Police Profiling and Brutality: Enabled by a Bone-Stupid Stockholm-Syndrome-Afflicted Public
Hot-tempered under-trained police officers will continue to profile, harass and beat the shit out of anyone they choose, with no consequences whatsoever, until the public starts demanding changes. If yesterday's online survey in our local newspaper is any indication, don't hold your breath.
John Q. Public seems to think everything is just fine the way it is. About 52% answered No to the question:
“Do you think the New York City police officer who took down a retired tennis star in a case of mistaken identity should lose his job?”
[sigh]
posted by Tom Harper @ 6:38 PM
4 Comments:
You would see a different answer if it was their retired tennis star!
Jerry: So true.
Obviously the wrong demographic answered. The crowd that believes that no matter how much abuse they see, it’s just a individual event by a “bad apple” (anybody that buys produce will tell you a bad one will eventually effect the others). Plus the cops will wink and tell them they are protecting you, so what if we fuck up once in a while - “Look at him, we are keeping your neighborhoods and daughter’s safe!”
In other words the cops believe they are doing JUST what they are hired to do.
Now if they got an address inverted and the local Lions/Masons/Elks/Kiwanas/Republican/Tea Party/White Citizens Council Clubs were raided by mistake for drugs....
That’s why not much reform is accomplished.
Erik
Erik: It was definitely the "wrong" demographic for this survey. This area is mostly white -- several Native American tribes make up the largest minority -- and there isn't much crime; at least not compared to urban areas. The population and the police force are both small enough that we don't have that anonymity and depersonalization that larger cities are prone to.
Aside from that, there's a stigma for people who complain about police brutality. Back in the '70s or early '80s, there was a publicized case in St. Louis where police did a drug raid at the wrong address. The victim was a white construction worker and his family. He was beaten by the cops and his whole family was held at gunpoint for hours while the police tried to get them to admit they were drug dealers. This person filed a complaint, and a lot of his coworkers and neighbors turned against him. "Hey, don't make trouble. Don't make waves." "You have something against the police?" "Cops have a dangerous job. They make mistakes sometimes. Get over it." Etc.
Post a Comment
<< Home