ORG 6499 Week 5 Assignment draft
Running head: POLICE BRUTALITY 2
POLICE BRUTALITY 6
Police Brutality
University of Arizona Global Campus
ORG 6499 Cultural Diversity & Individual Differences Instructor: Cara Metz
April 26, 2021
Police Brutality
Introduction
Police brutality has remained a constant language over the years despite the stringent dynamic laws that have been put in place. Police engage in more practical and hard work to enforce law and order and are allowed to use force when situations call for, but that is not the current case. Most police officers have been recognized to have a different perspective on the powers to use guns on specific races. Many criticisms have been leveled against the police on their choices to use extra force on various civilians, unlike others which continue to raise alarms in American setups.
Describe The Diversity Situation or Cultural Dilemma and The Cultural Groups Impacted by This Topic.
According to Lyle & Esmail (2016), police violence towards racial and ethnic minorities has been rising, creating attention internationally. The author further indicates that police brutality is every day in African American and Latino American cultures, which have cited racial tensions, wide-scale protests and led to maximum media coverage (Lyle, P. & Esmail, A. M., 2016). In the United States, most people of color experience low levels of force to high-level use of force and additional threats in their day-to-day interactions with the police. Studies from Sekhon (2019) indicate that people of color are likely to die at the hands of police, whether justified or not. Most police officers tend to make shooting biases and mistakes on people of color by misidentifying their roles in societies (Sekhon, N., 2019). Also, Civile & Obhi (2017) show that most people of color have a standard dressing code like hoodies making the police mistake their identities and conduct unjustified shootings (Civile, C., & Obhi, S., 2017).
Explain the Types of Power or Privilege Each Group Possesses. In What Ways Are Members of Each Group Aware (Or Not Aware) Of Their Power or Privilege?
Mendoza & Parks-Stamm (2020) indicate "that people of color have a social identity that allows them to have a sense of belonging. Since most American citizens believe that people of color are from low socioeconomic backgrounds with low income, their privileges like decent education and health are mostly taken away" (Mendoza & Parks-Stamm, 2020). However, their identity has been affected by how American society views them, making them lose the power and privilege to move across the world. African-Americans, in many ways, are not aware of their privileges due to fear of discrimination and past experiences. Their rights to social benefits, quality healthcare services, quality educations, right to a decent income, and promotions are mostly denied to them. They fail to report since the system may be influenced by racial discrimination making their pleas fall into an unjust justice system. The people of color also have the power to create changes in how social setups view them. They have the potential to influence the system to change their unjust ways while handling them. For instance, through the power of the black lives matter movement, the racial discrimination posed on African-Americans has taken a considerable toll.
Therefore, the police can influence the public to engage in reasonable practices. In their quest to provide law and order, they can also advocate for human rights and shun using force on African-Americans. The police can promote social justice by delivering equal services, equity, and respect to all social groups by assuring them of the need to have their civil rights. The social identity of African-Americans determines how they become treated by the police. Therefore, the police can use social justice to create health benefits, quality education, and justice system reforms.
Discuss The Types of Prejudice or Discrimination Applied to Each Group. Is The Discrimination or Prejudice Overt or Covert?
Lyle & Esmail (2016) indicate that police brutality is associated with interpersonal discrimination on the social identity of people of color. The types of discrimination involve race, color, and gender, which widen the gap between whites and blacks. Racial discrimination in social setups has enhanced police actions and influenced their practices to shoot on people of color without thinking of their actions. Most police officers also shoot on blacks due to their skin colors. In the historical context, the blacks were considered weak and poor and could only be used as slaves, which influenced how the American culture is shaped. Additionally, gender discrimination is also rising as most people discriminate against women and children of color. Women and children are treated unequally in their quest to seek healthcare services and justice in case of any cause of alarm.
How Do These (Prejudice, Discrimination, Power or Privilege) Impact Each Group's Access to Goods, Services, Positions of Power, Education, Or Other Societal Structures?
According to Lyle & Esmail (2016), racial discrimination affects African-Americans in power positions. The most decent position is offered to white races, while weak and low positions are provided to people of color. In places that tolerate racial discrimination, they believe people of color have low education, low working experience, and are not fit for higher positions, thus discriminating against them. Women are also discriminated against in societal structures and their abilities to access goods. They receive unequal treatment while seeking health services, as many women with chronic disease are left unattended and pregnant women offered little attention while seeking treatment (Lyle & Esmail, 2016).
Children are also discriminated against in education sectors with manipulations and blackmail from teachers and students, creating gaps in whites and black children's performances.
Conclusion
Racial, color, and gender discrimination is a global menace that societies require to deal with at the society level. Most people of color experience police brutality, which has become an international concern leading to stringent measures to protect African-American cultures. As a result, the government should develop interventions to create awareness of discrimination and make it a global menace to be dealt with.
References
Civile, C., & Obhi, S. S. (2017). Students wearing police uniforms exhibit biased attention toward individuals wearing hoodies. Frontiers in Psychology, 8. https://doi-org.proxy-library.ashford.edu/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00062
Lyle Perry, & Esmail Ashraf M. (2016). Sworn to Protect : Police Brutality – A Dilemma for America's Police. Race, Gender & Class, 23(3–4), 155–185.
Mendoza, S. A., & Parks-Stamm, E. J. (2020). Embodying the police: The effects of enclothed cognition on shooting decisions. Psychological Reports, 123(6), 2353–2371. https://doi-org.proxy-library.ashford.edu/10.1177/0033294119860261
Sekhon, N. (2019, October 1). Police and the Limit of Law. Columbia Law Review, 119(6).