Police Brutality, Research Paper Example

Police brutality is seen as the act of discrimination of excessive use of force by police officers whereas they make bodily harm and/or make verbal attacks as well as psychological intimidation. Police brutality has become more and more common nowadays, especially in the news. This has been proven by current events like Ferguson, among others. The fact that so much attention is being paid to these recent events shows that there is certainly a problem with police brutality all around the nation. This is not arguing that police officers have taken it upon themselves to hurt individuals without a reasonable and justified cause, but rather, this is arguing that police officers should be trained to only react with violent manners only when there is unquestionably a sense of danger in the scene. Even then, however, they should be trained to know when to stop hurting certain individuals, especially if that specific person is already on the floor without any weapons and is moments away from going unconscious. Police brutality has become a very serious social phenomenon. The fact that the vast majority of ethnic groups who have been hurt of even killed in some cases prove that something must be done about this. Because a vast majority of the police brutality that happens in the nation today is due to racial discrimination, individuals should use any and all kinds of necessary resources in order to restrain these kinds of incidents from progressing. (“Seven Reasons Police Brutality Is Systemic, Not Anecdotal.”

Despite the fact that there are multiple reasons as to why police officers might be causing harmful actions towards the ordinary American citizens might be due to pressure from work. What these police men have to comprehend, however, is that every job comes with its own flaws and defects. Just because a certain individual has or is having a bad day, this does not justify the means for hurting other innocent individuals. The fact that this is even an option for some police officers proves that there is something absolutely unjust about the system and the manner through which it is run. Of course, police officers who indulge in these kind of activities may have some psychological problems of their own. This is said because of the fact that there are simply no normal individuals in the world who would hurt or even kill other individuals simply because they are having a bad day at work. In order to put a stop to these police officers and their actions, they should all be given an extensive psychological test before they are given access to deadly weapons. A third and final reasons as to why these police officers might be indulging in their actions is because society has a tendency to believe that the law is never wrong, nor is it flawed. This kind of thinking has caused a multitude of individuals their lives, and ultimately, this kind of ideologies can change society into one that digresses day by day. There are certain police officers who have come to adapt the belief that in order to put an end to violence, violence must be used against that certain violence. Although confusing at best, what this is saying is that if a police officer sees someone being hurt, then that police officer would immediately feel the urge to hurt the person inflicting the pain so that he or she could put an end to his or her actions. Of course, this could easily be linked back to the aforementioned statement that claimed that there are certain police officers who have a variety of psychological problems. (“Seven Reasons Police Brutality Is Systemic, Not Anecdotal.”)

On the other hand, there are certain police officers who believe that they can execute the laws as they see fit. If and when police officers adapt this kind of mentality, then invariably, police brutality is bound to be the end effect. This is due to the reason that it is in humanity’s nature to take advantage of certain power that is given. In this case, a police officer would be taking advantage of the fact that he can carry a gun around wherever he or she goes. In addition, he or she would believe that he or she can inflict pain on any individual he wishes to hurt because he or she may feel inferior to everybody else; these kinds of actions are often referred to as the root cause of police brutality. (“Police Brutality.”)

Racial discrimination has become so prevalent in each police officer’s world that he or she may see it fit to hurt anyone he or she wishes. This is not to say that all police officers are necessarily racist, but there are certain police officers who believe that they can treat whoever they want however they want. As a result of this, an atmosphere of racial discrimination is created throughout the nation. If these beliefs and misconceptions continue to exist, then it is without a doubt that there could be domestic violence in the nation due to police officers and all of the brutal actions. One of the best way to avoid this, again, would be to include questions on different races, ethnic groups, and genders on a psychological test given to an individual who wishes to become a police officer. The reason as to why this test should be considered with great care is because if careful consideration is not given to one certain individual who wishes to become a police officer, then there is nothing that ensures that certain individual does not holds plan within his or her heart to hurt other individuals without a justified incentive. (“The Police Are Still Out of Control – Frank Serpico.”)

Penalties for police officers are often not as strict as they should be. For example, if a police officer were to hurt an innocent individual unjustly, then the police department would most probably defend that certain police officer for the sake of protecting the police department’s name. After this, probably the worst thing that would happen to the police officer as a result of hurting the other individual unjustly would be that he or she would be fired. Even then, police officers hardly ever get fired, but rather, they get “suspended from duty.” Because of this, the police officer’s come to accept the idea that they have no real responsibility towards the people of one’s nation because regardless of what they do, they will probably get away with it anyway. (“Police Brutality.”)

In order for police brutality to come to a complete stop, police officers must learn to be more self-disciplined and must have better self-control. By doing so, the public fore will become cognizant of the actuality that police brutality is something that must come to a stop before it develops into a greater problem. In addition, there should be more public opinion in order to impose a sense of pressure on those police officers who are causing all of this. By doing so, police officers will come to realize that they do not have all of the power that they believe that have. Also, these police officers will come to understand that their train of thought is completely messed up and that they need psychological help. Again, this is not to say that all officers are like this. (“Police Brutality.”)

Because a vast majority of the police brutality that happens in the nation today is due to racial discrimination, individuals should use any and all kinds of necessary resources in order to restrain these kinds of incidents from progressing. It goes without saying that not all police brutality can be completely avoided, but police officers should certainly learn to constrain themselves in the face of great adversity. In addition, these police officers should be rewarded when they do the right thing as opposed to resorting to police brutality. Rewards can include things such as salary raises or specialized gifts. (“The Police Are Still Out of Control – Frank Serpico.”