Introduction
Police brutality towards the black community in the United States is not a new discussion. Police brutality can be described as “the application of excessive physical force or verbal assault, or psychological coercion on the subjects” (Chaney, 2013). The historical proof of public torture of Black individuals by law enforcement officers can be traced back to at least the era of slavery when the police disciplined the Blacks and recaptured those who had bolted enslavement (Alang et al., 2017). With the advancement in technology, police killing of African-Americans is highlighted for public scrutiny and consumption. Access to brutality videos has led to the unparalleled public debate on what constitutes brutality, its relations to White supremacy, racial discrimination, and the impacts hold on the black lives.
General Problems of Police Brutality in the US
In the US, African Americans are increasingly likely to experience police brutality than Whites or Caucasians. Therefore, the racial perspective on the use of force shows that White supremacy and structural racial discrimination are the major reasons for police brutality against Blacks (Alang et al., 2017). The African-Americans are perceived as deserving of cruel treatment in the criminal justice system. Black males are often perceived as potential perpetrators of criminal acts, hence they are the biggest subject of acts of brutality. Also, there is a notion by White law enforcement officers that blacks are disproportionately destined to engage in criminal acts, and deserve harsh punishment (Alang et al., 2017). Finally, the critical race concept is a pragmatic theoretical approach that examines why marginalized groups are often subjects of police brutality (Chaney, 2013). The theory applies five facets such as; the primacy of race, and racism, and their relationships with other tenets of subordination. An inquiry of the dominant status quo in the US. A commitment to social justice. The centrality of experiential knowledge, and a multidisciplinary approach (Chaney, 2013).
This essay has three primary objectives. The first aim is to assess what findings from the NPMSRP posit about the rate of police brutality in America (Chaney, 2013). The second goals are to assess how individuals qualitatively view law enforcement, and also what those implications mean for Black men in America. Finally, to investigate the fatal physical injuries that increase Black population mortality rates, and negative mental responses that augment morbidity. First, the results from the NPMSRP were assorted between April 2009, and June 2010 (Chaney, 2013). From the analysis, there were 5,950 reports of misconduct, 380 deaths linked to police brutality, settlements, and verdicts that totaled $345,500,000 (Chaney, 2013). On the second issue, the perceptions from the 36 respondents on the NPMSRP elucidate that the majority of people have an adverse perspective of law enforcement (Chaney, 2013). In specific, police officers were seen as perpetrators of vehemence against Black males. On the third evidence, police killings augment Black-specific death rates. For example, Mr. Johnson who was arrested in Baltimore for public urination died later as a result of fatal injuries he had sustained due to police violence (Alang et al., 2017). Finally, each account of police violence has emotional and mental impacts on Black individuals and communities. Aside from that, police brutality adversely impacts individuals and community health, hence affecting their productivity on the economy. For example, there is a significant rate of job loss among the Black population due to incarceration (Alang et al., 2017).
Potential Solutions against Police Brutality
Police brutality and killings of the Black community have created further discourses about race and policing (Carbado, 2017). The study suggests that stricter enforcement of the Fourth Amendment will be important in regulating police conduct against certain races deemed as marginalized communities. The Fourth Amendment is a significant constitutional law that determines when law enforcement officers can engage citizens and the circumstances under which those contacts are reasonable and humane (Carbado, 2017). Therefore, the Supreme Court in the US and other courts should ensure they enforce the Fourth Amendments while providing verdict to cases involving police brutality against an African American.
The spread of portable video recording technology has helped to reduce the rate of police brutality that was once seen only by immediate on-lookers, as now the whole world can see these gruesome acts and the probability of actions being taken on that law enforcement officer will be higher (Desmond et al., 2016). For instance, the police violence on Eric Garner from New York City, and Freddie Gray from Baltimore spread internationally and sparked widespread protests until the responsible officers were arrested (Desmond et al., 2016). Other potential solutions to police brutality include advocating for police calls, and violence reporting.
Conclusion
The topic has assessed some of the instances of police brutality against the Black male citizens and later provided potential solutions to address this menace. The future of this topic is to examine ways in which the growth rate of police brutality based on racial profiling can be ended through proper enforcement of the Fourth Amendment, and advocating for violence reporting and police calls in case of noted police violence. The solution of the Supreme court enforcing the Fourth Amendment will see high rates of police officers who have misconduct behaviors.
