1.
Communities and Police have always had a rocky relationship. In May 2020, almost 2 years ago today, a black man was brutally murdered by police. Civil unrest broke loose as the black community felt this was personal and race-related. By that June, rioting, arson, and looting spread throughout the United States this called for issuing an order for a curfew for at least 200 cities in America and the deployment of over 62,000 National Guard personnel to assist with the complete chaos that had ensued. George Floyd was killed in broad daylight in view of many bystanders. The video footage showed a white police officer using extreme violence on a black man cooperating with his commands. Throughout the years, the war between police and blacks has been evident and when Floyd was killed the community demanded justice for Floyd and for equality when being questioned by police. Understandable. The potential lasting impacts on social and political movements, education, policing, and justice across the country are 4 significant areas that need to be shifted for positive change. The Black Lives Matter campaign started after Trayvon Martin was murdered and the killer was acquitted. Once the video of Floyd went viral it shook all communities to the core because many especially whites were not aware that the black community was still treated differently and wrongly by police. Blacks have feared police presence forever and now they take extra precautions like recording interactions with police when stopped. Other hand body cams were issued to officers to record their interactions as well in an attempt to provide transparency and accountability within the police departments. George Floyd sparked a new light on the public by seeing more of the race issues in the US including policing and the criminal justice system that was previously unnoticed. In the video, it was a good example of how not every officer is corrupt yet there are corrupt officers and the city of Philadelphia is working toward multiple ways of preventing situations that are unjust. Citizens including those of the black community should not fear police presence. It is also important for everyone to remember being an officer is a dangerous occupation and many times outnumbered in the communities so they have a heightened sense of protecting themselves and others in the community when going to work a call. All aspects of the communities and police are impacted in regards to educating, policing, and showing justice across the country.
References
Films Media Group. (2016). Wired Philly. Films On Demand.
Simpkins, K. (2021.) One year later: How George Floyd’s death changed us. https://www.colorado.edu/today/2021/05/24/one-year-later-how-george-floyds-death-changed-us
2.
Community policing focuses on solving problems, whereas police-community relations change citizen attitudes and improve police relationships with citizens. In addition, community policing requires regular contact with citizens, rather than the infrequent contact of police-community relations.
Working with the police, officers apply problem-solving methods to reduce crime and disorder while improving the overall quality of life in their beats. As each officer’s rank increases, he or she becomes responsible for more neighborhoodsnot only for responding to crime but for maintaining communication and engagement.
https://cops.usdoj.gov
When there are good police-community relations, police have a better understanding of the public’s concerns (especially those that are crime-related), and citizens are more inclined to report crimes that occur to the police, provide tips/intelligence to law enforcement, willingly serve as witnesses, and are happy to …
http://samples.jbpub.com Ross_7…
What is the relationship between the police and the community?
Trust between law enforcement and the public is essential. Communities rely on police and prosecutors to protect them from crime and injustice. We, in turn, rely on community support and cooperation in ensuring safety. But in too many neighborhoods across the country, this vital relationship is strained.
http://lawenforcementleaders.org …
3.
On April 4, 2022, just 1 month ago, a young black man 26 years old, named Patrick Lyoya refugee from the Democratic Republic of the congo, was fatally shot in the back of the head by an officer of the Grand Rapid police department during a scuffle between the two in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Videos show Lyoya who was unarmed was shot in the back of the head while lying face down on the ground Mr. Lyoya who was pulled over for a traffic stop did try to run from the officer but a faulty license plate is no reason to be murdered. (WTOP News).
The bad news is police abuse is a serious problem. It has a long history, and it seems to defy all attempts at eradication.
References
WTOP 24 Hour News https://search.audio.com
