Black Victims of Police Brutality: Analytical Essay

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Black Victims

The infamous case of Sandra Bland, who died in police custody after apparently hanging herself in her cell on the 13th July 2015 is a perfect example of police brutality that has a lot of unanswered questions. She was arrested for being truant after being pulled over for not signalling when going into another lane (no other cars were on the road). There was police dashboard footage of her arrest where she was threatened by a male police officer called Brian T. Encinia who shouted things at her such as “light you up” which can be seen as another way of him telling her, he was going to Taser her. This aggressive language morphed into aggressive actions; as later in the video footage you see Ms Bland getting escorted out of her car, away from the dashcam, after that you can hear her screaming “you are breaking my arm.” You also see a female police officer go over and assist Police officer Encinia. It is important to remember both officers are white Americans. The overall incident creates a sense of Ms Bland (from the moment she is pulled over) being dehumanised by the officer, moreover this leads me to believe that this dehumanization stems from slavery times, as slaves had to be dehumanized so that the atrocities could continue without question. Furthermore, other strange parts of the incident is Sandra Bland’s infamous mugshot.[9] It is believed that Sandra Bland’s mugshot was taken when she was dead because of the angle of the shadowing being over her nostrils, which leads most people to the conclusion she was lying down when the photo was taken. In addition, another strange part of the mugshot is her clothes because Sandra was in an orange jumpsuit in the mugshot. Most mugshots (especially for a minor crime) the person is in their own clothes unless the clothes were unsuitable such as they were arrested with no clothes. Therefore, was Sandra Bland dead before the mugshot was taken and was the suicide staged by the police department to cover up the police officers killing Sandra?[10]

Tamir Rice was a 12-year-old boy who was shot by the police for having a toy gun. This event took place on the 22nd November 2014. The judge who looked over this case said, “This court is still thunderstruck by how this event turned deadly.” [11] This case became infamous because of its violent nature against a small child. It shows that no matter the age, if you are a black male you are automatically seen as a threat; moreover leading to unnecessary violent action. Rice was shot within 2 seconds of the police arriving therefore making the cops’ judge jury and executioner after only having information of a white caller. African Americans seem to be seen as, at the mercy of white Americans, making White Americans word law. Perhaps this is why police brutality against African Americans is such an entrenched problem, because of the ideology which has been going around since White people settled in America this is the idea that white people are here in the world to keep law and order over the Africans and Natives who are considered savages, in other words the white man’s burden. Therefore, when a case was called in like this, the cops didn’t hesitate in believing the Caucasian caller. Tamir Rice is an example that black children can’t have a child hood, safe from adult problems such as being murdered by police for playing with a toy gun. It is important to ask the question, if this was a white 12-year-old boy would the police officers have been more careful before pulling the trigger? [12]

Saheed Vassel was shot 9 times by police. Police claim that he was stood in “a two-handed shooting stance” Saheed was not carrying a deadly weapon and instead was holding a slim, curved silver pipe. The American police system is often seen as protecting white people from everyone else instead of police protecting all Americans and this case seems to reflect that. The New York Times reported that Saheed was diagnosed with some mental health problems but had been taking medicine for bipolar disorder since several years back. But more importantly members of the neighbourhood rallied to express how Saheed Vassel was not a trouble maker and not violent. Furthermore, most people would expect some consequences for the officer who shot an innocent man but similarly too many other cases the officer was found not guilty of murder and manslaughter in November 2017. Saheed was a vulnerable member of society and he was punished by police for that. The question is if Saheed was a white male would the Police been less blasé on shooting Saheed 9 times. In a country who preaches about the freedoms you have if you are an American, you are not free from being shot unjustly by the people who vowed to protect you. [13,14,15,16]

Aiyana Jones died on 16th May 2010 at age 7, her home was a target of a midnight swat- style operation designed to arrest her uncle. The officer called Weekly was ultimately responsible for Aiyana Jones death after throwing a flash bang grenade into the home, this not only blinded the swat team but also made Aiyana’s blanket catch on fire. Weekly went on to fire a fatal shot which went through Aiyana’s head, killing her instantly. Then her family were left to sit in her blood. Weekly then tried to accuse the grandmother of wrestling with him causing the incident. The ACLU report found that only 7% of raids were in hostage or active shooter situations that justify such an extreme response; and 79% were effectuating search warrants, situations that do not require a swat intervention, in other words this swat styled home invasion was unnecessary. Police killed an innocent 7-year-old girl in cold blood, her only crime was sleeping on her grandmother’s sofa. African Americans often see being black in America being the biggest crime of all, because of how often Men, women and even children are killed for being black and getting on with their daily lives. The punishment which Officer Joseph Weekly received, was having all charges dropped against him. [17,18]

What these cases suggest is that black Americans even in modern society face a very real struggle of not being killed by police officers who on numerous accounts face no real disciplinary action. It also explains the “They can’t kill us all” attitude which African American children grow up with. Perhaps this epidemic is such an entrenched problem because after every one of these tragic cases the system does nothing to reform the police departments in consequence continue the vicious cycle and few months after the last slaying another one occurs. [19,20]

White Criminals

Dylann Roof is the culprit of shooting up a black church in Charleston. The case was looked upon by the world as a chilling event and brought up concerns over gun laws and race relations. One of the anomalies of Dylann Roofs case in comparison with the Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, Saheed Vassel and Aiyana Jones cases; was in the manner in which Dylann was treated during the man hunt and his eventual capture. Dylann Roof was definitely responsible for shooting 9 black church goers in their house of worship, yet Dylann Roof avoided getting shot by the police. Other than the black victims being innocent and Dylann Roof being guilty another stark difference between the cases is that Dylann Roof is white. Why was Tamir Rice (a 12-year-old boy) shot, and Dylann Roof taken to burger king by police. There is a blatant double standard between how the different races are treated in the eyes of the law. In addition cases like this should lead to further contemplation over what situations require deadly force as there seems to be countless innocent black victims claimed by police violence, yet when a mass murderer is sat in their car, the police have no intention to wound or kill him; in fact it was reported that the police stalked Dylann Roofs car with their guns undrawn, therefore that means the police department had made a calculated decision to declare Dylann Roof not a threat. Moreover, if this care and consideration went into Dylann Roofs arrest, why was this mindfulness not taken in the case of Saheed Vassel or Tamir Rice? Vassel and Rice were deemed as threatening enough to shoot them dead. Thus, is being black in America deemed as more threatening than a white mass murderer? [21]

The Police officers who take part in police brutality never seem to be properly held to account for their actions. Moreover, the officers that kill innocent people get away with murder or in some cases manslaughter. For example, in Tamir Rice’s case a grand jury cleared Officer Loehmann of any wrongdoing in 2015 this rightfully sparked public outrage about police treatment of black communities because it gave off the message that black people’s lives are dispensable and that no true justice will ever be served. The only comfort that Samaria Rice (Tamir Rice’s mother) has, is that Mr Loehmann will not be returning to Cleavland. After the media coverage of these events begin to quieten down, and after the justice system declared the officers as not guilty, the families who have lost their sibling, child, friend or parent to police brutality are left with nothing but a backhanded apology from the police department. It is interesting how police officers who shoot children and innocent people are never classified as criminals and murderers, and similarly to a lot of murderers, they try and rationalize their actions. However, police officers in comparison to normal to the citizen they are always given unnecessary leeway. [11]

Comparison of the treatment of the different races by police

Over the years the feeling of the police’s job to protect white people from everyone else has risen. With social media being around to document all of the brutality, it has become apparent that it’s usually a white person calling the police on an African American just minding their own business. The USA there and its constant suspicion shrouded around black people because of the stereotype of black people always being criminals and thugs and all of the race living below the poverty line has created a society in which the police view this stereotype as a matter of fact. A perfect example of this is the case of Kamilah Brock a 32 year old woman was put in a Psych ward for 8 days which led to her having her human rights violated because the police could not comprehend that an African American woman would be able to own a BMW 325Cl and be a banker.[22] Moreover the predetermined prejudices lead to a woman being sent to a mental institution. The same goes for Tamir Rice and Saheed Vassel. How dangerous you are is determined on how dark your skin is within America the reason why racism is such a stark problem is because humans make premature assumptions about each other from what they can see visually and when a certain attribute is seen in a negative light problem arise police brutality being one the many. Furthermore, is the reason why police violence against African Americans is such an entrenched problem is because of human nature? Ian Johnston Science Correspondent, in Boston and writer for the independent newspaper suggests that humans are hardwired with implicit bias against those who appear to be different that makes them prone to fearing large black men. African Americans make up 12% of the American population thus making them the largest minority. Furthermore, America’s society and culture evolves around implicit bias. [23] The American university Harvard did a study and researched how disproportionate police brutality was against African Americans. Between 2015 and 2016 100,000 years of life were lost to police brutality. People of colour made up 51.1 % of those years. The study found that 1,147 people were killed by police last year however nearly 150 were unarmed. Furthermore, the facts show that even though black people are a minority they are a majority in being killed by police. [24,25]

There is no case to date which involves a white citizen being arrested for driving their own BMW and then locked up in a mental, institution. There is also no case to date which involves a white American 12 year old being gunned down by police for playing with a toy gun. This is the difference between the treatment of white and black citizens in America is that White Americans don’t have to constantly worry about these things happening to them they feel safe from harm from the police and no that the police force are here to protect and serve them not carry out miscarriages of justice e on them and the ones they love. Another difference is that white citizens don’t have to start a race riot to have their complaints about the system listened too for example Fergusson. The world was less concerned about the loss of life of an African American man and more concerned about a gas station being looted. A gas station can be rebuilt and the company can claim on the insurance however Michael Brown cannot be resurrected. A scholarly publication revealed that whiteness is a real social category which intrudes on white people’s everyday lives as unconsciously they get to reap the rewards of having the skin colour that allows them to have more privileges. [20, 26,27] Even though Barack Obama (the first half black president) did try to enforce further police oversight by greatly expanding both the number and scope of “consent decrees,” which are legally enforceable agreements with police departments on issues such as racial discrimination, use of force and unlawful stops and seizures. The Obama administration used the consent decree process to push for changes in places such as Chicago and Ferguson, Missouri, after high-profile killings by police. In 2019 with a Trump administration, the changes Obama made are at high risk of being rescinded which isn’t surprising to the African American community as Donald Trump hasn’t even issued an apology to the Central Park 5. Furthermore this shows the racial divide even further because it shows that white people such as Trump never have to worry about being a target of police brutality therefore does not see the importance of fixing the issue however with a biracial president (Obama) because of his heritage and family he did try and make changes to the system. [31]

Conclusion

To conclude, the momentous social problem of the entrenched police brutality in America against African Americans, is constantly at the surface and is always explosive. Race relations have only gradually got better because of the social normalities that a super power must have to be able to trade and interact with the rest of the developed world. In most of America there is still a clear divide between the races even after having a mixed-race president in power because of how embedded the conscious and unconscious bias is. I would argue that American culture stems from racism thus to change the system would mean having to change the past. America always seems to be on the edge of another race riot, yet the justice system and police system is never addressed. It could appear from the cases that I have cited in this essay, that the worst crime in America is still the same as it was when it was colonised back in 1607, which is being black. Being a law-abiding citizen will not save you from being shot by the police. In 2019 with Donald Trump as president, the racial climate is far from getting better because the problem is constantly brushed under the carpet by the white, rich elites who endorse capitalism and having African Americans as equals would not benefit them. They are unable to reflect on the problems within the country after people die from the riots.

Therefore, how much violence must go on to get the attention of the elites? The Los Angeles riots of 1992 and the Ferguson unrest didn’t impact enough to properly change the social order of America even though it brought Los Angeles to a standstill after it became an anarchist state. Furthermore, substantial change seems unlikely as the issues stem from injustice from the past that cannot be changed. Moreover, Police brutality in America against African Americans is such an entrenched problem because none of the issues that have arisen have ever been properly addressed or resolved, thus when there is not justice there will never be any peace and that statement made in the LA riots still rings true to this day.

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