Growing up as a kid I was always proud to say that my dad
was a police officer. I always saw him as one of my heroes, and I still do to
this day. However, it is very difficult growing up hearing mixed reviews about
officers from people who are your friends, and then hearing my dad’s side of
the story. At the same time, this allowed me to understand the struggles on
both ends. An African American father should not have to worry about their son
not making it home when being pulled over, and a son of an officer should not
have to worry about their dad not making it home. Both ends of the spectrum are
worrying for the safety of their loved ones, and both sides have negative views
towards the other. Why can’t either side
recognize this?
It is no surprise that not all
police officers are good people. That could be said for the rest of society as
well because the world is not perfect. But, hearing criticism directed towards me
for defending my father, and saying that not all cops are bad, has occurred multiple
times, and at the same time I have received criticism for defending my African
American friends. The nation is split because it is comprised of so many people
with different views and ideologies, and while it makes for a very diverse
nation, the ability to generalize and direct criticism towards entire groups,
blacks and whites both, is astonishing.
I believe that acknowledging that
both sides are flawed, and that both sides need support from one another, is
the first step toward the ultimate unity that I believe we can one day achieve.
It is imperative that we are not ignorant to the tragedies and the racism that
occur day in and day out. The path to unity is a two-way street, and all people,
regardless of race, must work together to achieve it.
I agree that both perspectives are valuable and should be heard. In order to find that unity we need to acknowledge the systematic injustices that have gotten us here. I agree with you that if both sides can listen to each other and ideally understand each other, then maybe we can find a unity that works and protects everyone equally.
ReplyDeleteI think the issue that you and these criticizers have is who are the groups of people you are referring to. If you all distinguish between police officers who enact justice and those who abuse it. and Africans Americans that uphold and abide by the law and those that violate, then you can identify whom each of you are referencing.
ReplyDeleteThe statement “not all cops are bad” recognizes that there are officers that intentionally abuse the law and their jobs to further their own agendas, but your father and many other officers are not a part of that group. It sounds like these criticizers are stereotyping your dad as a “bad cop” because of the actions of other officers, when they really are angry with the “bad cops” that racially profile citizens, use excessive force, and abuse the oath they took as a police officer. This is frustrating because police officers should be welcomed instead of feared, and unfortunately it is hard to distinguish between the good and bad cops. One way toward diminishing and mitigating this stereotype is by having police departments praising/rewarding the good cops and publicly admonishing the bad cops, which are currently being praised for the wrong reasons.
The best way to help fix this is to improve community policing through neighborhood events. When foot patrols are removed in favor of stationary posts in a car, it prevents the community from getting to know their police officers. The best example of this, is seen in the Wire, an HBO series, where the main character, Jimmy McNulty, is taken off of desk duty and placed on foot patrol. He finally gets to know the community and their relationship improves 10 fold.
ReplyDeleteI agree that understanding is the only way for there to be an alleviation of the systematic flaws with police brutality and that understanding can not happen without first giving validity to both sides of an argument by acknowledging one another's views. However, I do not believe that our end goal is unity. There will always be factions in society due to human nature making total unity impossible. The result instead should be the creation of a culture where understanding and kindness are the foundational building blocks. Making it so that when people, inevitably have disagreements they can listen to both sides of the dispute to make a more informed decision.
ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that there is stigma attached to policeman, I think it is important to realize why that is. I also think it is important to recognize the plight of police officers and the plight of African Americans who face police brutality as two differing issues on different spectrums. Police officers face added danger as their profession makes them more vulnerable to harm. Police officers could be put in harm's way or killed for a plethora of reasons by a multitude of people from different backgrounds, and at the end of the day, they have the ability to take their uniform off and step away from those added dangers.
ReplyDeleteThe plight of an African American fearing the police is different. There has been a long recorded history of police officers unjustly targeting, brutalizing, and killing black people specifically. Unlike the uniform that policemen get to take off, blackness can't be disrobed. There is no way to avoid the danger's of prejudices and injustices that come with being black; it's an identity, not a profession.
While I agree with you that all police officers aren't bad, and neither an officer nor a black person should fear for their safety, I think it is important to acknowledge that both groups fear for two completely different reasons.