Pros And Cons Of Cops Killing African Americans

Why Are Cops Killing Unarmed Men?
John Williams
DeVry University

Would you feel safe knowing that the elite group of people known as police could kill and get away with just a slap on the wrist? I was under the assumption that it was their duty to protect and serve, but as of late it seems as though they are playing the role of vigilante. Although this isn’t a new dilemma, it has begun to get out of hand. Why is this happening more? Why does it seem as though these vigilante cops are targeting African American men? Why is the media latching on to this now, opposed to 10-15 years ago? Police officers are paid to uphold the law and protect and serve, but instead they’re killing unarmed men and using the media as an outlet to plead their…show more content…
The movement was started to raise awareness worldwide about the unequal treatment of black people by police in the United States. Protesters feel that the two main issues that need addressing are: racial profiling and the police use of excessive force. These are two common practices that often yield tragic results (Natarajan, 2014). One example of racial profiling by law enforcement is the NYPD’s “stop-and-frisk” program. The program was initially started to cut down on the amounts of contraband and illegal weapons on the street. During this program, officers targeted blacks and Latinos 85% of the time and 9 out of 10 searches nothing illegal was discovered. This type of behavior is what provokes citizens to resist arrest and flee from the police. Although the police’s actions don’t warrant resisting, it’s completely understandable given the unfavorable circumstances. And in these instances is when racial profiling turns to tragedy. So despite training to avoid discrimination, many police departments still rely on stereotyping and act on their perceptions of an individuals characteristics such as, age, race, and gender. I myself have been the victim of racial profiling. I’m very thankful that it didn’t yield fatal results, but it definitely was a huge inconvenience. I was driving home from the gym one night around midnight or 1a.m.…show more content…
This statement was based on the study of 313 deaths of African American men, women, and children during that year at the hands of various forms of law enforcement (Lee 2014). This statement would prove without a shadow of a doubt that killing at the hands of law enforcement is beyond out of control, but it is totally debatable. The report was titled “Operation Ghetto Storm” by the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement. Even with my views and beliefs of police brutality and the use of excessive force, there is a possibility that a portion of said 313 deaths actually required the use of deadly force, but I’d say 1 murder every 28 hours is a tad bit over exaggerated. Maybe that could be said about that year (2012), but using that as a platform to debate or show guilt of police violence is absurd. One thing that is interesting is the number of police murders since 1999. There were over 70 unarmed black men murdered beginning January of 1999 to December of 2014 (Juzwiak 2014). The police officers that were responsible for these hideous acts, in my opinion abused their authority as public servants and exercised very poor judgment in the event of an adverse