The past couple of years have been tough with the conflicting interests between people living in urban areas and the police enforcement of the certain city. The protests throughout New York, Ferguson, and Baltimore describe how people have been feeling about police brutality in the cities. Since the people were so unhappy with the way that police were treating citizens, and they were not able to do much about it because officers hold more power from the government, rioting seemed like one of the only way to prove to the government and the police force how abused they felt by the force. Coming from the riots, the local governments decided to do something about the issue—make police officers wear cameras when on duty. This has been done in only a couple of cities, but the results have been effective. Also, the fact that people were able to make a change with the police enforcement shows that people do hold a certain power over the branch of government, and can change the norm if they feel like the officials are abusing their power.
3 thoughts on “Police abuse of power leads to loss of power”
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I think at this time it was good to write about police and their power. There have been many riots this year because of what police officers have been doing. At this time there have not been any major riots so it is good to look at it when one is not upset. I think you did great explaining the recent riots have how that effected the people’s power. They have to clean up their own city, even if they were not the ones that were doing it, and try to become a community again. I like how you added about the police having the power of government backing them up, I think that was an important concept to know. Also, it was great to add in that some cities now have to wear body cameras. That actually gives more people power since they know they will not be alone and the police are being watched. I really liked the topic of the paper and I think you did well showing different riots and the effect each one had on power and the community. Overall, I thought you did well at explaining everything, you picked a well-known topic and wrote about it very well.
Laura Morris- Section 2
I was immediately drawn to your topic because I have a great many personal opinions on the same issues. I appreciated your inclusion of the information about the new body cameras. I think this idea is one that could help both the police officers and the civilians and your including it helped to show that an attempt at progress is being made. I would caution you, however, to remember that there are always two sides to every story and that just because some police officers act a certain way doesn’t mean that they are all this way. I hate to think that officers who do uphold the law in a justifiable way get a bad reputation because of what some police officers do. I also wonder if you have ever considered or researched the role of the media in these riots and situations. We have all seen the media blow up when another story comes out and the public eats the information up as fast as they can. However, the media can often be selective in what they show. You don’t see stories about white civilians being shot and because of that viewers will assume it doesn’t happen. The reality is that it does happen, but it’s not “good television” or what the public reacts to. The media coverage of the riots is also something to take in consideration because it can greatly influence knowledge and opinions on important issues.
Interesting information you just put up here. When you said that police officers sometimes forget about the rules they need to follow, that resonated a lot with me. This shows how much power can corrupt no matter how pure your intentions maybe. Officers take an oath before they are placed so why not believe everything they are doing is according to the law? Its because we lose sight of who we are sometimes when we are the ones holding the power. Yes, there are officers that are dedicated to the cause and do their job but the growing theme of officers beating/killing on the black community has become too common. Yes, we may not see the white deaths but there is also this dichotomy between the black community and white officers that the media soaks up. Controversy is what the media feeds on so seeing it more and more has been very troubling. I know for me personally, growing up I didn’t really notice it until I watched Fruitvale station (if you haven’t watched it, go watch it now). It dramatizes a lot but it also does a great job showing this relationship between cops and the community. I believe some of what they portray is true. Overall, very interesting read and it hits home. Growing up you look up to police officers but recently its getting harder and harder to trust them because of media. Sad.