Introduction
Police brutality is the unwarranted and excessive, usually illegal administration of force against residents by police officers. Police brutality is a widespread complex phenomenon with adverse effects in ancient and modern society. A more comprehensive view of police brutality encompasses intimidation, harassment, verbal abuse, assault, mayhem, battery, murder, and torture. The key reason behind police brutality in most states is ethnicity differences. There are various video clips exposing police indulging in activities involving the use of heavy-handed and authoritative approaches. In this context, this paper addresses police brutality in an argumentative manner, precisely supporting motions towards its ending as it poses adverse health and psychological effects on the victim.
Arguments
Police brutality subjects the civilians exposed to shame and value degradation. That especially is witnessed in a scenario where the enforcers conduct frequent routine searches on people. For example, blacks in the heavily policed neighborhoods, routine searches are more often. The encounters send messages that their bodies are considered state property (Alang et al. 7). Witnessing the encounters result in eroded trust of the community to the police. That also leads to voluntary and involuntary police contact with the typical result of unnecessary body searches. That leads to effects on well-being, as discussed below.
Another argument to stop Police brutality is that it negatively affects the victims' health and well-being. The excessive force from police officers is at both personal and institutional levels, making them develop threats, victimization, and fear perceptions. They also develop low self-esteem and low self-efficacy in different activities. In turn, the perceptions result in depression, anger, and anxiety problems (Obasogie, and Newman 284). For example, the family of Eric Garner, killed in New York in 2014, makes frequent visits to a therapist towards depression management, a condition developed due to the incidence. That is also cost-sensitive, and that fact leads to the below argument on extortion.
Police brutality should stop as in varied cases; it leads to extortion in scenarios where the police arrest civilians and torture them demanding payments. Innocent individuals are arrested and forced to pay money towards the cover of alleged crimes they have committed (Westerbeck and Ryan 222). That, according to the law, is stealing and is not accommodated by the constitution. Secondly, the torturing of individuals under unclear grounds violates their rights to a peaceful dwelling. The victims undergo physical pain and the development of mental disorders. The same individuals suffer from unstable financial positions due to their resources' forceful ownership by other people considered powerful. Extensively, developed health conditions due to police brutality also subject the affected individuals into unplanned expenditure. Exposing civilians to torture is further elaborated in the next argument.
Torture and battering acts of police brutality significantly affect the physical conditions of the victims. That may lead to permanent or partial disability, completely changing the social position of the individual. Social life is affected due to the inability to perform tasks initially performed by the individual. The victim has to rely on family members and friends for daily activities (Hutto et al. 111). That also drags other members of the community into the occurrence who are affected indirectly. The indirect effect justifies that police brutality should stop as it has adverse effects on the larger society. Effects on society are further elaborated in the below argument.
Also, Police brutality should stop as it is associated with murder in scenarios where it hugely involves the use of weapons. It is against the law to end the life of a person regardless of the situation. Killings by police violate people's right to life and are also unlawful regarding human rights (Leighton and Jared 870). That has profound effects in the larger society due to permanent vacancy left, which was occupied by the deceased. Examples of murder cases resulting from police brutality are George Floyd, killed on May 25, 2020, Minneapolis, Sean Monterrosa in San Francisco, and Justin Howell in Austin.
Extensively, Police brutality is considered a negative occurrence by the majority, but it is a suitable ending crime mechanism. The young and old have elevated their gun handling skills, which increases the cases of terrorism. When caught, using excessive police force on them is necessary, rehabilitating them and others with the same motives (Obasogie, and Newman 280). Significantly, that will result in reduced crimes due to fear of the consequence. The act will also restore peace as illegal disruptions and violence stop. Law and order maintenance is challenging to the police, and an act of brutality prevents future unlawful incidences. The argument below is elaborating more on defence.
Secondly, police opt for brutality as a way of self-defence and protection. When an individual indulges in actions threatening the police, they must take defensive measures. Police officers are still human beings who need safety (Leighton and Jared 870). Incidences classified as police brutality majorly occur due to attacks from the civilians. In a standard setting, everybody would take defensive actions when faced with a threatening concern. Police officers will therefore use the power at their disposal towards personal safety.
Conclusion
Police brutality should stop as it is a subject that has enormous impacts on individuals and the broader community. Police brutality subjects the civilians to shame and value degradation in a scenario where the enforcers conduct frequent routine searches. Police brutality negatively affects the victims' health and well-being. That is because they develop threats, victimization, fear, low self-esteem, and low self-efficacy perceptions. The perceptions, in turn, result in depression, anger, and anxiety problems. Torture and battering acts of police brutality significantly affect the victims' health and physical conditions and may also lead to disability. Police brutality is also associated with murder in scenarios where it hugely involves the use of weapons. Police brutality still leads to extortion in scenarios where the police arrest civilians and torture them, demanding unnecessary payment from them.
