In Our BackYard, Police Brutality Upon
People of Color.
Police brutality is a well known issue and has been around as long as the Police Department has been established. It is a growing issue that continues to destroy and ruin the lives of many Americans. However, one of the communities most impacted by the inhuman and violent treatment, is the African American Community. For centuries, they have been a primary group who has been targeted and violently oppressed will little to no improvement of their condition.
I chose to talk about Police Brutality because of the increase in deaths caused by police officers starting with the very recent incident one oneMay 8th 2020 with George Floyd, in which officers kneeled on his neck for more than 8 minutes causing his death. It has been clear that the relationship between police officers and people of color was of hatred. This event, which was not uncommon, resurfaced the issue of police brutality and put it into the forefront once again. Many people began to protest against the injustices, however, the killings continued. As stated by Alang Sirry, "Police brutality is a stressor that is sustained by a powerful institution"(1). The Black Community deserves justice for this and countless other incidents in which police officers unlawfully kill people of color without consequence.
This problem directly affects me because as a Hispanic citizen of Los Angeles one should feel comfortable and safe going along their daily routine where police officers reside. Many individuals, however, do not have the luxury of feeling safe while walking or even driving in the presence of police officers. As said by Alang, "Because the impact of police brutality is exacerbated by its institutionalization and connection to structural racism, public health scholars and practitioners should examine and advocate policies that will prevent institutionalized harm"(2).It is disheartening when those who are meant to protect are usually primary attackers of people of color. I have heard countless stories and witnessed this abuse first hand, and one can only feel helpless and afraid when there is little one can do at the moment.
Simultaneously, while police killings were in the news' focal point, a pandemic was also underway, so while the public was outraged about the murder of George Floyd, there was also fear and anxiety of the new Covid-19 virus. I believe that the quarantine, lose of jobs, and overall uncertainty of the future, led many people to take to the streets to protest as they were tired of being cooped up in their homes. According to Krieger, "Between COVID-19, structural racism, police brutality, climate change, plutocratic politics, and threats to democratic governance, it is time—past time —to say ENOUGH"(2) This allowed them to focus on a single cause, which resulted in gigantic protests around the nation. Starting with the protest in Minneapolis May 26, 2020. This protest began the wave of protests in which people came out to show their support of George Floyd's family and distain for the police department. A massive turnout that showed the world that these unjust killing needed to stop and laws needed to be passed to prevent the brutal behavior of the police department. Krieger adds, "This past June, propelled by the massive protests over police brutality, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the intensification of economic inequities disproportionately harming US communities of color and their health, 20 US cities and counties and three states have declared or are in the process of declaring that racism is a public health crisis"(2). Ultimately, without regulating the police department and holding them accountable for their actions, there will never be a significant change in the treatment of people of color by authority figures.
Works cited
Alang, S. (2020). Police Brutality and the Institutional Patterning of Stressors. American Journal of Public
Health, 110(11), 1597–1598. https://doi-org.mimas.calstatela.edu/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305937
Krieger, N. (2020). ENOUGH: COVID-19, Structural Racism, Police Brutality, Plutocracy, Climate Change—and Time for Health Justice, Democratic Governance, and an Equitable, Sustainable
Future. American Journal of Public Health, 110(11), 1620–1623.
https://doiorg.mimas.calstatela.edu/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305886
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