THE REDUCTION OF THE ROLE OF THE POLICE IN SOCOETY WILL RESULT IN MORE EMPOWERED AND SAFER NEIGHBOURHOODS
Uploaded by CaseyP on Dec 17, 2016
THE REDUCTION OF THE ROLE OF THE POLICE IN SOCOETY WILL RESULT IN MORE EMPOWERED AND SAFER NEIGHBOURHOODS
Name:
Subject
Date
Recent years have observed a significant increase in police brutality against unarmed Black boys and men. The unlawful killings of individuals like Akai Gurley, Eric Garner, and John Crawford sparked protests in the various states of the US. As a result, radical police reforms were put into effect to counter the increasing rivalry between the police and the civilian population. Initiatives like community policing, diversifying the police service, enhancing training, body cameras, and even community control of the police were implemented. Nonetheless, all these efforts did not yield the desired outcome. Changing the role of the police in society is the solution to bringing back a state of order in society.
A change in the role of police in the community involves dialing back on depending on the law enforcement agencies to resolve disorder and neighborhood crimes. The community usually relies on the law enforcement agencies to ensure that law and order prevail in the community. This way of thinking can be brought to an end by empowering the members of the community to solve their problems. The war on drugs, for example, has experienced numerous setbacks because access to rehabilitation services is usually predicated on police contact.
The police are endowed with the tools of physical coercion and arrest. Thus, the individuals that are in crisis choose to suffer in silence instead of seeking help. This problem can be resolved by developing civilian teams that work together with the members of the community to end to the drug menace. Additionally, the institutionalization of community-based mental health facilities that do not require the drug users to make contact with the police should be considered. Such an approach will motivate the affected parties to seek help.
Similarly, the most serious offenses that the youths commit are more receptive to the community-based approaches to mitigating crime. The police, more often than not, use force and coercion to quell criminal behavior. The community-based initiatives, in contrast, work with young adults to bring an end to violence through community empowerment and public health campaigns. Although the impact of these approaches has not been documented, a substantial number of case studies have revealed that such strategies do not result in incidences of mass criminalization.
Finally, the measures to get the police out of...