America has struggled with police brutality throughout the course of many years. The use of this misconduct has been accounted for by policemen throughout the country and many others around the world. This form of violence is an act of excessive force used on the public community by government personnel. In 2017, 976 lives were taken as a result of the actions of policemen.
It’s been argued that police brutality is used more heavily on the black population compared to white people. In widely known cases of these situations, serious injuries have resulted from police induced violence and in many cases lead to the death of individuals. Popularly known blacks who died at the hands of officers in the past include Mike Brown, Eric Garner, Sean Bell, Alton Sterling and Kendra James.
Acts of protests and demonstrations have been performed around the country in an effort to help reduce police brutality and to serve justice for individuals who’ve died at the hands of policemen. Certain laws have also been passed and put into effect. For example, to document what a policeman sees, 35 of the 50 states in America passed a law that requires policemen to wear body cameras. This will help confirm lawful and unlawful actions of American citizens and to justify whether an officer has acted appropriately or not in response to the given situation.
But 2018 is quickly approaching and the number of cases involving police brutality and deaths hasn’t diminished. Despite certain laws being changed and the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement, more people died from police shootings in 2017 than 2016. To cease police brutality against all citizens of America, more changes in how an officer approaches certain situations should be established. The crying voices of family and friends who’ve suffered and dealt with the loss of a close one at the hands of police should also be heard to help minimize police-related deaths. As a country, these changes are important in order to prevent the number of lives taken by policemen. Whether the death or injury of an individual is justified or not, the amount of death accounted for by policemen is growing and will continue to.
Racism and excessive police force is a growing issue in our country and will continue to be following into the new year. The rise of concern for police-related deaths has created tension throughout America and displays of protests and movements will only continue to play a role in the efforts to cease police brutality.
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