayvon ( ). He argued the verdict, calling it an atrocity, and demanding that there was mishandling of the shooting (1). Sharpton continued to go against the system and show continuous effort in the fight for black civil rights. Al Sharpton served as an inspiration to many, showing them how to combat the justice system.
Topic: police-brutality

The many protests and rallies have led to the creation of many support groups that are willing to fight for the African American community and their cause. Activists groups such as Black Lives Matter have begun to bring more attention to the issue at hand and seek justice for their community. Black lives matters is an international activist’s movement that protests and rallies against violence towards black people. The organization originated in the black community and began to protest the killings of African Americans by law enforcement (). Black Lives Matter is nationally recognized for the street demonstrations after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the Shooting of Trayvon Martin (). The organization brought the eyes and attention of people from all around the world to witness the brutal beating and killing of the black community. Supporter’s around the world join together to aid the fight for social equality in the African American community.