Scarlett 1 Noelani Scarlett ENGL 1302 Professor Farrin Nov. 4, 2018 Police Procedures: Yay or Nay? So, you are at home, you flip on the news and there is another shooting of an innocent African American. Right after for that same person there is a week of protest of “No justice, no peace.” The officer still has their job for a few days and then suspended or fired if lucky. Then the cycle restarts. Its disgusting but is it what we think the problem is? Is it truly that there are a few bad eggs in the system or are you being subject to see only what the media wants you to see. This paper will bring into question police protocol for drawing a hand gun and making a change in this cycle for better tomorrow for generations to come. In the year 2017, 1,129 people were killed. Of those people killed 27% of them were African American. That percentage is higher than the 13% of African Americans in the United States overall. Looking deeper into this information, that 27% was people of color, different nationalities. Most of them were unarmed and were believed to have a weapon. Based from these numbers, this raises the question; why are so many innocent people of color dying at the hands of the officers sworn to protect? Short answer: the media and stereotypes placed on people of color. There are dangerous people, but not all of them are black. Just like not all police officers are out to kill black people, they are just bad people. The stereotypes are formed by older generations from the times that they were alive. The media feeds off that “fear from the past”. Even though that in those generations that’s not true. It helps them feed into the two biggest lies that the media can give to you. That all Scarlett 2 African Americans are dangerous and out to get you and that police officers are out to get African Americans. They do this by choosing what to put on. It’s a mind game to them and they put on whatever gets them the most views. They don’t show you statistics like in 2017, more Caucasian people were shot and killed than African American. However, thanks to media of view gets distorted. The truth of the matter is pushed aside and hidden. Here’s a scenario: you are at the park, you see a few African American teenagers leaving after a swim. The police were right around the corner and they turn on their lights and pull behind the teens. The cop gets out talks to them about a complaint they got while they are at the pool. The teens look a little confused, a few of them pull out their phone to show their parents later. You do the same just in case something bad happens. The cop tells them to leave. They do after some resistance. One of them was black female who was talking to the officer, in a way he did not like, which is not his concern because she does have free speech. As she leaves to do as he says. He grabs her hits and slams her butt on the ground. A crowd forms the first officer is runs after another African American for some other reason. A second officer comes in to the girl that was thrown down. This officer slams her full body and puts her face in the dirt and draws his gun on her. He didn’t giver her any kind of warning or command in any view of the scene. It didn’t even make the situation any better. Would we call this bad judgement on the officer’s part? There is always a better way, even in a tough situation. Going off the Texas Standards, because we love our guns in Texas. For cop to be able to unholster his gun, it is at the discretion of the cop. In the scenario you read, after reading that the girl was slammed to the ground it shows that (A) she was not resisting either of the officers that slammed her down and (B) the cops could handle her without their guns. So, in a crazy situation, was the cop’s discretion correct and was it truly necessary? Let’s use a recent example in Texas. Scarlett 3 Botham Shem Jean was home after a long day work. Amber Guyger, ex-cop now, believe she that someone was in her apartment. Botham hearing something at the door goes to see what’s happening. When he opens the door, he is meet with his death and just like that he is shot in his own apartment after doing nothing. With further research done into this, Guyger testifies that she had just moved into the apartment building and was tired when she return. She did not testify that she had been drinking that night and was above the legal limit. Neighbors testify that she was banging on the door and calling his name. So, she was drunk, knew she wasn’t at her apartment, and pull her gun on him when he answered the door. But under Texas Standards for officers, it’s up to her right? That’s for you to decide but I’m not sure how many more innocent African Americans have to die for us get that, but that’s the beauty of America right? What about that cycle I mentioned earlier? An African American die from a police officer. The media catches wind and reports it. People are outraged, it’s disgusting, they protest it goes on for a week or two then it stops. Until the next innocent person gets killed, this time a white gentleman and nothing gets reported. One factor in this messed up cycle is the media. They get the views and multiple their audience into thinking that African Americans are a dangerous race and officers are after African Americans. It’s hard to teach future generations how to get along with each other. Also, viewers can do their research on what’s happening. The media is a good tool, but it shouldn’t be something that you rely on consistently. Being able to find different sources and views on issues and things happening in the world. I know we can’t control the media but knowing the truth about a situation is better than being uneducated and being in the dark about real issues in the dark. Hopefully, I have brought to life an issue that does so much damage to so many people. There are a few things that can be changed, done and looked at for review. Like provided when a Scarlett 4 police officer pulls their gun could come with a few restrictions and special circumstances. Also, on how views can be educated about what the media spoon feeds you. Doing your own research is a very good place to start. What’s real is that people are dying everyday and a good percentage of them are innocent. What is not real is the stereotype that the media wants you to believe about African Americans and police officers. Scarlett 5 Works Cited [1] "Are There Rules for When Officers Unholster Their Firearms? Pt. 1." Texas Standard. Np, n.d. Web. 26 Oct. 2018. <https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/are-there-rules-for-whenofficers-unholster-their-firearms/>. [2] Kaitlyndonofrio. "The Data Is In: Police Disproportionately Killed Black People in 2017." DiversityInc. DiversityInc, 21 Sept. 2018. Web. 26 Oct. 2018. <https://www.diversityinc.com/news/data-police-disproportionately-killed-black-people-2017>. [3] Phillips, Kristine. “Black Teen Who Was Slammed to the Ground by a White Cop at Texas Pool Party Sues for $5 Million.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 5 Jan. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2017/01/05/black-teenager-who-was-slammedto-the-ground-at-texas-pool-party-sues-ex-cop-cityfor5m/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.28fb5e344e5f. [4] McLaughlin, Eliott C. “Dallas Police Fire Officer Charged with Fatally Shooting Man in His Apartment.” CNN, Cable News Network, 25 Sept. 2018, www.cnn.com/2018/09/24/us/dallaspolice-officer-fired-botham-shem-jean/index.html.
