The killing of Oscar Grant III, an African American, by a white Oakland police officer is startling in many respects. For one, the question of responsibility in the vast majority of such killings is murky at best, and never has there been video that so clearly captures and validates the claim that is made by so many people of color, especially black people -- that police regularly mistreat people of color and sometimes kill people in cold blood (and then receive immunity for their actions). Even the case of Amadou Diallo had some gray shadings in the middle of the facts -- the police thought that he was reaching for a gun when he was reaching for his wallet. In Oakland by contrast, it certainly seems to me that there was virtually no possibility that the police officer could have imagined that Grant was a danger to anyone, not even himself. In fact, the video makes it look like an open and shut case of cold-blooded murder.
Let's comment on this -- but do so in light of the following six statements:
1. The only police officers in this country who are NOT appalled by Grant's killing (aka: "murder") are likely those who are members of some underground white supremacist organization for cops or the police officers who are just plain psychotic. So don't t say something like "the police are racist" unless you are also willing to stand behind some other stereotype such as "Mexicans are lazy" or "Irish are drunks."
2. The vast majority of murders of young black and brown men in the United States are committed by other young black and brown men and NOT the police. That many of these murders are committed for inane reasons (e.g., "he called me out") seems to me to be an excellent reason to riot in the streets and call for and end to the violence.
3. Racism allows people to act toward people from other groups in ways that they would not otherwise act -- and we have to imagine that the officer did not see Mr. Grant as one of his own people (i.e., his nephew, his brother, or even a version of himself).
4. It's not easy being a police officer in neighborhoods where large numbers of people hate you until they need you (and therefore call 911 and expect you to help them in some way). It's a very stressful job and one that operates on fear and suspicion. It's not a reason to commit cold blooded murder -- but it is a point to reckon with and one that few people ever take the time to entertain, until they become a cop.
5. This killing happened three weeks before the swearing into office of the first "black" U.S. President.
6. Because you rarely hear about violence committed by the police it doesn't mean that this is an isolated case. Watch this if you don't believe me:
So what do you think? What do you make of these two killings? And why haven't we heard more about the second shooting at the hands of the New Orleans Police Department? How many more egregious acts of violence and hate do law enforcement personnel commit against innocent people that never make the news?
If your first response is "I can't believe that this could happen in the U.S.," then what do you think actually does happen out there on the streets? I mean, what do you think is REALLY going on? What might you not be seeing?
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«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 278 of 278I feel like the two cases cannot be put in the same category. Yes, both involved police officers killing minorities, but at the same time, they are very different. The first case seemed from the video like clean-cut murder. There was a witness who was sitting right next to Grant and said they were following orders and not causing any problems. He seemed to be shocked by what had transpired. I believe that that cop should spend the rest of his life in jail. A police officer committing murder is no different than anyone else committing murder. You are taking another human’s life. It would be hard say that he did not carry out a blatantly racist act. I understand that being a police officer comes with fearing for your life everyday, but there was absolutely no reason why the cop should have felt a threat. It would be an outrage if this man is not put behind bars forever.
The second case is much more tricky. Without more evidence, it could really go either way. Initially I thought it was another case of a trigger-happy cop killing a young black male. But Grimes was found with a gun that was registered to him. Whether the shotgun in the car was his or not is a mystery to me. The fact that the family refuses to believe Grimes shot first isn’t surprising to me but that doesn’t mean they’re right. Plenty of people who are thought to be incapable of violence have done bad things. But I think the giveaway in this one is the number of times he was shot. Forty-eight shots were fired by the police! That is unbelievable. And all hits were in Grime’s back. The police were obviously shooting to kill. Also, it seems strange that the police department won’t release any information on the shooting. I would not be surprised if the New Orleans Police Department was covering up for a mistake made by one of their own. Sadly, the police have that kind of power. I remember watching a video in high school about Mumia Abu-Jamal. A police officer had been shot and Abu-Jamal, a black man was arrested for the killing. Although there were claims of a man running from the crime scene, false testimonies, and even an admission from a mob hit man to killing the cop, Abu-Jamal was sentenced to life in prison. Many of the key eyewitnesses later said that they were approached by policemen who threatened them to testify against Mumia. It just goes to show you that the police system in this country is not always acting justly. There is corruption and there is not much that normal people can do to stop it. In the second video, they talk about the “blue wall”, which is a code of silence within the police force. With what the two videos show, there is no doubt in my mind that in both cases, although slightly different, the police committed cold-blooded murder.
Law enforcement officers are one of the easiest elements in our society to be critical of. The idea of someone who has been vested certain powers and authority by the abstracted forces of government certainly has the potential for problems in an organized society. This is especially true if you are a college aged young adult who regularly engages in partying, smoking dope, and occasionally doing something stupid and irresponsible with your motor vehicle. However, when things go unexpectedly as well as horribly wrong it takes mere seconds to realize the necessity of law enforcement to intervene on your behalf. After all when someone tries to break into your home or your car suddenly goes missing or some psychotic madman is threatening to rape, dismember, and consume you (not necessarily in that order) who ya gonna call? In the vast majority of cases it is not the Ghostbusters. That being said we must realize that these are incredibly important issues in the way that they affect people’s lives and states of mind so naturally the individuals dealing with must be nothing but upstanding, which many of them are indeed. However, there is a certain segment of our society that can only be described as real life monsters, individuals who act with only themselves in mind, who do not give a damn about the rights and wellbeing of others, and often time find their greatest joy in the suffering of their fellow man. Usually these sick, twisted, reminiscent of the Joker individuals are the ones the who law enforcement officers (and of course Batman depending on the condition of your psyche) are hard at work locking up to keep them away from law abiding citizens, but, sometimes that same type of person could be one wearing the uniform and wielding the authority and the distinction is often times not made until it is too late. Yet, how exactly does this happen, well some are simply born that way and are able to manipulate and fool others and eventually take a position that gives them the authority and control over others they seek, some were once good yet the pressure and/or negative experiences caused them to snap, and yet still some merely misguided but none the less dangerous. Regardless of the cause their actions have proven time and time again to have devastating consequences for many. This is especially true in impoverished minority communities where there is a long and troubled history between the community inhabitants and law enforcement which typically represented the dominator race’s corrupt agenda. This can turn a touchy situation into a full-blown disaster when an issue such as police brutality arises by one race against another takes place. Often times the one who initiated such a confrontation is a bad cop of the aforementioned type acts horribly out-of-line. The ensuing events, often riots and unrest, put both civilians and law enforcement in danger and make the quest for any sort of reconciliation that much more unlikely. As a society we must constantly be vigilant as to who we trust with a badge and a gun for many things can go wrong and chances for greater wrong arise and a true law enforcement officer should always know better.
I find it shocking that this could happen today in America, a county based on being able to have equal rights for all people of this nation. I find it very emotional evoking that someone could be mistreated in this way and that people today are still could kill people out of cold blood and receive immunity for their actions. Although this principle of self defense is used as an excuse for the officer involved in this case involving Grant, it is still no excuse if Grant in fact was no danger to society, and the video backs the finding. I find it hard to stereotype based off a few individuals among a group, I also find it jarring that there would be individuals that were not appalled to the killing of a human being who seems innocent. In reference to the second comment two wrongs still never equal a right, even though violence can occur for no reason, just an act of violence that does not mean that individuals that do not agree with the circumstances should react with more violence. For comment three, I definitely feel that it is easy to make first impressions based on appearance, based on how do you identify with the person, but this does not excuse these actions. Racism is never an excuse for killing someone, this was another fellow human being who had a mother, father a brother or a sister, a wife or a girlfriend, etc. Comment four, yes it is a hard position to be a cop in a city of a lot of crime, and yes for individuals it truly takes to be in the situation to view how high stress a job is, but there is a rational to everything and this does not excuse violence, even if it was a mistake. There needs to be a reaction if it was a mistake there needs to be steps to make sure that this never happens again if in fact, Grant was in the right. Five, I believe is a loaded comment, I think these two activities are completely unrelated. Yes it is correct to say that there were people groups that were upset about the President Elect, but those feelings probably faded fast. I know personally that I did not vote for the candidate, but by being human found the positive in the situation that is a very historic event. In relation to number six, I understand that this is not a unrelated event and that this probably occurs more than once and a while but because people have not heard of other incidents it makes the situation more jarring to those that do hear about it for the first time. In relation to the New Orleans police department they probably took many steps to cover up the situation the best they could so that it did not become a larger issue than it already was in this area, I am not saying this is a good reaction but every entity has to deal with PR issues.
It is a shame to watch the killing of Oscar Grant III, an African American, by a white Oakland police officer. The incident that took place between Grant and offices is another example of police brutality in this country. And to think this took place during the middle of the day in a crowded subway station. It seemed as if the officers didn’t even care about the people watching, whether adults or children. Arrogance was definitely shown on the part of the officers. Of course I don’t know the whole situation but Grant nor his friends seemed to be showing signs of cooperation so I don’t see why a fire arm need to be used.
In the past year the number of murders involving police officers and men of color has gone sky high. Not only are cops shooting civilians but polices are being gunned down as well, some just because their wearing a uniform. Some say this is racial genocide while others say it is just plain racism at its best. Whatever it is this has to stop. We as a nation are losing too many lives over the concept of authority and obedience. As a resident of Philadelphia I see heavy policing every day. Cops can be found patrolling, whether by car or by foot, in majority of the urban neighborhoods. Sometimes they stand on street corners and major establishments. This is supposed to provide safety for residences and help crack down on crime but instead this puts police officer right in the line of duty to get hurt. People, especially minority males, do not respect police anymore, so they continue to break the law in front of the offices as an invitation for conflict. And nine times out of ten the police fall right into their trap, which results in an altercation with injuries.
Needless to say the police officers are not always the fault for the incidents that take place between men of color. At some point the minority community has to stand up and take responsibility for our, son’s, father’s, brother’s and uncle’s actions. If there was no need for police to monitor fewer altercations if our male were off the streets and doing more productive things. Such as working or going to school, this does not seem like a fesable option, in their minds. Many youth Black and Latino men don’t see a way out or another path to take to get through life. For many selling drugs and making fast money is the only means of support, due to a lack of opportunities. In addition there are not enough role models in the minority community to help model these guys to be stand up gentlemen. A lot of the time mothers are the only parent around so the idea of modeling after of a strong male figure is an obsolete and far fetch. We as a minority community can’t go on like this because we will become a nation of distress.
The death of these young men should be more shocking to me than it is. In a way, the shocking has become something normal to hear about every now and then. Now maybe it has just become that way for me but after telling friends about the shootings, they don’t seem shocked either. So the statement “I can’t believe that this could happen in the U.S.” most definitely does not apply to me.
These two killings are, however, disheartening. Situations like these show that although our society has come a long way since the times of slavery and Martin Luther King, Jr., we have not reached the finish line yet. There are still individuals and groups in the United States that still say racist things and act according to racial preferences. Why do some people tense up a bit when they are see someone who looks Middle Eastern in the airport? Why does a white woman cross the street when she sees a group of black males walking towards her? Are they just being careful? Why would they feel they need to be careful in those situations to begin with? Most of the times it has to do with stories they have heard or experiences they have had with one person of another race. Therefore they generalize the whole race as being that way. That’s how stereotypes are born.
I feel like we don’t hear a lot about police officers and government officials committing racial injustices because the media is controlled by people who are very high up. Why would they put their friends or even themselves on display like that? The only time we really even hear something mentioned on the news is when a family and organization starts questioning what happened or seeks for justice, as were the families in both shootings. I know I didn’t hear about either shooting until I read about them in this blog.
I’m sure there are many more acts of violence and hate created by the police that never make it to the news and are never reported. A lot of people have the mentality that if the police are the ones committing the crime then why report it to them? That makes sense if you think about it. Would you report it?
At the same time, I do realize that not every police officer commits these injustices. There are just some bad ones who give a bad name to police officers. If I were to say all police officers were a certain way then I would be giving in to stereotypes just like those who have racial stereotypes. So it is important to remember not to stoop down to the level of those we are trying to stop from committing acts of violence and hate.
Both of the videos were pretty appalling to know that these types of instances occur in our streets. I think a main problem with a lot of these instances is enrooted in fear. I think panic plays a huge role in a lot of the quick decisions that are made by the police. Often times they fear for their own lives and in the moments of panic they make rash decisions that stem from self defense, but in hindsight, they realize that they made a mistake. Fear and self defense has risen a lot lately among police, especially in the Philadelphia area, where there has been multiple instances where a cop has been shot and killed. This raises problems for both sides of the spectrum because the civilians do not trust the police and the police do not trust the civilians.
While I do not think that all cops are raisist, I defiantly think that there is mistreatment from the police toward other people, in particular people of color. I think one of the main reasons for this is because as a police officer, they are looking for specific situations and specific areas, so they might seem like they are being biased toward a particular group. I think that there is some prejudice in law enforcement, but at the same time there is a reason for this because power plays more of a role than does prejudice. Law enforcement has power and often times, choose to exhibit it in ways that are biased toward a certain group of people. I think there are more variables that go into the prejudice of law enforcement than simply just the issue of racism.
Acts of police brutality are often times not reported but it makes me wonder how often it occurs. Maybe it occurs every time and only the severe cases are reported on. However this does not make it right that some can get away with it. I understand the need for force and the need to exemplify power in some situations for the prospect of maintaining order, but I feel sometimes some situations get out of hand and are unnecessary, as in the case of the two videos from the blog. The media is the main reason why more mistreatment situations are not reported on because they are the ones that control what is heard about and what is not. They also are the ones that have the ability to portray a person or situation the way that they want it to. They can make something bad good and vice versa and make everyone believe them, and thus making everyone believe something that may not be true. So it makes me wonder, when I hear the news, about what I am not hearing about, I think that is the better question.
As Bruce Springsteen put it in his song, American Skin (41 Shots), “you can get killed just for living in your American skin.” Springsteen is referring to the police’s shooting of Amadou Diallo and how he was only reaching in his pockets for a wallet, not a weapon. Springsteen’s lyrics ring true and will always remain true in the society that we live in today. We live in a society where things are overblown, and where overreactions are common. The result is people being easily offended and sometimes people lashing out or acting violently. In the case of Oscar Grant’s murder the police officer went way overboard; he shouldn’t have. As for Adolph Grimes’ case I feel like there was no rhyme or reason. I think that the fact of the matter is that there are police officers out there that are crooked and will murder or commit other crimes. That’s what probably happened in Grimes’ case. It’s very upsetting and disheartening to see that these certain officers have taken the lives of two seemingly undeserving men.
My reaction to these deaths is that what happened to these men and their families are incredibly unfortunate and very unfair. I cannot imagine what it must feel like to be in the shoes of their loved ones. This pattern of police killing people, usually those of color in cold blood in the street, is upsetting. But as professor Richards would want us to do in class is to think about these instances as if we were the police officers. But as I sit here on my computer and try to put myself in the shoes of that officer in Oakland, I can’t see any motive that would make me shoot and kill a man if he blatantly wasn’t posing a threat to me. The same goes for the Grimes story. The evidence and clues that the police are putting forth do not match with the profile of Adolph Grimes and what his parents say about him. A great student with no criminal record wouldn’t randomly open fire on police after driving five hours to see his family. Although he did have a gun on him, he carried a license that illustrates his responsibility and maturity in carrying a weapon. He had never gotten in any sort of trouble before, so it doesn’t make sense that he would shoot first or even think of instigating a fight with the police. This story bothers me in that the police are trying to tell one story while the victim’s parents are telling another one. A part of me is shocked that this is still happening in today’s world but I also am not surprised by the actions of these police officers. People are sometimes wrong and make mistakes. There are plenty of bad people in this world, and unfortunately some of them are cops.
Wow. The police who are supposed to protect us, abuse there power to murder? There might have been good reason for them to “attack” but shooting a person 14 times. That is not right. I have never really liked cops. I guess that’s because we don’t get along. The first time I was pulled over was because the cop didn’t think I was old enough. Not right. It’s kind of funny to think people get pulled over all the time for speeding but cops they never do that. Or since we are in college cops look for an excuse to get you on a weekend since it is college and people drink underage. I bet those cops never did that in college. Cops are always right…. Or that is what is supposed to be. Since cops have all this power does it mean they have to use it all? I don’t know cause I’m not a cop and not in their mind. In the first shooting talked about in the blog, the man killed was black and the cop white, go figure. I think when someone meets someone they leave an impression. So whenever we meet someone who reminds us of them we think they are just like the first. So maybe the cop had an incident before with a black man who did someone horrible. So now this time this black man reminds him of the first guy so he must horrible. Which could be completely wrong but it is in his head. Shooting the man must have been right. He’s like the first guy right? Everyone’s different but people give impressions. What about the New Orleans case, where the guy was shot 14 times. Yes fourteen times, the cops shot him, that right there show it was no accident they shot him and didn’t seem to have a care in the world. They could have killed him with one shot.
It is interesting how we do not hear about how the cops killed this person and are now under question about it. It is always the cops saved this person, the cops arrested this man, and the cops are great. I guess they have to only show the good side or else people would not trust them. I don’t trust them but I only have been on the bad side of this. If everyone didn’t trust them our world would be very different and out of control. I just don’t understand how the media and government can hide such big problems in the police force. When people find out they don’t feel safe with them and don’t trust them. Since people are raciest, cop are raciest cause cop are people. So maybe those killing have more meaning then some people think.
This is a tough one and quite frankly, very hard for me to reckon with. On one hand I can see how a police officer’s job is extremely stressful and dangerous at times, especially when an officer is stationed in a not so safe area. On the other, I think the idea of using a gun and killing someone recklessly as the Oakland situation is completely out of line. My older sister is in the FBI and I know there are PLENTY of other ways to sustain someone if they may be dangerous to someone or themselves.
As this article says: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/07/BABI155AL6.DTL Oscar Grant was made out to be a harmless person who was trying to better his life for himself and his family. Sure, he got into some trouble on New Year’s Day, being slightly intoxicated and under the influence of a narcotic drug, but it doesn’t seem to me that he should have been killed for getting into a scuffle on the train.
Like many people, I am appalled by this situation, but I can understand why the white officer who shot Grant pleaded not guilty to his murder charges. Grant may have been reaching for a weapon (even though he was unarmed) or maybe he really did seem dangerous. We don’t really know what exactly happened. Some media outlets are saying the officer was pulling for his taser gun, when in reality he pulled out his loaded gun. I’m not saying shooting his gun is excusable, he most certainly should be punished in some way, but he was trying to protect himself and just reached in the wrong direction.
The fact that the officer was white and the victim was black means nothing to me. The officer who originally pushed Grant up against the wall of the train station was Latino. Just because a white man pulled the trigger doesn’t mean all American police officers are racists. That’s just bologna and thinking in that way is ignorant. I’m sure there are racist cops and I’m sure there are some that do really stupid things, but I wouldn’t peg that as the reason Grant was shot on New Years Day. There are Latino cops and plenty of black cops shooting and arresting people of other races and people of their own race. Maybe that’s just a personal generalization of the law enforcement industry, but I think a lot of times we’re uninformed of what really happens out on the streets.
So where do we go from here? How do we prevent tragedies like this from happening? I don’t really know, but I think police officers need to be better trained with their weapons and maybe taught alternative ways of sustaining someone when they could be dangerous. Like I said, I’ve never been an advocate for firearms and never will be. I think tasering Grant would have done the trick, but unfortunately, the cop reached for the wrong black piece of metal on his belt. Now a man is dead, a family is living a tragedy and a 4-year-old girl is left without a father.
It’s unfortunate when a few bag eggs ruin the whole batch. Having said that, I think we need to admit to ourselves that there are good cops and bad cops. Now, I am not talking about the cliché scene of television detective dramas, but rather cops who do their job for the right reasons and those who seem to loose touch with the world somewhere. When I think of a good cop, I think of those who would do anything in the face of danger to uphold the safety of others. Others, in this case, means everybody; those of all races. These types of cops choose to carry the badge and the gun because they want to help people and commit themselves to a service they feel is just and right. Bad cops, in contrast, are those who choose the job because they seek the privilege and the power. These kinds of police officers take the job because they get to hold and shoot a gun or drive the supped-up Dodge Charger with a ram bar (which looks more like a miniature assault tank). The kinds of people behind the badge may be the jockish bullies in high school who still want to grasp onto their former popularity, as well as remain in the lifestyle of pushing others around. Perhaps the majority of the police officers are these types of people.
I would disagree. By believing the above statement, one is merely playing into the hands of the stereotype. I understand why and how someone could, though, because stereotypes, for the most part, speak reality to people. Part of the problem of such stereotypes and people viewing them as accurate is the American notion to focus on the negative. To most people, police officers are simply combing the streets looking for any reason to bust the ‘average Joe’. Thus every time people get arrested or hear about someone they know get arrested for “something minor” or “something stupid,” the police officer is usually the one who gets the blame on the social front. I find it funny that when the same people need help, though, they run with their tails between their legs off to the station. Also, due to the nature of getting arrested and feeling the guilt inside of doing wrong, people will always keep those bad feelings and remember those who did the arresting. They were stern, forceful, and had a power that makes you feel weak and vulnerable. It’s easy to associate negative things to the cops then, but they are needed and important.
When I think of police service (aside of the annoyance of parking tickets and moving violations), I think about the bravery and commitment to those who responded to the terrorist attacks of September 11. You want to talk about a hard job; a job where they looked into hell and knew they had no choice to walk away from it. How many of us do that or say we would do that if we it were our lives?
I feel horrible for what happened to Oscar III, and I believe it was unnecessary. I do wonder what the initial crime was that forced those officers to respond. By the way, those cops were out-numbered my ass. Everyone was on the ground being as hostile as a white cloud in a blue sky. Regardless, police men and women need to do less shooting, especially at those who do not deserve to be shot. I’m glad I’m not making an omelet with that guy.
This is definitely a situation where I sympathize with both sides, because I see it more as an accidental tragedy than a malicious race murder. I understand that the family is upset, and I can’t even imagine being in that position, especially with all the media coverage. However, I don’t think it’s fair to immediately pull the race card in a situation like this. We all have our preconceived notions about crime and race, whether it was taught to us or we learned it from the media, or from our parents or peers. As much as we hear that we should think of everyone as equal, everyone has hidden prejudices, and in a situation where you feel threatened and have to make a quick decision, sometimes those prejudices can show through. Sam showed us all those survey results about people watching a news program and remembering seeing a black criminal shown on the screen, even when the news showed no picture at all. It’s tragic that we have these ideas about people of color and crime, but I don’t think anyone is blind to race in situations like this, and I think it’s a little unfair to automatically label these police officers as malicious racists.
The Bruce Springsteen song “American Skin” caused a lot of controversy when it was performed because it is about the Amadou Diallo case. A lot of people were angry about the incident, but I feel like it should be something that people should learn from instead of just automatically blaming those “crazy racist police officers”. It’s a really difficult job, and a lot of people can’t imagine themselves in the cops’ positions. Every day, these people have to make quick decisions about who poses a threat to others and who does not, and while I’m not excusing the actions of the police officers in the Diallo case, I understand how it occurred. I doubt very much that the police officers thought, “Oh, hey, this guy’s black. He definitely packing, let’s kill him.” There’s no way to prove that race had a significant factor in the case because there’s no way to reenact the situation with a Caucasian man. Obviously, the police officers should not have shot Diallo 41 times, regardless of his race. But it’s unfair to focus so much on the fact that Diallo was of color and the police officers were white.
I think this is one of those things that seems like a bigger problem than it really is. For the amount of crime and police officers there are in the country, it really does not happen very often. It just seems like a bigger deal because it is so publicized when it does happen. Hopefully police officers in the future will not be so instinctive and be more cautious with their weapons, especially if they feel threatened just because of the color of someone’s skin.
Ok so Im not going to say that this is the so out of the norm because the truth is Dr. Richards is right. This is what goes on in the real world, outside of the bubble we reside in known as Happy Valley. I want to put myself in the cops shoes and be understanding but honestly that is just way too difficult to comprehend. The first shooting really makes no sense at all, anyone watching the video see's the victim is on his stomach and has no way of defending himself. The other guy who was interviewed acknowledged that they were doing what they were told to by the officers and to shoot him based off of fear that he would shoot you is ridiculous. (At least in this case) I'm not going to say the police are racist because that would be generalizing police officers as a whole when really its just a few bad apples that ruin it for the image. I will say that when police officers for the most part have power, with that sense of power they sometimes abuse it. The second killing is what really pissed me off. To gang up on one person who as far as we know didn't really do anything is coward - like. The worst part of it all is that the parents are left with so many questions that are unanswered. Lastly, in today's news we are bombarded with images and stories of criminals, rapists and terrorists.... these victims were innocent. Why is it always the innocent who pay? Is that what society has come to. The Mother of the second victim made a heartfelt point. She said something to the effect of this has to stop, my sons death can not be for no reason. She is right, we need to turn this around. Well not us as in the general public but the heads of the law enforcement need to revamp the methods or do something! Police have gotten a negative rap because none of us like having them give up tickets, bust up a party, catch us doing illegal things. This is a given, we want to be free and cops generally keep us in line. While some are complete jerks about it we have to realize they serve a purpose. If this continues not only will their credibility as a whole go down and thus the public will no longer look to them for help. If the public looses faith in the legal system and law enforcement than we will face a ton of problems.
The part about the underground white suppremasict cops is a scary thought but a fact so there has to be background checks on what cops do in their spare time.
Ok so Im not going to say that this is the so out of the norm because the truth is Dr. Richards is right. This is what goes on in the real world, outside of the bubble we reside in known as Happy Valley. I want to put myself in the cops shoes and be understanding but honestly that is just way too difficult to comprehend. The first shooting really makes no sense at all, anyone watching the video see's the victim is on his stomach and has no way of defending himself. The other guy who was interviewed acknowledged that they were doing what they were told to by the officers and to shoot him based off of fear that he would shoot you is ridiculous. (At least in this case) I'm not going to say the police are racist because that would be generalizing police officers as a whole when really its just a few bad apples that ruin it for the image. I will say that when police officers for the most part have power, with that sense of power they sometimes abuse it. The second killing is what really pissed me off. To gang up on one person who as far as we know didn't really do anything is coward - like. The worst part of it all is that the parents are left with so many questions that are unanswered. Lastly, in today's news we are bombarded with images and stories of criminals, rapists and terrorists.... these victims were innocent. Why is it always the innocent who pay? Is that what society has come to. The Mother of the second victim made a heartfelt point. She said something to the effect of this has to stop, my sons death can not be for no reason. She is right, we need to turn this around. Well not us as in the general public but the heads of the law enforcement need to revamp the methods or do something! Police have gotten a negative rap because none of us like having them give up tickets, bust up a party, catch us doing illegal things. This is a given, we want to be free and cops generally keep us in line. While some are complete jerks about it we have to realize they serve a purpose. If this continues not only will their credibility as a whole go down and thus the public will no longer look to them for help. If the public looses faith in the legal system and law enforcement than we will face a ton of problems.
The part about the underground white suppremasict cops is a scary thought but a fact so there has to be background checks on what cops do in their spare time.
I am going to break this down and comment on each of Sam’s six comments he wants us to think about.
1. I am sure Sam knows a lot of cops and that is why he feels that he can make the statement that most cops would be appalled by this. Maybe most of them would but I don’t know how many cops that patrol neighborhoods like the ones those police officers were in Oakland would. That is not because there is a underground white supremacist organization. I am sure that most of these officers would not be racists if it wasn’t for the nature of their job. Nature is a bad word because it implies that it is natural when in fact it is because of the perverse system that put them in that position. These officers have no ties to the community that they are patrolling and they don’t interact with the people in these neighbor hoods unless they behind the badge. All they see is the ugly side of that neighbor hood, the drug dealing, the violence and the constant danger they are in for there job. They attach a face to all this fear and danger that they are in and that is the face of a Blackman. So I do think that the cops are racist. Not all cops but I think that cops in neighborhoods that they don’t have any connection to with an overwhelming majority of people being of a different race in those neighborhoods will lead to racism in that officer.
2. This point I despise. I don’t know what Sam is trying to tell us here. Black people killing black people is a classic example of how people in power control the powerless. If you look at colonialism there are countless examples of where the colonists pin the people they are trying to conquer against each other so that they don’t fight the colonists in power. In colonial Rwanda, Uganda and the Congo I know this to be the case. Looking at a more modern example that I think was an act of sheer stupidity rather than being intentional, look at Iraq. When America installed there temporary government until they could get a Iraqi government installed, one of their first initiatives was De-Baathification of Iraq. The Baath party was Suddams party and they were all Sunni’s. A third of the country Sunni and when De-Baathification happened a third of the country felt like they became powerless. This lead to the Sunni’s blowing up a sacred shrine of the Shia which lead to a blood bath between the two groups. Some even called what ensued a civil war. These examples do not fit perfectly into the mold of what is happening in the inner city and I don’t think it is a deliberate attempt by the police to control black people. I do know if you kill a cop you can get the death penalty where as if you kill a person in a gang there is a chance you wont even get caught. It is much easier to take out all the rage that is caused by poverty and inequality on your neighbor than it is to take it our on the cops or doing something constructive with that energy.
3. I agree with that.
4. I also agree with four. I can understand why these cops can do such heinous things. They are reacting to the shit situation that they are put in. What is needed is not cops that are not racist because I believe that there job in the inner city is making them racist. What we need is a new way to handle the problems of violence and poverty in the inner city. We need more people like Lucky Yapa, not more cops.
5. I have no idea what Sam is trying to get at with this statement. Just because the majority of people that voted don’t mind having a black president does not mean that there are not extreme forms of racism prevalent in many parts of America.
6. I think that if I was shot by the cops in a situation like these two people, there would be hell to pay. That’s because I am white. That because our society cares more about me than the people in the inner-city. Also those were only the cases of police brutality that were shocking enough to make it into the main stream media. This makes me think that police brutality is widespread. Think of all the ways that a cop could shoot at a person and it be subjectively called self defense and think of what can be encompassed in the words “Self defense” in a job that is inherently dangerous. Also think of how many times these events aren’t video taped and it is the cops word versus some drug dealing kid.
When the police shot Oscar Grant III, I felt a lot of racism and that is was unjustified. Many people probably think the same way. After all, it is a black man getting shot by a white police officer. Who wouldn’t? But if the police officer were black also, would you see this different? Maybe you could think of more reasons why it occurred in the first place. It’s sad that because of the people’s race it is a huge deal. Police officers are to protect and serve. I would have to say almost all of them do their job right. Yes, there may be some bad people in the police force and this police officer in the video may have been one, but it’s very sad that when we see just one video like this that we judge all police officers. Then we lose our trust in the police force. I bet it wouldn’t have been a big story if the guys were the same race. It’s just how the people react to things today. We still believe that there is racism out there and there is. But I personally don’t think that it’s nearly as much as it used to be.
Also, being a police officer is a hard job today. They face situations that put them at risk all the time. We need to see them in the perspective as a person too. They have morals and they don’t want to die either. By shooting this man, the police officer may have just been acting defensively. We don’t really know. If I saw someone reach into his back pocket in a police officers perspective I would have thought it was a gun. I would certainly want to be the one to pull the trigger first if it was. However, he could have just been acting on an instinct too. Emotions were probably stirred up and there had to be an adrenaline rush. We can’t jump to conclusions on whether the shooting was based on racism. This can happen to anyone. There are bad police officers out there and we can’t judge them on race. Those that appear to be because of race get the media’s attention. I’m sure media has left out some stories on white people getting hurt. But who really knows.
My feelings towards what happened are based on racism. I think that the police officers were racist and were blowing the incident out of proportion. They were attacking this man more abusively than they would a white man. However, I don’t believe that their intentions were to kill the black man. I think it was spur of the moment. It just happened to happen.
These two cases are appalling but believable. The first video, the shooting of Oscar Grant III, is sad and extremely frightful. The police officer should be convicted of murder and sentenced to jail time, but he will probably get off. These police officers have to have some type of white supremacy, or just a supremacy in general, coalition. Who knows what the officer was thinking, but I guarantee he thinks he’s superior to every other civilian. I think police officers take sole advantage of their job title, and want to screw people. It is no wonder that people dislike cops until they actually need help. Sure, the shooting was an isolated case, but many other crimes or misdemeanors are not so isolated. Many people do not have respect for police, even though most cops are almost always trying to help the general people. I don’t really know the details as to why this man was shot, but if he was giving a little fuss, shoot the guy in his foot not his back and end his life. Maybe the cop has seen a case such as this and the victim pulled a gun on his coworker, and he didn’t want a similar situation. I don’t know the details. One terrible action of this cop is going to end his career at the very least, and probably end up imprisoning him.
Question 2: How would this case be different if the shooter were not a cop, yet another man of his color? It probably wouldn’t get nearly as much publicity. When a white shoots another white or a black shoots another black, we don’t tend to feel the same as when a cop is involved. It’s more common to see or hear of such and not a cop.
Question 3 and 4: Racism definitely causes people to act in ways they usually would not. That officer probably would not have shot Oscar Grant if he were a white man. The cop works in a neighborhood where people don’t like them, until they need help, which probably caused the police officers to form type of racism. Cops probably have a tendency to dislike the act before they see the scene. This particular officer was probably getting pissed off because the victim would not obey his or his partners’ orders. He probably did not think twice about pulling the gun until it was too late, which I believe demonstrates his form of white supremacy.
Question 5: I don’t really think this case can relate to the swearing in of the first black president. This sounds like ludicrous to me, or maybe I’m just not seeing the whole picture?
Question 6: I agree with Sam Richards on the point where just because we don’t hear of crimes committed by police doesn’t mean it’s an isolated case. People of particular areas hear about them, but the news media usually neglects to inform people of such instances. Come on, our police officers can’t be corrupt!
There are no justifications whatsoever for the actions these policemen took against these two men, Oscar Grant III and Adolph Grimes. Regardless of whatever they may have been detained for or the crimes they may have allegedly committed in order to be involved with the police in these two instances, neither appears to have been serious at all, if even existent. Had these two men been wealthy, white men; things may have been different. We don’t know either way, however, what caused the police to act in such an unbelievable manner in these two cases. Both men appear to be innocent, or at least not guilty enough for anything to be shot and killed right then and there, let alone twelve times in the back.
The motto of police forces is “to protect and serve”, neither of which appears to be occurring in either of these cases. In fact, they seem to be the ones who are a danger to the society. Had they known the men they shot, or anything about them or their families, maybe they would have acted in a different manner. However, they did not know these men, and therefore most likely saw them as young, black men who were a danger to society and the people around them, including the police officers themselves. No matter what the case, no man needs to be shot 14 times, including 12 times only in the back, without having serious evidence against him or without believing the police officers themselves were in grave danger because of him.
I do believe police officers sometimes abuse their authority and power. Don’t get me wrong, I think everyone would love to believe that the police really do exist to protect and serve us. However, I think many take their power for granted and use it in an inappropriate manner. This may be because they feel like they are above the common man, or because they feel like no matter what they do wrong, they will never get in any trouble because they are a part of the police force.
Unfortunately, police officers do get away with committing acts that the rest of society would be punished or even jailed for. For example, had anyone committed either of the acts that the police did in these two videos; the person would be immediately imprisoned and questioned later. However, because they are police officers, they are assumed to be innocent and to just be protecting themselves. The fact that these officers aren’t in jail proves that the badge really does protect them from being punished, no matter how horrible the crimes they commit. This is unfair and needs to be addressed by our country in order to attempt to cut down on the violence and crimes committed by our own police officers, the people who we depend on most to “protect” us.
These incidents are in no way isolated. I believe they occur all of the time and it is up to the media as to what becomes the news. At times we cannot simply blame ourselves for being ill informed of the atrocities that do occur everyday. What we see in the news is what we expect to be the current and all of the happenings of the day. But if it never reaches media outlets who is to blame? I believe the answer to that question are the individuals who are “covering it up”. Oscar and Adolph’s murders unfortunately occurs all of the time and we will never hear about it.
As a resident of the state of New York it seems as if more often we hear about police brutality and incidents with police misconduct towards people of color. What hurts me the most about this situation is that Oscar and Adolph could have easily been my little brother, my cousin, or my boyfriend. Being shot in the back is inexcusable. It is an offense that cannot be defended. What sort of threat does an individual who is not even facing you pose?
I like to think that I believe in the greater good of man kind, but with these present situations I find my self losing faith. Many incidents involving the police are often covered up and never released to the media. The fact with Oscar was that there was undeniable evidence found in two different videos. They couldn’t cover up this incident. It also occurred in a very public place so there was no chance of this not getting out. With Adolph’s case he was murdered in a back street, which made it easy for the case not to be released. But what the police were not counting on was that Adolph had a family. Adolph’s family contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation and made a case out of the situation.
I believe that many times these incidents go unnoticed or even uncontested because of lack of support for the individual who was slain. Most times the cops are hoping that the person who was killed was a social outcast. Basically, another lost soul for whom no one cares. It a shame that this does occur but it all too familiar in black neighborhoods. Sean Bell was killed the night before his wedding at his bachelor party. He was unarmed and a hail of bullets were shot into his car. The shooting was unnecessary and all too common. Every so often the NYPD finds itself involved in these shooting of innocent individuals. The part that must remain clear is that not all of these incidents are done by white police officers. One of the officers involved in the Sean Bell shooting was a black himself. What is concerning is the police mentality, shoot first and ask questions later. Of course police officers have a right to defend themselves, but if a man is on his knees and shot in his back then there is no DEFENSE involved.
Being a criminal justice major, I am appalled to see such actions occurring on our streets. The two instances shown prove that even cops are more than capable of committing heinous crimes. I have always been interested in the mentality of murderers. It makes one wonder how seemingly good people can justify killing another person. Sam made a very good point about the murderers seeing the person on a lower level than themselves. They might see this person as inferior as they would an animal. Since many people, me included, have no problem shooting a deer, these murderers have probably justified their killing in this way. Others kill for bragging rights and respect amongst peer groups, and then there are those that do it out of pure hatred.
However, what bothers me the most is that there are certain officers in this country that use their power to fulfill their evil desires. They take an oath of service to protect the people, but instead they are the ones we need to be protected from. These rogue cops use the fear and suspicion excuse to help get them out trouble with the law. I am sure there are a lot more instances out there that never even get investigated. Two partners out patrolling the streets and using their power to effectively commit their own holocaust on people they see as inferior. This really bothers me, because the reason I wanted to get into police work was to clear the streets of people that are demoralizing them. With people in uniform committing the injustices shown in the two videos, it is no wonder that people in certain areas of this country are fearful of the police.
I would like to see a turnaround in this country where everyone can trust the police and the police forces are deserving of their trust. If we could make this change along with a couple others, the streets would be much safer for everyone. The one other change I would like to see made is that murderers should be taken out just like their victims were. I am a big supporter of capital punishment. If you were convicted with witnesses to prove it was you, you do not deserve to be on this earth anymore. The only times I feel that imprisonment would suffice is if it was done in self-defense or there is not complete evidence against you. There have been multiple cases where a murderer was convicted, but evidence later cleared them of the charge. I still feel that if it is positive you were the killer, you should be taken out the same way you took them out. An eye-for-an-eye seems to a fair way to go about capital punishment. Everyone seems to think that cruel and unusual punishment is no way to eradicate a criminal, but if they did not have a problem killing someone that way, I do not think it is a problem to take them out that way as well. By doing things like this, more people would think before they act and a lot of these problems would not exist.
It seems that modern day police shootings have become the racist crimes of our nation’s past. In the early 1900’s during the times of the Jim Crow laws, racist acts of violence were common throughout many parts of the United States. Nowadays, while those racist acts have died down considerably, the same situation is occurring in police shootings involving minorities. The media takes hold of most of these cases and presents them in the typical fashion seen in these two videos, showing the victim’s family and causing us to sympathize with them. While this is the media’s portrayal of the shootings, we can’t always be sure we are being shown all sides of the situation, namely that of the police officers involved.
I’m not saying that neither of these cases could have been the result of the racist impulses of a few police officers, but still, you have to consider their point of view. Dr. Richards has asked us to consider the points of views of others several times in class, although it’s sometimes very difficult if you don’t have the knowledge or prior experience to see an event from another perspective. In the case of police officers, it’s not difficult to see that their job is a lot more stressful than most. Police officers in urban areas or areas where crime rates are particularly high have to deal with life and death situations regularly when they encounter armed suspects. Because there is the possibility that any criminal could be carrying a weapon, police officers have to act cautiously with nearly everyone they encounter. This is where race begins to enter the equation. Officers tend to be more cautious around minority suspects as they know from prior experience that they are more likely to be carrying a weapon and to use it. In the cases of Oscar Grant and Adolph Grimes, there is no way for us to determine whether the officers were operating out of genuine fear for their life or the lives of others, or racist impulses. The only way we could know is if we could read the mind of the man who pulled the trigger.
In Jillian’s response to the article she mentioned that her father is a police officer, and that we can’t judge the decisions of police officers without seeing the situation from their perspective. She mentioned about the Adolph Grimes case, that he was carrying a handgun and a shotgun in the trunk of his car. This was one detail that struck me as well when listening to the video. Why would someone need this much fire power? I think that is the question that rings in the back of the minds of the police officers everyday when they confiscate weapons. They are thinking that if they don’t do their job correctly and quickly apprehend every criminal, one of them is going to get lucky and get the chance to pull out their weapon. This may be the fear that causes officers to act irrationally and unload their entire clip into the suspects back because they reached for a wallet.
Seeing these stories in the news is not surprising to me at all actually. It’s also not surprising that most of these similar crimes are kept secret from the media. To say that police officers are fair and just all the time is simply ridiculous and naïve, and I assume most everyone would agree with that statement. However, a lot of people forget to mention that they do mostly good than evil and it’s hard to say what actions they should take in the heat of the moment. One phrase I try to avoid saying is “I would never do something like that” because in reality you really never can predict your actions “in the heat of the moment”. Like, right now in this present state I cannot see killing someone else as a justifiable plan of action. If I were in the military, I was in danger or my family was unsafe for whatever reason, or someone near and dear to me needed to be rescued, then killing someone might be more subjectively acceptable given the circumstances. “Cold blooded killing” as said in the article I would definitely agree is never acceptable no matter what, but I have a hard time saying that those crimes were simply in cold blood or heinous. I say this given the simple fact that I wasn’t there at the scene and I don’t know the circumstances behind it at all. Granted there are tons of crimes committed by crooked cops all over the country, I believe the good far outweigh the bad. But why are a lot of crimes kept secret? So that the country doesn’t turn into a chaotic mess, and the police are there to keep order and peace. Due to this, they try to get the best publicity possible just like every other organization in the country. I’m confident in saying that 85% of the “actual news” of the world is kept secret from us. As depressing as it is, there is never going to be a completely fair and just system. Everyone has biases and some sort of prejudice, not necessarily of race, so it is physically impossible to be completely accurate unless the police force became robots, which even then it wouldn’t work too because everyone would literally get away with so much more. You basically can’t win.
It was very disturbing to see the video of new at YouTube about a black young guy getting shot fourteen times on his back and polices man were aiming for him with forty eight bullets. Even if I let the race to the side and try to understand the situation, it still doesn’t make sense and I don’t see any logics. So, let’s see if there were forty five bullets I guess I wasn’t from one pistol gun. It should’ve been coming for more that one gun. So, I guess there was more than one police officer were at the situation. How could one guy just parked right in front of building at New Orland is that suspicious? Did he look like a hell boy? Or hulk? I don’t know maybe he had no head. So possibly, the reason that he was black that he got aimed at forty eight times.. it still doesn’t make any sense to me at all. What is going to be different even if the young guy is black? Is he going to turn in to a monster and run away? No. he was in the car. He could’ve run away. Buy, police man have car too. They can chase the guy that way. It doesn’t have to be deadly chased. I get that there is a law for police officers get a right to fire if the other side fire first. I mean I get that he had a shot gun on the trunk and he had a gun with him. But, really was he that dangerous? I don’t think so. And at the fact that police man didn’t said anything or either has their name mentioned, or letting people know what really happened. When I see that and then and it’s now even related to me. I would still think that it’s a police man’s fault. The victim even had no past record, went to the great high school. He could’ve slacked off. I don’t know about that. If the white supremacist still exist and then if this case was one of the incident of the white supremacists, then the police man should get the same treatment as the victim did. I guess that white supremacy still exists. It’s not going to disappear. There are always going to be someone who thinks that they are better than others because of some reason. Even though there are white supremacy existences, they should not have any power like being a police man. Because it’s just like feeding them with more power on their shoulder to just act out however they want to and show how they are better than others. Whatever the real story was, I hope that it doesn’t happen again.
Police Brutality.
You don’t have to tell me twice that what happened was wrong or a serious misjudgment that needs to be responded to by these police officers and while it seems from the videos that they didn’t have a reason to shoot those men I wasn’t there to make a judgment- but that being said- there was absolutely no reason for the amount of shots fired. In fact, I’d have to say it’s ludicrous and quite irrational for there to be any reason NOT to be angered and upset over these acts.
I understand that if an officer feels unsafe or the need to react in such a way to maintain their safety they may do what seems like an irresponsible act-but isn’t a warning shot in the leg or arm going to make sure the person doesn’t shoot them or endanger them good enough- and going past that, say like THIRTEEN or 14 or however many shots were fired into that one man such an extreme that it’s even a bit crazy? I don’t know if they were in fact looked into by the FBI properly or not, but I hope they did and there was some kind of resolution or apology made to their families.
Also, how many more stories are there like this? These are just two semi-recent ones that Sam has dug up- but how many have there been in total? In the last year? Even yet: are there any cases like this against Hispanics or Muslims or Asians? More importantly: are there any of these ridiculous cases involving white men being killed? I feel like the answer would be no but I would hope that the answer would be yes-so that it isn’t, alone, just a race issue-but I’m not so sure I have that much faith in our society, yet.
Going back to the police: while I completely agree with and understand the outcries of these families and how what happened was in no way fair or even humane, I don’t want to judge the whole society of officers due to a few “bad seeds”. But that’s what we as a people tend to do don’t we? A few bad incidents ruins it for everyone else, and I’m sure I’ve been guilty of associating those thoughts to groups of people-but recently I’ve found it all a bit pointless to do so. I get so frustrated when I hear older people say things like “kids these days…” or “in my days we had more respect for…” because I know I’m a good kid, I know I work hard and have respect for everyone-not just people older than me and it seem so unfair to have a few ruthless bad kids screw up my 20 years of hard work.
So, I guess what I’m trying to say is yes, these cops were in the wrong, but they aren’t classifying all of them, just like any other system/society isn’t summed up by a few people-so making judgments on them seems to be a waste of time and a little pointless, or at least is does to me.
-j.swerdon
Growing up in the inner city of Philadelphia there is a lot of crime that occurs on the streets everyday. Just this pass weekend when I was home, an officer was killed on duty. The next day the news reported, there were six cops killed in the line of duty since October 2007. Working in urban areas that have high crime level is very dangerous. Therefore, I understand that cops need to take precautions and never let their guard down when they are working. Many people don’t care about the people they hurt even if it is a person in a uniform. Officers have to be ready for whatever comes there way. When officers are threatened they need to react quickly. It can be a dangerous job protecting other people.
When I looked at the first video, I did not understand what Oscar Grant did wrong. In the video, I could not see anything that might have been threatening to the police. I do not understand why the police shot him. He did not deserve to die. The police claim that they were doing their jobs and did nothing wrong. If they did nothing wrong then why did the take the tape? Why was the tape not seen by others? Why was the only evidence of what happened submitted by someone with a cell phone? I think the police in this situation were wrong. The video shows that Oscar Grant was not doing anything wrong. I think this was a case of murder and the officers should be punished for what they did. An innocent man died when he did not do anything I think was illegal.
In the second video we really do not know what led up to the death of Adolph Grimes, so we really do not know if this was self defense on the part of police or murder. When you look at the evidence I think this was murder. If Adolph Grimes was aiming a gun at the police how was he shot in the back twelve times? The Officers said that he had a gun. He was aiming the gun at the officers and they retaliated in self defense. Even If Adolph Grimes had a gun and was aiming the gun. I don’t think he should have been shot fourteen times. Both of these cases are very interesting. This is the first time I have heard of these shootings. Neither of these shootings seems as if they could have been self defense. I think the police actually shot these to men and committed murder. It is a shame because the officers are suppose to protect citizens from crime and to see them commit the same crime that they are suppose to lock other people up for is sad. These officers need to be committed for there crimes.
First of all, I thing these cases are horrible. It sucks that most black people have to live their lives being treated unfairly by the law just because of the color of their skin. In these two shootings, there is no proof that these men were being a danger or harm to society or have even done anything wrong. I do not understand why a police officer would waste their time convicted innocent people instead of trying to catch the people who are actually doing the harm. They know that if they do something unjust, they are going to have to deal with the consequences, so I don’t understand why they would even do it at all. I think it is ridiculous that some police officers are involved in some underground white supremacist organizations for cops…. And that they are the only ones that are not appalled by Grant’s killing. I do not think this should be allowed. It just proves that the law is unjust, and in a way it does target people of other races. This may be because most police officers are white, where I am from any way, and that they do not want to convict people of the same race. I think it would go the same way for blacks cops too though. They would be more likely to let a black man off the hook than a white man, and vise versa for a white cop. However, the law is still the law, and if anyone violates it, no matter their race, they should deal with the consequences. But the men in these videos appear innocent to me, so I think the cops were very unjst and should suffer the consequences. Just because they work for the law does not mean they should get a get out of jail free pass when they themselves violate the law. I agree that it is not easy being a police officer where large numbers of people hate you until they need you, and I also agree that it is a stressful job having to put your life on the line every day, and that it operates on fear and suspicion, but someone’s race does not necessarily mean that they are suspicious. It is more or less their actions. Ok, the guys sitting in his car in the dark ally may have looked suspicious, but I think the cops took it too far opening fire with no action of violence form the man,
Alright, so the vast majority of murders of young black and brown men in the United States are committed by other black and brown men and not the police. However, I think this is also part of what makes other races appear more suspicious. It is all about lthe law of numbers, the more a race does a crime, the more likely they are to be watched, and therefore caught. So it is not necessarily the police’s fault that other races seem more suspicious, but it is certain people form those races who are to blame.
Historically, the police force has always had problems with racial profiling. We are still experiencing these problems today; however, some agencies are becoming proactive against racism and profiling. For example, many agencies are increasing their education requirements. They way I see it, education is a great way to open minds and decrease prejudice. One example is the PA state police requiring at least 40 college credits.
Police work is a very stressful occupation and it requires officers to be alert and on “edge” every day. In many cases officers have to make on the spot decisions that will ultimately determine life or death. This is a lot to ask of a person. In some cases individuals get carried away by the situation. Adrenaline rushing through one’s body can often lead to irrational decisions and taking one’s actions too far.
In cases such as Amadou Diallo and Rodney King, officers are clearly out of line. While the facts of the Diallo case are still a little fuzzy, the beating of Rodney King clearly displays police brutality. The mix between racial stereotypes, adrenaline rushing, and disobeying the law can be very dangerous. I believe that when officers take the situation personally they may stray away from their training. Emotions may run high, fueled by prejudice and anger. The bottom line is officers should not let the situation get personal, and stick to agency policy. When officers commit crimes such as shooting and beating innocent people, they deserve to be charge and sentenced just like any other criminal. Unfortunately there is a sense of brotherhood within the police community. Cops do not tell on other cops. Police officers need to stay professional and simply do the right thing, whether it is socially accepted or not.
In every institution there are always a few bad eggs. Historically, this has been a major problem with police work: Dirty cops asking for kickbacks, hustling people, police brutality, and racial profiling. It is too easy for police to point the finger at blacks.
In the second video the main issue that I got from it was that the suspect was shot 12 times in the back. Again the facts are a little fuzzy and we really do not get a sense of the whole situation. The media is to blame for this. To often are headlines involving violent crimes and terrorism which only concentrate on a few horrendous facts of the situation. This case may not even be racially related. When officers are faced with a deadly situation they are trained to shoot to kill not to injure. If 40 some rounds were shot and only 12 hit the mark, there was obviously a good reason why so many rounds were fired. The issue should not be that he was shot 12 times; it should be why he was shot.
Well first off, I think it’s super shady that the police won’t release any information about the situation in which they shot the guy 14 times. Clearly, they don’t have a legit excuse for doing so. This can only lead people to believe this is an act of racism. You would think they police would want to justify their actions to show that they are not racist, but apparently they have no justifications. Also the fact that they shot him in the back 12 times exacerbates the idea that this was simply an act of racism and not because of any real reason. Sure, he had a gun on him, but it’s very doubtful that he just whipped it out instantly once he saw the police and started threatening them for no reason. The guy seems like a good guy, according to his record. Surely he was dead after a few shots; shooting him 14 times was very very unnecessary and it seems like the police were just angry for no reason other than that he was black. I feel like we don’t hear more of these stories of police murdering people because they don’t allow them to make it to the media. Police are supposed to be the good guys, who get the bad guys. But what happens when the good guys are the ones committing the crime? Who is going to catch them? I think we don’t hear these stories as much to maintain this “good guy” image of policemen. They are supposed to be the ones fighting crime, not committing it. And that is how we should think of them. When we hear stories like this, this image breaks down and we no longer feel safe and protected by the police. It’s weird to think of police getting arrested. It’s kind of hard to get your head around. Also, the fact that Grant’s killing was a mere three weeks after President Barack Obama’s inauguration only adds to the pile of evidence that these killings are an act of racism. In one of the previous blogs, there was an article discussing the increase in violence toward black people after Obama became president. With that in mind, now this happens, and people can only assume it’s for similar reasons. ESPECIALLY when they refuse to release information about what actually happened.
The Oakland police officer should go to jail for his actions. The man was shot in the back and died, the officer was not alone, and the man was not making any problems. I think the man’s family should get money from it but I’m not sure that the police officer should go to jail for life. I think the only way the officer can get out of this is if he does what he is doing, saying that he thought he was going to use a tazer on the man and not his gun. I think it is an uphill battle though for him because how does a cop not know when he has his gun in his hand or a tazer? I think the police officer will go to jail but I do not know how long he will be in jail.
I think America needs to look at what happened and understand that the police often do go over and beyond what they should. I agree that the police in America think they are better than everyone else and think that they are always right. I think the police should be accountable to their actions, and this case is going to show them they have to. The police have a hard job but it gives them no right to take action that they shouldn’t, they need to be held accountable. I think that the use of camera phones and how the police have cameras in the cop cars help make them accountable.
The Oakland police officer should go to jail for his actions. The man was shot in the back and died, the officer was not alone, and the man was not making any problems. I think the man’s family should get money from it but I’m not sure that the police officer should go to jail for life. I think the only way the officer can get out of this is if he does what he is doing, saying that he thought he was going to use a tazer on the man and not his gun. I think it is an uphill battle though for him because how does a cop not know when he has his gun in his hand or a tazer? I think the police officer will go to jail but I do not know how long he will be in jail.
I think America needs to look at what happened and understand that the police often do go over and beyond what they should. I agree that the police in America think they are better than everyone else and think that they are always right. I think the police should be accountable to their actions, and this case is going to show them they have to. The police have a hard job but it gives them no right to take action that they shouldn’t, they need to be held accountable. I think that the use of camera phones and how the police have cameras in the cop cars help make them accountable.
Racism and the police has always been a touchy subject. I can see both sides of these cases due to the fact that I have relatives that are police officers. My uncle works as a police officer in Philadelphia and is faced with the chance that he may not come back alive every night. With the kind of criminals some of these police officers face, it is not surprising that they may be a little quick with the trigger. Most of them have the mindset that it’s either them or me. Right or wrong, I think I would be the same way if I were doing their job. I don’t even think this mindset has to do with race. It’s just the fact that when you see a gang, white or black, on a street corner in the middle of the night, you grip your gun just a little bit tighter. And not because you are a racist. But because you know that several men in your department have been killed by gangs just like these. Because you have a wife and young child at home who will have no source of income if you don’t make it back alive. It is just the first thought that runs through your head at 2am in the middle of a bad part of town. All of this being said, I will now say how horrible I think both of these cases are. Here are two family’s who suffered the loss of a loved one. The first case was horrific for the mere fact that the man was laying on the ground defenseless. Sure there was a struggle, but from the video it looked like the cops had it pretty well under control. He was on his back with one officer with a knee to his back. There was no need to draw a weapon, much less fire it. There was enough law enforcement there to control the situation. I will be curious to see the outcome of the wrongful death suit, because I think the family will have no problem winning the case. There is not enough information for me to judge the second case. The fact that the gentleman was shot in the back makes it seems like he was running away or unaware that cops were surrounding him. However, it doesn’t say why he was carrying a gun or had one in his car. And it didn’t say what he was actually doing or if he actually did fire first. Even if he did fire first, the fact that he was hit 14 times and a total of 45 shots were fired is absolutely ridiculous. There is no need for that amount of force to be used. When police officers fire at anyone it is a touchy situation. When race is involved, it is even more touchy. I think the whole picture needs to be looked at to get a better understanding of why cops act the way they do. We need to look at it from both sides.
My heart goes to the family of both victims. I am very angry at the police officers who have murdered these people and many others that most of us do not even know about. I find both, the murder of the Oscar Grant III and Adolf Grim horrifying and sad, but it is the truth. This clearly proves that racism still exist in extreme levels. This could be just a mistake by the police officer, but I am almost positive that there is more into it. I wonder why a police officer would assume that the black man was reaching for a gun while he was searching for his wallet. Maybe it was because of the neighborhood he was living in or his color.
Why did Adolf Grimes deserve 14 shots? Who is responsible for the death of a 22 year old man who was the father of a child? What is that child going to do when he grows up and figures out that his daddy was killed by people whom he is suppose to trust.
It is so natural to most of us to just trust the police and believe that they are out there to save us and protect us from harm. Is that the reality? Well I also can understand what the police officer might have felt at the moment. Police officers can also make mistakes. One wrong decision should not change our mind towards them and what they do. For the most part they make this world a safer place to live. But who is going to answer that child’s questions. After watching these two videos I have started to question their trustworthiness. Are they just some racist out there whom use their power over other individuals. Does that power give them the right to cold murder innocent citizens?
In many cases, many innocent individuals get killed by the police and no one will ever hear about it. Is it because the police department does not want to ruin their repetition and the fact that they are suppose to save people, not harm them. Looking at the second video I could see and feel the frustration and anger in the parent’s eyes. What was besides their son’s death that was bothering them? Why do they have to struggle because of their color and their poverty?
At the end we all need to forgive and put ourselves in the shoes of both sides. Mistakes like these are hard to forgive and forget. In order to make this place a better and more peaceful place these types of crime by police and other individuals need to be stopped.
I think generally the police’s overuse of force is exaggerated. In statistics put out by the United States Department of Justice, 26,556 complaints were filed against police officers for use of excessive force while only 2000 of the complaints had merit. With that said I think it is pretty clear from watching the videos of the Oscar Grant shooting that in this particular case, excessive force was most definitely used. When I first watched the video, I was taken aback by how deliberate Johannes Mehserle was in killing Grant. It looked like he told the other officer to hold Grant’s head and then stood up, took out his gun, and fired a point blank shot right into Grant’s back. He didn’t look like he was afraid and quick rushed to get a shot off in self defense. From my point of view this clearly looked like a shot took with a purpose. It did look that Grant wasn’t the most cooperative person with the police during the video but he didn’t look overly threatening either. Just because he wasn’t 100% cooperative doesn’t mean that Mehserle had the permission to kill him. Even if he didn’t mean to kill him, it doesn’t change the fact that he pulled the trigger of a gun that killed another man. I can understand that being an officer in the early morning hours of New Years Day can be difficult but that doesn’t give anyone the right to go around shooting innocent people. Maybe Mehserle had a long night having had to deal with numerous belligerent drunks and the utter chaos that was taking place was the last straw that set him off and clouded his judgment. I think saying immediately that this was a racially charged murder is kind of jumping the gun. If you watch a few of the different videos, you will find that there was a lot of chaos going on at the time of the shooting. People were yelling and screaming and even a few people came up to the police in what could easily be taken as an aggressive approach if you were a cop on duty in this high stress situation. I think Mehserle handled the situation extremely poorly and for some reason came to the conclusion that shooting Grant would allow order to be restored. I don’t think that Mehserle was using self defense. Even though it was a chaotic, high stress situation, it never looked like Grant posed any serious threat. He was very much defenseless. I think Mehserle shot an innocent man and should be prosecuted as such. Mehserle has tried to contest that he thought his gun was actually a taser and that he was thought Grant was reaching for a gun rather than his wallet. I just don’t see this in the tape. Mehserle was deliberate in the use of his gun. He had to know it wasn’t his taser. Also the way in which he almost takes his time, makes me think this couldn’t have been a self defense shooting. I think this is horrific case of police brutality, but I just don’t see this as a purely racial hate crime of a policeman against an African American. I think situations are more complex than that.
A lot of people are making the case that WE could not see a legitimate reason for Oscar Grant to be shot so clearly there wasn’t one. Okay, lets clear this up by taking a look at our evidence. The video that we saw was shot from somebody’s camera phone from a distance. The video had no sound and began in the middle (or toward the end) of the altercation. On top of that, it was almost impossible to make out what the people were actually doing until you see the officer fire his weapon. I am not saying that the police officer definitely had a reason to shoot Oscar, but truthfully no one can tell from this video alone whether there was a good reason or not for the shot. It seems from talking to his friends who witnessed it and to his family that Oscar was a good person and was not reaching for anything other than his wallet, so it seems the shooting was unwarranted. However, how are the police officers supposed to know this at the time? They do not know Oscar Grant, they have never talked to his family, and they don’t know whether he has a weapon on him or not. It is easy to sit back as a viewer and critique the altercation after it happened but in the heat of the moment, an officer has to react to his instinct. Without knowing anything about this random man in the bus station, their instinct told them that he was reaching for a weapon. It turned out they were wrong but people aren’t perfect, not even cops believe it or not. Hindsight is always twenty-twenty but decisions aren’t that clear when they occur. I feel bad for Grant’s family and also for his friends who had to witness the shooting. I do believe that this was POSSIBLY a murder, but to be honest, it is inconclusive from the information I have been given. If this was a murder, I believe the officer should take full blame for it and he should get punished just like any other murderer would be, but I think it is a bit irrational and ridiculous to say that this cop and cops who aren’t appalled “are likely those who are members of some underground white supremacist organization for cops.” Maybe this goes back to the stereotypes that we talked about in the beginning of the year. Maybe subconsciously, the cop saw a black man reach for his pocket and thought he had a gun. Does this make his actions okay? No, not by any means, but maybe it says more about our culture and more about our society than it does about the officer.
The two killings mentioned in the blog “Let’s Stay Focused” are clearly unwarranted by the victims. The “murder” of Oscar Grant III was despicable and seemed to be done in cold blood for whatever absurd reason, and I think the obvious reason as to why there isn’t more coverage on instances such as these is because the government and media don’t want to acknowledge that people under the law can behave in this manner and that there can be unlawful police officers in our country. The truth of the matter is, there are probably hundreds of narrow-minded, and even racist, police in the U.S. Not to discredit those police that work hard to maintain safe streets every day and who are model citizens of our country. A friend of mine’s father is a former state penitentiary guard, who in turn holds certain prejudices because of the men he has seen walk through those doors, black and white alike. However, he always held slightly more prejudice against blacks, and as wrong as it is, it was because of his background at the state pen. Maybe this is reasoning behind why an officer thought to act this way. Maybe the officer who murdered Grant did feel threatened. From the looks of it though, it seemed as though he wanted to prove his power by killing a basically innocent man. I believe that the officer who shot Grant should absolutely be prosecuted. It’s unfortunate in this case that those who a family would usually turn to seek justice are the ones who have committed the crime. My heart goes out to the victims’ parents and in the one case, the victim’s daughter. She is going to grow up with a different view of police than most of us had growing up. I have heard of other instances such as this one, one in particular where a black man was beat with a knight stick by a police officer. I think there are most likely many more instances that do not get reported but it can’t be easy to challenge a police officer and expect to be believed. I agree with on blogger who said that many officers might have a jaded view because of things that they have experienced, but I still believe that the line was crossed when the officers made the conscious decision to pull out their weapons. Officers go through a lot of training and I’m sure that under standard procedure shooting someone who isn’t even trying to fight back isn’t called for or encouraged by any means. It’s obviously too late to fix the incident now but I think it’s important to respect all officials because police officers who would commit these kinds of acts are in the minority.
I know you can’t really tell what was going through the cop from the first video’s head when he made the decision to shoot Oscar Grant, but he was completely out of line. Grant was completely apprehended, and the cop even put his knee against his head to subdue him. He wasn’t a threat to the officers at all, and there was no reason to shoot him in the back. What happened that day was a blatant display of racism. These cops said they felt “outnumbered” because they were white cops in a black neighborhood. If they were in a white neighborhood, and Oscar Grant was white, this incident never would have occurred. Although this is probably the worst display of racism from cops I have ever seen, police commit racist acts every day. I come from a predominantly white area, and my friends who are black experience this kind of racism all the time. They are driving down the road, minding their own business, on a congested highway, when a cop sees them drive by. He pulls out of his spot, weaves through cars to get behind them, and pulls them over. When my friends ask them why they are pulling them over, they always give them a bogus excuse. They usually never give them a ticket, because my friends are never doing anything wrong, but they always sniff around the car for the smell of weed, and badger them with questions. The white cops in my area just like to give minorities a hard time because they are racist cops. For people to think this kind of thing doesn’t go on every day is ignorance on their part. Now, as for the second video, I don’t think you can make a rash judgment on these officers without knowing all of the facts. I mean, the parents say that their son, Adolph Grimes, didn’t do anything wrong, didn’t fire first, and was unjustly killed, but what was he doing with a shotgun in his trunk? I just think that he doesn’t sound like the most innocent of victims. However, that doesn’t explain why he was shot 12 times in his back. The fact that 48 bullets were fired at Grimes is absolutely absurd. There is no reason why these officers needed to shoot at him that many times. It seems as if he was hit two times in the front, went down, and they emptied rounds into his back. Or perhaps he turned to run and they unloaded into his back, but either way it was completely unnecessary. These cops were obviously racist as well, and were just waiting for their chance to unload their guns upon a man of color. Cops like this should be prosecuted to the utmost extent of the law. Racism like this cannot stand. I know they try to weed out racist applicants during the hiring process, but most of the people doing the hiring are just as racist and don’t care about hiring racist cops. Something needs to change somewhere down the line so incidents like these two do not happen ever again.
I’m from West Philadelphia. It’s a pretty rough neighborhood depending on which block you’re on but then again everything has its pro’s and con’s. As you read on, you’ll find that one thing I don’t do is sugar-coat the truth. The vast majority of Philadelphians feel as if they are oil and their “Watchful Officer” is water: they just don’t mix. Reason being is because you have people on the corner who want to hustle and get money just like the average man or woman does. Who wouldn’t? This economy is falling apart and to get a job, especially if you don’t have the correct degree or skin color, would be harder than digging for gold. So, on the behalf of those individuals who know that times are hard and who are real; I can see why you do what you do. People don’t comprehend that doing the wrong thing isn’t morally right but it will always be “fast money”. Evidently, the police are trained to stop this type of behavior and henceforth the strife begins. I will never understand why people choose to go down these roads of adversity and birth children in an unstable setting but we can only accept the world, never “understand it. When the cops break up or try to lock down these events then you can believe that he/she is going to feel that drug dealer’s wrath. People aren’t going to let a random stranger take the potential money for diapers and formula away from their infant and so that is why you have this whole brew of hatred for police in most urban areas.
Vice versa, the cops begin to develop a dislike for these people who they have to “correct” or arrest every day and night. These biases then escalate to not giving a rat’s ass about any of the people who you come across because you’ve done the same routine to the same crowd which then becomes tedious. Sooner or later, you begin to mix hatred with just not giving a fuck and then you have incidents like the two discussed in the blog because the visual picture in a cop’s head is the same for every being who fits the description. Can we fix this problem you ask? HELL NO! If we could then cops would be unnecessary and the tumbleweed we call our planet would be peachy and creamy. The people who the cops lock up are the exact idiots who will be back on the corner again because receiving “fast money” is like a orgasm to a virgin; blissful. Then, as if matters couldn’t get any worst, Eavesdroppers (nosey people) want to inquire about the shit that doesn’t take place on Fox News. Sometimes I just want to be real with them for a second and say “What in God’s name do you think is going?” We only see what is on the TV screen but you would have to have lived under a rock since the dawn of time to not know what is being kept secret in those back woods of State College, PA or the alley-ways of New York City. Point blank, crime is prevalent everywhere and it is the act of indoctrination that our media forces on us to think that it is merely the lower-class minorities who get the shorter end of the stick.
It is not the first time I have ever seen or heard about something like what is shown in these videos. I don’t think it is right what happened to these two men that were killed or what their families now have to deal with and go through. This does not only happen with white cops either. This could have happened in the same race, a black cop could have been the one to kill one of these black men but in the case on the sub way it was white cops. With the cops being white and the man who got shot being black it becomes a racist event instead of just some heartless cops killing someone for no reason. I do not think this is as much about racism as it is about cops profiling or just doing what they want. I think that if you live in the United States and you have no idea that things like this are happening you really need to get out more. There are stories about cops profiling people all the time whether they profile them based off the color of their skin or they way they dress or whatever it may be it is always wrong. There are not just white cops profiling against people of color there is a lot more going on than that. There are cops of color profiling against people just because they can. There are so many cops now-a-days that use their position and role and power as a cop in negative and selfish ways. Someone told me a story about a friend of hers whose father was a cop and he had been molesting a young boy and he got away with it just because of his position as a cop. Is that really fair? Is it right that people who have the job of a cop where they are supposed to be protecting us as civilians and helping us to feel safer and more secure feel that they are above the law? Do they have the right to think that the law applies to everyone except them? I do not think it is right that someone who is supposed to be helping others feels the need to put themselves up above everyone else. But things like that happen all the time. There is not just racism when it comes to cops and unfair things happening to innocent people. It comes down to the fact that people are abusing the role of being a cop and using it only for their benefit while not thinking about anyone else but themselves. All they care about is the fact that they feel they can get away with whatever they want and nothing will ever happen to them.
I have heard of several controversial cop shootings, but this is the first of which I have seen actual footage of what transpired. Clearly, the officer that shot Oscar Grant is at fault for his inexcusable actions. In other cases where there have been controversial cop shootings, people had to rely on the accounts of the witnesses. But in this case, the officer’s actions were caught on tape, and anybody who views the video bears witness. The video shows the victim being pinned down and then shot by an officer. You did not see any resistance from the gentleman. Oscar Grant’s friends said they were just following the officers’ orders and then an officer shot him. What was going through that officer’s head that compelled him to draw his weapon and fire. They had already pulled Grant to the ground and had him face down. If anything, you would expect the officers to handcuff him. Instead, Grant was shot in the back and then handcuffed. It looked like I watched a murder firsthand.
I don’t think what has transpired is by any means excusable. I do not care that the majority of murders of young black and brown men in the United States are committed by other young black and brown men. And the idea that a cop’s job is stressful, if he or she works in a neighbor hood where people hate cops until they need them, is just an idea. These cops know what they are getting themselves into when they sign up for the police academy. The men and women sign up because they want to protect people and they know that it includes putting themselves in danger. And the police just don’t hire anybody who signs up. The job has plenty of screening and background checks to ensure that the men and women in black and blue are best suited for the physical, mental, and emotional stresses that can come with their duties. So all the trigger-happy wannabe cops are sent back home. Sadly, all that is left to point out is the fact that the victim was a black man, the cop was a white man, and that incident occurred a few weeks before Barack Obama was sworn into office.
The police chief watched both videos of the footage and said it was “inconclusive”. What went through his head that made this shooting look like anything but a murder. The chief knows what he saw, he is just stalling and buying time for the alleged killer. My father was a cop for fifteen years and his supervisors did not hesitate to put him on administrative leave when his firearm went off accidentally; and it turned out his firearm was defective. So why is this killing inconclusive when administration is so swift to pass judgment otherwise. What that cop did was inexcusable and he should pay for what he did.
It is difficult to believe that all this still takes place in today’s world; however, at the same time it is not that surprising. The scary part is that there is nothing anyone can do to completely eradicate these kinds of wrong doings. Sometimes the cops are racist. Other times they are plain old psychotic. Whereas, other times they are actually doing what their job entitles them to be doing. Sometimes we are showed only the half truth. At other times we are showed only what “they” want us to see. This somewhat goes back to the media and the government. The story in which the black guy is killed for trying to take out his wallet, is somewhat controversial in the sense that the cops shot him for safety purposes. However, personally I believe that they should not have acted so quickly. I do not see any reason to why they needed to kill him, when they could have just shot him on the arm for “safety”. I do not see a reason why twelve shots were necessary, especially for a person who had no previous criminal record. The problem again is that there is not much that can be done to completely eradicate this kind of behavior. This does not mean that all cops are corrupt. Many times it is difficult to prove that certain behavior has been conducted due to racism; however, this is not the case with the video shown. This video gives more of a reason for people to believe that these particular cops are racist. I have a strong feeling that if the guy was white instead of black. It does not make sense that even though the black guy was following the orders of the cops and not fighting back or being dangerous in any way, the cops still shot him in cold blood. They had no valid reason to shoot him when he was following the orders. This primary video source tells us everything. It is true that numerous black and brown people harm people of their own race, more than white people do. However, this is not what the topic of discussion at the moment. This does not change the fact that such corrupt cops exist in wide numbers throughout the nation. It is these kinds of cops that insult and ruin the reputation of cops as a whole. Again this does not mean that most cops are corrupt, but there is something that is going on, and something needs to be done to reduce, if not eradicate completely such corruptness. There are many more cases that take place that have to do with racist cops or simply cases in which it is not known whether they were actually racist or not, and can argue either side.
When I watched the two videos, I can not say that I am surprised, but it is upsetting. It does not seem fair that the officers that were hired to “serve and protect” are the ones committing the murders? I think that these cases are not unique, however I do not think that they are as often or as rare as anyone would like to place them. The stories that were told I believe were fairly one sided…the side of the innocent civilians. This is a side that we can almost all relate to, in fact it is much easier. There are way more civilians than there are cops that is for sure! So we stay on the one side, the side of which we can relate. And although the videos do seem brutal and unacceptable, I do not think that we can know the entire story. Does it appear as if we do for the first viewing of the man in the train station? Yes it does. As far as the eye can see, there was no struggle, and the man, even if he was mouthing off, did not appear as if he warranted to be shot. However in the second case of the New Orleans’s boy, the jury is still out. And as the police chief said, the FBI will do a thorough investigation and the family will hopefully know information that will eventually ease their minds a little bit.
I do agree with Sam when he states about how the people in the neighborhoods hate the police until they need them. I think this is true in most cases! I am always surprised at how many people will so willing say and truly mean, “Fuck the police!” It is clearly a very love/hate relationship. It is easy to love someone who will protect you, it is sometimes difficult to love someone if they get you in trouble, or question what you are doing. It is not that I am on the side of the police in the situations of the deaths of the individuals, however I do believe being a cop is a double edged sword. If the cops in New Orleans hadn’t pulled their guns out when they thought that the man had a gun, they are risking their own lives and possibly the lives of the other officers around them. But then again the other side of that sword is what did happen, and that edge can also hurt many many people. There is no right answer.
I was born and raised in Houston, Texas, I reside there the first 15 years of my life. So I decided to research police brutality just in this area these are my findings:
According to The Houston Chornicle
from the Beginning of 1999 to July of 2004 The 18 Harris County Law Enforcement Agencies (ie. HPD, Harris County Sheriffs, ect.)had shot 65 unarmed suspects, and killed 17.
189 residents were fired upon of those half either knives or guns. Seven percent had misc weapons (one case a screwdriver and another a piece of lumber).
Unarmed Murders
(8)Eight of these murders were committed by narcotics officers, who entered by force into homes with no warrant in search of drugs. No of the cases produced drugs or weapons and in one case one even a officer fell victim by his collages.
(10)Ten Mentally Ill suspects fell victim to the officers. Instead of using stun gun that all these officers are equipped with they decided to use guns.
(36)Thirty six of the unarmed innocent victims were in their cars unarmed waiting for representation. Such is the case of the CIA Agent Murdered by the HPD.
To Their defense
(12)Twelve were "mooonlighting" or working double shifts as security officers but still fully employed police officers. I understand that hours and hours of working may tire you out and deter judgment. Please feel free to explain this to the mother of Jose Vargas.
Individual Cases
Jose Vargas Jr., 14, was waiting for his mother outside of an AMC parking lot in his mothers Chevy Blazer. Jose decided to practice driving his mother car in the parking lot (something I did since the age of 11) Richard Butler a HPD officer, working security, noticed and when close to the car reach with his gun inside the drivers side window and at point blank murder Jose.
Eli Escobar, 15, a father in the neighborhood complained to an officer that a kid beast up his 11 year son. The officer Arthur Carbonneau was on duty and investigate by rounding up young boys playing in the apartment complex. He then proceeded by asking the 11 year old by pointing out his assailant. When he was the aggressor was fingered, Escobar, who felt had nothing to do with the situation and which is also attested to by the 11 year old and his peers, begun to leave. Incensed teh officer began to yell at Escobar after not responding he pushed the 15 year old to the ground. Escobar in attempted to defended himself from the officer kicked Carbonneau in the groin. The officer withdrew his weapon and shot young Eli point blank.
Pedro Oregon, 22, a father of two, had his house broken in to by officers with out a search warrant. Oregon Immediatly in sight was fired upon 32 times, 12 entered Oregon, one into a officer
From the Chron
"The first shot entered the back of his head, the second in the back of his wrist, the third to the back of his shoulder, and the remaining 9 shots were to his back as he lay face down on the floor with his hands in front of him."
"One of the cops, Officer Barrera, fired until his gun was empty, paused to reload, then resumed firing."
Richard Davis, 46, had a next door Neighbor Derrick Iozzio, a HPD officer. reportedly after several months of argument Iozzio deiced to have the last word. Davis aruging with Iozzio (unarmed), was shot by his Neighbor who reached over there 6ft wooden fence to fire at Davis who was standing on his OWN back porch. Iozzio has punished by receiving probation.
Robbie Tolan, shot new years 2009 by officer who claimed he fit the description of somebody who stole a vehicle. Tolan a minor league baseball player and son of a former Philles pitcher was driving his own vehicle. pulled up to his drive way when the officers then ran up to Tolan with gun telling him to lay on the ground. Tolan complies, then his mother comes out of the house and is then slammed in to the walls of the home by one of the officers. Tolan still on the ground picks his head up to ask the officers what where they were up to ? Tolan is the shot.
Tolan who spent many weeks in the hospital is recovered and lives to tell the story.
Of The 63 Murders only 1 had been fired.
Law enforcement in the United States is not always carried out, as we would like to see. It is not always fair, it is not always called for, and it is certainly not always just. My position on law enforcement is always oscillating between one of utter disgust, and one of acceptance. When seeing the first video, I am appalled at how police officers choose to take care of a situation, which appears to be of little or no threat at all. Grant is not resisting any orders, or threatening the lives of the officers or any bystanders, however the only action the officers can carry out is shooting at Grant. In a situation such as this, I feel embarrassed that this is the law enforcement in our nation, a nation that boasts both order and regulation. There are times that I feel that people are unjustly killed because of poor decisions by police officers. In Malcolm Gladwell’s work Blink, the case of Amadou Diallo is examined in a slightly different way. The book is talks about judgments that we make, why we make them, when to control them, and how to control them. Gladwell tells the heart-wrenching story of Diallo in a way that makes your gears turn. When the four police officers entered the dangerous neighborhood looking for a rapist, and saw a man “matching” the description, they became alarmed. Despite the training they received, nerves were high, and adrenaline was rushing. When your body begins feeling these senses, it is almost impossible to not have your guard up, be frightened. Since Diallo ran away and reached into his jacket when ordered to “show his hands”, the police had to take extra precautions. In this situation, whether you are highly trained or not, you are going to take action, and I feel that police were justified to open fire because it is not only human nature, but Diallo showed all signs that police are trained to look for. That being said, were 41 rounds necessary? Absolutely not. In cases when police take precautions, and properly look for signs of a threat, I feel that it is acceptable to open fire on a subject. This will result in unnecessary deaths, just as Amadou Diallo’s, but it is unavoidable due to the fact that police officers are only human, and can make mistakes. This is only acceptable until a certain point though, 41 rounds far exceeding the limits and the only thing that one can really ask is why? I feel that a lot of situations such as those in Dr. Richards’ blog are not a result of careful examination and thinking, but rather of racism that are desperately covered up with stories. These cases are not seen very often, and it makes you think, how often do these slide under the radar without anyone ever noticing?
So, the police are involved in another story and again, it’s over the death of a young African-American male. It’s another incident of he said, she said. And it’s another civil claim from the family. Everybody today knows about the Rodney King attack that sparked the LA riots. It was a crazy event that really changed the United States. There have numerous events involving the police since then. I know from experience there was an incident in Philadelphia not too long ago involving the police and another young black man. There was another incident in New Orleans that didn’t make the news. There has always been animosity between the police and the men and women of certain neighborhoods. There has always been tension and there always will be. The men and women of the police department are here to protect and serve us, but we always act like that they are out personal security service. When something bad happens we expect them to be there at the drop of a hat and that’s not fair. My godfather is an officer for the Philadelphia Police Department. He has to ride the streets of Philadelphia and really gets to see what separates us from them, them being those that want to do us harm. From personal experience, I can attest that all the officers want to do is help us. During the 2008 NBA Finals, a woman was shot in front of my house. I witnessed the entire event. It was a murder that didn’t need to happen. The woman was in the Witness Protection Program and was going to testify in a case about a week or two later. The police came did their job. A lot of people didn’t want to speak but I come from a family that is true in the LORD and fear nothing. I’ll be honest, I was nervous. You always hear about men and women talking to the police doing the right thing and in part, getting killed for it. “Snitches get stitches” rings true in Philadelphia but I don’t believe in that. Right before I talked to the officers I can remember my pastor giving one of his sermons and saying how we always need to do the right thing no matter the situation and no matter the consequences. The Oscar Grant shooting is a sad situation. In one case, up until a certain point, the police are just trying to do their job. It’s New Year’s Day and you expect people to be rowdy and you expect the police to be on edge. On the other hand you see that many at the shooting were shocked that Grant was shot. We say time and time again that we need to let our justice system do their job, but we live in a time where there is a lot of doubt in our system. I’m saddened to see that when ‘change’ is coming, we have no other option to let our system do the work. Our eyes are open, we just need to look. We need to see things. A lot of dumb things have occurred in the United States and I for one am not shocked that this happened. Look, the popo are doing their best to protect and serve us but they also need to understand the reservations we have towards them. We as a people need to understand that we have to be forgiving, we have to let these men and women do this extremely had task of keeping , and we most definitely should not let another personal emotions and feelings we have get in the way of an overall honest system when it wants to be.
I feel as if cases just like these two are horrendous and appalling but (at least from my perspective) are not new news stories. Acts like these against African Americans has been happening since, well, forever. Yes, we can look at events throughout history, the end of the Civil War, The Montgomery Bus Boycott, Brown vs. The Board of Education and so on, seeing how much “progress” we have made as a nation. However, the only progress that has been made is just the surface to what really needs to be done on both White and African Americas parts. I feel that the ideals of the American people need to change with the times. The world changed (whether people want to admit it or not) when Barack Obama was elected our 44th President. He finally opened the door for African Americans to be Americans. He achieved the ultimate American dream showing the black community you can come from nothing and make something of yourself. However, I feel many (blacks and whites as well as other races) have resentment towards the other for whatever reason and because of this cause friction between races. I feel there is a lack of understanding on both parts that needs to be fixed. With a better a better understanding of the other person, looking passed race and really looking at the person, the world would be such a different place. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done.
Now I was not at either of the crime scenes but I can just imagine what was going through the minds of the people who did. Being the black person, thinking that it doesn’t matter what you tell the police officer because they are already have ridden you off as guilty, being scared and trying to protect myself by any means possible. On the flip side, being in the place of the white police officer trying to do your job, thinking that this guy is just like the usual thug that you deal with, and knowing that one slight movement is either that guy life or your own. It’s a tough situation to be placed in. I would hope for the sake of our country that the police officers, in either case, did not just shoot each of these men because of the color of their skin or some racial stereotype but rather because they really and truly believed they we imposing a threat. When I first watched these video’s my reaction wasn’t “Is this really happening on the streets?” but “Why is this happening?” Why do people continue to hate? Haven’t we suffered through enough as a nation to learn from our mistakes? Sadly, it seems like we have not and (not be a pessimist) sadly never will. There will always be some group that is oppressed and some group that is on top keeping them oppressed.
I think there are a lot of incidents like these two shown that occur all the time in our country. There is a simple reason why these events are not broadcasted on the media every time one occurs, and that is because it makes the police and the government look bad. When the police and the government make mistakes, everything possible is done to cover up what happened. The names of the policemen involved in these crimes were not given out to the public, they had no definite information on the situation at hand and if they did it was not exposed. People are naïve if they think this kind of thing does not happen a lot.
I do not know if race had much to do with why this happened. I think the police officer was in a very stressful situation at the time, there are a lot of reasons why people think that Oscar was shot. One reason was because the cop meant to pull out his teaser and not his gun; he shot Oscar in the back and it was a fatal shot. Another theory is that the cop thought Oscar was pulling out a gun and in defense he shot him. Either way, the police officer had a quick reaction, which happened to have killed someone. If it was not on purpose, which I would hope it wasn’t, I think it was a freak accident that occurred because of the very hostile environment. Obviously some people have different opinions on whether this was a freak accident or purposely happened because of racism. It depends on what your beliefs are and how much faith you have in people. I would like to believe that it was an accident and that this could have easily happened to a white person as well.
I know that many people would just automatically assume it was because of the color of his skin. This makes me sad because I think these people are so closed-minded and negative. Although this may be true in this specific situation and some others, it does not mean it’s true for every event like this that has ever happened. It is the same in assuming that all people are racist or that everyone thinks the worst of people. Although I did not come from the most open-minded household, I still do not believe that everyone in Iraq is a terrorist and that all black people are racist. It is not right to categorize everyone negatively as the same. Everyone is an individual, everyone has the right to feel and believe what he or she want and usually it is different from what you think or assume. Who knows, maybe this cop was racist and it was not really an accident and maybe he doesn’t regret what happened, or maybe he feels horrible about what happened and it was a complete accident. No one will ever know but the reality is that accidents (or non-accidents, whatever you may think) happen all the time and it is not shown on the media because the government doesn’t like to us that they’ve made mistakes even though they do all the time.
Staying focus is a big thing in America, especially when there are so many obstacles facing African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asians, and some Caucasians. The odds are already stacked against many people and then you hear things like police killing young African American, or Hispanic male in cold blood. News like that always hurts the African American and Hispanic community because even though we have come from far there is still this sort or hidden hatred between people of color (particularly male) and police officers. Its rear to hear in the news that a police officer has shot and killed a white youth or a white youth was shot at by police. It seemed as though the police take their great care while dealing with whites than blacks or brown, I noticed that when it comes to minorities police officers are very trigger happy.
There have been many incidents of police killing black and brown youths and there have always some kind of cover up, but with this video I think people can see how cold the police officers can be. In the video there are plenty of things that should be taken note of, the police say they were outnumbered yet they had everyone hand cuffed on the ground. I truly think this was an unnecessary killing because while the two, yes two police officers were talking to Oscar Grant he was already on his knees. Mind you that there were two officers on top of him and then there was a little struggle. One of the officers pooled him to the ground face down and the other puts his knees to his back and neck, then the other officer steps back while drawing his gun and shoots him in the back. If it was a head shot you could have called that execution style.
Now the New Orleans case is not too clear and one is not truly sure what happened, but how can you explain shooting someone twelve times in the back. Getting shot once is a terrible pain but twelve times is just pure hatred. Picture yourself driving five hours to see your grandmother, making it on time for the New Year’s celebration, and then vision yourself getting shot and killed on New Year’s Day. I know it’s a sad image. I recognized the fact that police have a very hard job, they go out there every day to protect and serve and I truly appreciate their work. The question is how can we differentiate those real police officers from the posers, you know the one that pretends that he treats everyone fairly but he or she is a true racist. The police officer position comes with plenty of risk and there are times when extreme force is possible but there should be specific rules placed that permits an officer to draw his or her gun unless it was truly necessary.
In my preparation for writing my response to this post, I typed “white cop shoots black man” (as a full uninterrupted string) and got 404 results. A rearrangement of the words to “black cop shoots white man” received absolutely no results. Google tried to remedy this failure by showing me the same search without the quotations, and the top ten results contained only one link about a black cop shooting a white man (4 were white shooting black). Why is there such a disparity? Clicking on the singular link I found about a black cop specified shooting a white man, I read a somewhat biting response: “Hmmm...a black cop shooting a white man in cold blood. Where are the cries from the white community about cop abuse? We don't do that. Why don't we do that? Because we don't have people like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton stirring up our race.”
Who knows if that is the real reason behind the discrepancy, but the truth remains… the thought of a majority injuring a minority unprovoked is an idea that severly agitates our country. The plot thickens when the injury is actually a fatality. (On a side note, the particular story above about a black cop shooting a white person did not end in a casualty.) I do realize that we learn about these stories only because they involve the police force – this type of brutality must happen more often on the street than we will ever know. Though the crimes committed by the general population are no less eventful, the thought that someone with a hidden agenda against people of a different color may be using their power as a cop is probably the fear that drives these types of stories and headlines.
I agree with other posters’ thoughts that lethal aim was never necessary in these two stories. In response to the first… even if the cop intended to pull out a tazer, as was suggested by some articles, did he need to aim at the suspect’s back? Wouldn’t an injured arm, leg, or buttock be enough to render someone harmless?
In response to the second… I am very intrigued by two facts: that the man was shot 14 times, 12 of which were in the back, and that he was sitting on a car. This is where two scenarios open up. Allegedly, if Adolph was first to open fire, he may have turned to aim at the officers surrounding his car. This may have been how the bullets wound up in his back – unless they were shooting through the seat of his car? On another thought, once Adolph was shot, he may have hunched over after being shot twice, exposing his back for 14 more bullets. But did the officers continue shooting because they thought he was hiding, or to finish the job? Yes, the police officers may have been trained to fire immediately and often, but with what intensity did Adolf provoke the men into shooting 48 times?
In these stories, and many others I have heard throughout my life, I wish I could have been a fly on the wall to experience firsthand the events that led up to such a conclusion. Perhaps with that type of insight, instances like these could be avoided or remedied with proper justice.
It’s not surprising to me that these two men were killed like this, because I heard a lot of similar stories but I just don’t know how they keep happening. I am from New York City, and things like this always happen, but no one does anything about it. They just say it was an accident or that they thought that the person was armed, or some other stupid stories. I think what really happens out there is that the majority of people that they arrest is African Americans, and they have more right to say that a black person did something and that’s why they shot him, and who is not going to believe that. But once is a white person that’s been shot, it’s a big deal because it’s rare. When we see a news about shootings or gangs, we automatically think that it’s about an African American person or Hispanic because they have the highest crime. I mean what’s going to happen, are more innocent people are going to get kill because of “accidents”. I personally think that a police man should have more regulations on which they shoot, because just because you are a police officer doesn’t mean shoot because it makes your job easier. Like for example how would people feel if we have more African Americans as police officer and a lot of innocent white people are killed by these men, is it going to be the same? Are people going to be even madder? Another thing how come they shot they guy 14 times, 12 in the back and they can even explain that. Like if he really had a gun like they said, why didn’t they just shut him twice I’m pretty sure he was still going to be dead. Why 12 times in the back, what kind of shit is this? But they are police officers and they get away with most of the things because that’s their job, that’s what they say. Is really sad how the United States have things like this happening, it’s hard to believe, but at the same time I believe that racism is not over, and I’m not calling these officers racist, but like the article said they might see these black men different from them and that makes them do whatever is that they do. Nobody is doing anything about it, and is going to continue happening, just because these police officers are just doing their job, but how about the pain of that dead person’s family. We all humans, and even though we live in the same country we are never going to see each other equal, just because they are different.
The murder of Oscar Grant is an extraordinary example of hypocrisy and deceit in the American government. Dr. Richards brought up a great point in class the other day when he questioned the true “freedom” that we, as American citizens, receive by living in our country. He brings up a good point: we pride ourselves upon being the Land of the Free, a place dedicated to democracy and well-being, and a world superpower that conveys peace. But I believe that if you truly dig below the surface and look into what actually goes on in our country, you will find arguments to those statements. Because within America and especially in areas with high poverty rates, we find exceptions to those rules. What you find is startling numbers correlating minorities (Latinos and African Americans) with drug use and crime rates. After analyzing these numbers in class, Dr. Richards encouraged us to come up with an explanation as to why these statistics are true. Why is it that stereotypes connecting African Americans with drug use tend to be true when analyzing statistics given to us by the FBI?
Personally I believe that these high numbers in drug use among minorities (Latinos and African Americans) exist because areas with a large concentration of these minorities tend to be less wealthy overall and more poverty-stricken. Young men in these areas, often with below-average educations, have little qualifications because of a lack of college degree, which roots from a lack of wealth. It’s a never-ending chain: the poor don’t have access to schooling, which at this point in history is almost a must in order to maintain a successful and stable life. Those who cannot afford college are often shunned from the opportunity to raise a family and find a well-paying job. Without a college degree, the lower class is subjected to lesser jobs, and for many people in this area, miniscule wages don’t cut it. Many turn to drugs as a solution for their financial problems, because without a college degree there is no incentive for a 9-5 well-paying day job.
But what does this have to do with Oscar Grant? First, it helps us reflect upon the ignorance that exists every day in the United States. Because of these numbers that correlate minorities with high drug use, many times we see racism and prejudice in our government, specifically in police enforcement. Historically, we have seen racism of many different types rampant in our justice system (most often white on black racism) through such events as Rodney King. It is because of blatant ignorance that we see awful displays of humankind through events such as the murder of Oscar Grant. My closing thoughts are this: if the perpetrators behind the Grant Case (the police officer who murdered him) discussed this issue of drug use among minorities, or any other discussion of race relations, would we see different results? Would we still see hatred crimes committed by those who we are told are the ones who enforce crime?
After reading the article, the fact that police officers do treat people of color with less respect and care than they do for other people became clear to me. The video of Oscar Grant III, an African American, made that fact more believable. Oscar Grant was shot in cold blood by an Oakland police officer on New Years Day. There was a fight in the subway in which Oscar was located. He was not causing any danger. The video of the shooting showed just that.
I agree with the statement that police officers, who do not find the death of Grant an extreme wake up call, are most likely involved in a white supremacist organization. Police officers were in the right to take action in the situation of Oscar Grant, but they should have never resulted to shooting.
Racism is used as an excuse for causing violence against someone outside of a particular group of people.
Being a police officer typically comes with the territory of not being liked by a vast majority of the people. Not until someone is in danger or has an emergency are police officers appreciated. It is definitely one of the most difficult occupations in the world today. Your life is constantly as risk while on the job, which makes it stressful and fearful. None of that, however, gives police officers the right to treat people with such disrespect and harm, or in the case of Oscar Grant, the right to take someones life for no apparent reason.
Another case when a man of color was shot by a police officer is the case of Adolph Grimes. Adolph Grimes was also shot on New Years, only hours after the clock hit twelve. He was shot twelve times in the back. Emotionally shocked, his family is still unsure how or why this helped to Adolph.
It was not until now that I am hearing about either of these two devastating stories. It definitely brings to mind of how many of these kinds of cases occur and the news just does not portray them, even though the news has plenty of violence already. However, people should definitely be informed about these kinds of cases because it is a wake up call and something should be done about it.
I didn't think “I can't believe that this could happen in the U.S.” because violence is always occurring, and it's not only occurring in the United States but all over the world today. It definitely a sad but true fact. Questions come to mind of when something is actually going to happen to change that. Why is it that people of color are typically associated with cases like this? Innocent people that weren't given an opportunity to explain themselves.
The first thing that came to my mind after reading the blog on police violence was the Rodney King incident. In the 90’s when this incident happened the police had not yet escalated to shooting their innocent victims but instead just brutally attacked them.
Like mentioned in the blog many police violence incidents that you hear about in the media are not single incidents. These cases do not just happen once in a blue moon. Police violence happens often but is rarely reported. Most of the reasons for keeping these cases a secret have to do with the bureau trying to protect their own. A lot of the evidence and details of police violence cases are often kept hush hush. The people that are supposed to be seen as the heroes in the community could never do anything wrong. I personally have a connection to this topic, of an unreported police violence incident. In 1998 when I was just 8 years old, a distinct cousin of mine was shot and killed by the Chicago police after being pulled over for speeding. My cousin was only 16 at the time but had already had a previous record with the law. Upon being pulled over he was told to get out of his car. At this time he was handicap due to a previous accident and as he proceeded to exit his car he had to use a cane to assist him. The police unfortunately made a mistake that cost my cousin the remainder of his life. They wrongfully mistook his cane as a weapon and immediately shot him multiple times.
Just as the second case with Adolph Grimes (side note: Was there controversy because of his name being Adolph?) was never really brought to the media neither was the case with my cousin. Nothing was done until 10 years later, when my aunt and uncle finally got financial justice. The only reason, I believe they were even able to fight the case against the bureau was because they were finically able to do so. Many other black families living where there are high crime rates on the other hand would not be able to pay a lawyer to investigate a crime against the police. Many blacks feel there would be no motive to even try to go against the police force, and many times that is exactly why the police get away with violence.
Ideas like “I can not believe this happen in U.S.” do not come to my mind. I know that on the streets it is tough and it not easy being a cop. Cops and criminals today have no remorse for one another. Cops are shooting people and are now shooting the cops right back. The U.S. police system will always have its undercover sandals, if they are race related or not all deals with the officer’s opinions of that particular suspect in any particular situation. The police force would never be able to screen its officers for racism or the U.S. would lack cops.
The first thing that came to my mind after reading the blog on police violence was the Rodney King incident. In the 90’s when this incident happened the police had not yet escalated to shooting their innocent victims but instead just brutally attacked them.
Like mentioned in the blog many police violence incidents that you hear about in the media are not single incidents. These cases do not just happen once in a blue moon. Police violence happens often but is rarely reported. Most of the reasons for keeping these cases a secret have to do with the bureau trying to protect their own. A lot of the evidence and details of police violence cases are often kept hush hush. The people that are supposed to be seen as the heroes in the community could never do anything wrong. I personally have a connection to this topic, of an unreported police violence incident. In 1998 when I was just 8 years old, a distinct cousin of mine was shot and killed by the Chicago police after being pulled over for speeding. My cousin was only 16 at the time but had already had a previous record with the law. Upon being pulled over he was told to get out of his car. At this time he was handicap due to a previous accident and as he proceeded to exit his car he had to use a cane to assist him. The police unfortunately made a mistake that cost my cousin the remainder of his life. They wrongfully mistook his cane as a weapon and immediately shot him multiple times.
Just as the second case with Adolph Grimes (side note: Was there controversy because of his name being Adolph?) was never really brought to the media neither was the case with my cousin. Nothing was done until 10 years later, when my aunt and uncle finally got financial justice. The only reason, I believe they were even able to fight the case against the bureau was because they were finically able to do so. Many other black families living where there are high crime rates on the other hand would not be able to pay a lawyer to investigate a crime against the police. Many blacks feel there would be no motive to even try to go against the police force, and many times that is exactly why the police get away with violence.
Ideas like “I can not believe this happen in U.S.” do not come to my mind. I know that on the streets it is tough and it not easy being a cop. Cops and criminals today have no remorse for one another. Cops are shooting people and are now shooting the cops right back. The U.S. police system will always have its undercover sandals, if they are race related or not all deals with the officer’s opinions of that particular suspect in any particular situation. The police force would never be able to screen its officers for racism or the U.S. would lack cops.
Let's Stay Focused
The streets are a very dark and mysterious place. A place where crimes take place every night without anyone knowing. The reasons behind these crimes are never fully understood. Maybe they are just a justification for how people feel inside. The crimes are maybe just a justification for racism that are simply played as innocent. People kill one another for stupid reasons. A person seeing a white person mistreat a black person might aggravate him and lead him to killing the white person. A white person seeing that black people are invading the world leads him to killing white people. But is truly a good enough reason for all those killings? The two cases presented in the prompt might just be simply racism. Racism might be the reason that those white policemen kill those two innocent black men. Everything can be discussed and negotiated violence should be the last resort not the first. Oscar Grant what did he do that he deserves to be killed. I truly believe that those streets that are shady and dark have nothing to fear because the system is not as strict as in other states. Anything that takes place can be placed on a stupid reason or a lie just to cover up for the truth. That’s how it has always been why would it just change all of a sudden. What do they have to fear people believe anything simply? And those families that know that it’s a lie just feel useless because no one would listen to them and give them a way. N one would help them because it’s simply just another black person that’s dead. Having the title black just makes it easy. But he’s still human he has no reason to be dead. Many cases are ignored or the trial is taken as a joke because the crime that took place deals with a black person. How is that fair? We thought that there was break through between black and white people because the new president is black. But the truth is that there are many hidden stories that are not shown in the news. Many towns that still live in racism and can over come it. Racism is so deep and complicated. To over come racism requires years and years. I don’t really know how it’s possible as in people are trying and want to. But some people still live in the past. They do not want to change. Most probably, white people love to be superior and they don’t want to be equal to black. How selfish how can people be? Just put yourself in the other person’s position whether your black or white. It’s hard for both of them. That’s the only way people can learn to live together and over come hate.
In response to this blog entry, after seeing the first video of the killing of Oscar Grant III, I was very disturbed. I am just really surprised that these officers would dare to do such a thing in front of a huge crowd. I will never understand why so many law enforcement personnel can be racist, that they think it is okay to assume that a black or brown person is committing a crime when they have no proof. I think because some law enforcement officers feel that they are so superior to other people, they think it’s ok to do whatever they want and whatever they think is right, but you know what, that should not be the case. Now I am not trying to say that all officers are racist, because that is not true. My grandfather was an officer and I know many officers’ main focus is to protect our community and to make sure we live safe lives. Officers such as the ones that were talked about in the two videos just seem psycho to me and they just think they can get away with stuff like this. These officers do not deserve the career path they chose; they deserve to be punishment for their horrific acts of violence. This type of violence needs to stop and I do not agree with the fact that these officers don’t even have a heart, that they would just take somebody’s own life away just because they assume they are criminal because they are African American. Do they even care about how their families are feeling now? What is going through their minds? This is not only fair to these two innocent people who were killed; it is also not fair to their parents who have to live the rest of their lives wondering why their children deserved to die. It is sad to say that this type of violence will never stop no matter how many protests there are and how many officers get punished for these types of acts. I also think that cases like these aren’t broadcasted in the media because they don’t want people to start making stereotypes that all officers are racist. Police officers do a lot for us and it would not be fair to put a negative label on all officers because of the wrongdoing that only a few officers did. Also, not broadcasting this type of violence by police officers also makes me wonder how many acts like these actually occur every day. Is it monthly, weekly, annually? It is kind of scary to think about something like this, but I think we should put that into consideration. In conclusion, racism seems to be taking over too many people’s lives, and it is making innocent people suffer and losing their lives because of something that they couldn’t choose when they were born; they can’t change it.
Blog Response:
After reading and watching the video on the killing of Amadou Diallo and Adolph Grimes by police, my initial reaction was shock, but then I can understand how cases like these still happens in this country.
First of all, we must address the issue that this does not apply to every officer, but rather individual’s actions. Second, with that in mind, racial factor inevitably plays an important factor in this case. Stereotype affects even police officers at their work, when they see Amadou reaching for his wallet, they don’t actually “see” that. They see an “African American” reaching for the gun, like shown on TV every other second. The way they think is also shaped by the media. I remember in high school, every morning I turn on the news, “Last night at 3 AM, one African-American male was shot, the investigation…..”.
Second point is, when you are working as a cop in a city setting, you are more stressed and easily irritated. Most likely, the police who shot Amadou was in a bad mood. It might sound silly, but when the police pull you over for a ticket, it really depends on his mood at that particular time, he will let you off with just a warning, or you might get a really heavy fine. I am sure many people have painful experience with this. Also, take on campus bus drivers for example, during rush hours they are very irritable. One of my friend’s backpack was shut between the doors, and the driver just open it and slammed the door before she can get off completely. So with all the factors involved it really is not shocking to think about how these things can happen.
I really think there is no true judgment on cases regarding this, on one hand you have officer who really need to be careful, if they are not careful of every moment from the suspect, they will be the victim next. On the other hand, you have these innocent suspects, who just made the wrong action at the wrong time, with racial grouping and judgment upon them. So there really is no right call for these kind of situations.
On the second case in the video, Adolph had 12 bullets in his back alone, and several in other locations. Even though he had guns in his possessions, but none of the officers were hurt, so I really don’t see any reason for 12 bullets. Multiple shoots (as officers are trained to do) definitely don’t apply to shoot someone that didn’t even shoot back.
Therefore, in regards to police shooting, it is a very ambiguous area, that we can not clearly define. Bur rather all we can do, is hope that the police officer will keep their feeling on race, and their personal life out of work when they are working.
Hongyun Wang
After watching two videos of polices’ violence action, I feel very emotional and sad that this thing still happening in real life. I mean we see it in the movie all the time, but when I watched the first clip, it was real situation and really scary. I think what the officers did was unnecessary actions. They have no right to just shoot people that they thought were armed without proof. This is crazy and especially when this case is a black person makes it more even interesting to the media and people.
I used to live around that area and took BART all the time. Honestly, it was really scary. There always some poor people come begged for money and I’m not talking only about black. I’ve experience it myself. Even some white people scared me. I am not a racist person at all but I think it is common for people to stereotyping others. My cousin has a Thai restaurant in Oakland which is one of the most dangerous cities in the states. About 3 years ago, there was really sad incident happened in his restaurant. Around night time, there was a black guy came in and robbed his restaurant. This guy came with a gun but the cashier refused to give him money so he was shot and died. After that incident, he became, I have to say, almost racist to black people. But I do not blame him at all. I think it’s about personal experience that makes us see the world the way we see it. I can’t even imagine if I was in situation, how would it affect me.
I personally, don’t hate cops and I believe there are both good and bad cops out there. This is not only about racism, but it’s about how brutal they are. No one really knows if it’s because he was black or other reasons. The most important thing for cops to have is justice. They have to be fair and don’t judge people by color of skin. They need to stop racial profiling and prejudice. I think something need to be done in this kind of case to prevent it in the future but unfortunately, there will always be a case like Oscar Grant .
Police brutality and racial profiling are two separate issues that are sometimes mixed. I believe every situation is different so it is hard to distinguish between motives and causes. These two situations remind me of a skit I saw a while ago by Michael Moore. We all know Michael Moore as perhaps sometimes an extreme liberal, but I often agree with at least some of the idea or messages he points out. He used to have a television show and I was watching a clip of one on youtube some time ago. The sketch was in response to several recent stories of police shooting black men in events that seemed to be unnecessary and cruel. A common response of police was that they shot a black man because they thought he was pulling out a gun when in fact he was pulling out a cell phone or a wallet. Michael Moore had a number of black man turn in their black, leather wallets for bright orange ones so when police saw the bright orange wallets they could not mistake them for guns. Of course, I believe racial profiling and police brutality are wrong. But, depending on the case, it is so hard to tell if either factor was a cause of the result. Yes, there are certainly racist cops out there. Yes, there are events where innocent black men are injured or killed unnecessarily because of their race by police. But does or should the actions of a few bad cops undermine the hundreds of acts of courage and protection of good cops that happens every day? Would the same result have happened in these two cases or other similar to them if the victims were white or Asian or Hispanic? This all goes along with what we have been discussing and learning in class about the differences between races and ethnic groups. I have often wondered why there are so many more blacks in jail than whites- or why the majority of crime reported on the news involves black perpetrators. Is it because blacks are really committing that much more crime than any other race? Is it because the media only reports on crimes committing by blacks? Is it because police are arresting more blacks that other races? I’m not sure what the answer is, or how we can find it. But all these questions are arguments in no way excuses the actions of police in these two cases or any other cases similar to them. I find it absolutely appalling if the police shot and killed these two men for no good reason if they were innocent. I find it horrible that there are many cops out there who are racist and will arrest or kill a person based on his or her color. But I also thank my lucky stars that policemen and women are out there to protect us. They put their lives on the line to save ours. We can only look towards the future to try to come up with answers and solutions to prevent such events in the future such as better police training.
Goodness gracious! I remember when police were just beating the shit out of people for no reason, but now they are murdering people who have done very little wrong. What can we onlookers really say about incidents like this though? I mean, to us it looks like the victims were cooperating with the police, but we were not there. We only get what the media gives us. We don’t get to hear the words that were exchanged or know what each party was thinking. Still, despite all that the way the officers decided to finally get compliance was far too extreme. You would think they had no regard for human life. To shoot someone in the back 12 times, how can they explain that? I don’t think shooting someone once in the back is ever justifiable let alone 12. It’s cowardly in most circumstances. However, the usual answer in a police shooting is that the suspect had a weapon. But if that’s the case why shoot to kill? Shouldn’t they just shoot to disarm so that if there is a chance that the police were wrong then there wouldn’t be such uproar when an innocent, unarmed person is slaughtered? Perhaps the officers are just scared. Is there an underlying racism? Maybe they are using stereotypes and assumptions of inner city minorities as their motivation while on patrol or when called to a scene. “They’re all druggies who carry concealed weapons. So let’s shoot ’em dead before they shoot us.” I really do hope that’s not what they think in situations like that because it is simple minded and dangerous probably more dangerous than shooting someone to death without cause.
The number one reason why people are so outraged is because no one expects this kind of disturbing violence from the police. You expect the police to do whatever they can to protect the public and themselves but from our point of view it only looks like they protected themselves. The tactics that the police displayed in these shootings seem very much like what you see on the streets- shoot first ask questions later. In general, we don’t expect that gang mentality (or should I say solidarity since it is the police) to be used by law enforcement. These incidents are even more of a slap in the face to the victims and their families and even the surrounding community when the officers involved are not prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law as would a couple of civilians who slaughtered a cop by shooting multiple times. Why is that? Do their badges and connections within the judicial system give them special privilege after killing an unarmed “suspect”? That doesn’t say much for the system if that is that case and it certainly will not ease tensions that people have with the police already.
Judging by the video footage on the website, there was no reason why Oscar Grant III and Adolph “Chris” Grimes have been killed, let alone have a gun pulled out on them in the first place. Sam stated that the majority of murders of black and brown people are committed by other black and brown people. Sam also says that these murderers are for ridiculous reasons. Now although this is may be true, the two shootings of Oscar Grant III and Adolph “Chris” Grimes were committed by police, and were absolutely no reason. I can believe that these types events still occur here in the United States. (Especially among disciplinary figures) Their authoritative positions give them so much leeway.
In the first video, I do not know if the police officer felt hate toward the man because he was of a different race. He might have just been protecting himself. However, his actions were unjust. There was no need to pose such violence on this innocent man, leaving him shot and killed. Judging by the video footage, it appeared as though the police officers were in no danger. One of the friends of Oscar Grant III stated that Oscar was following all of the officer’s directions. Looking back, I do not even know the background story. Why were the officers even holding up those people in the subway? There were so many people watching this horrifying and gruesome event take place in the first video. No matter what the case was, if anything, the victim should have been handcuffed and taken to the station, and matters should have been dealt with in another location. Luckily, someone videotaped this happening, and Oscar Grant’s family was able to get justice.
And in the case of the second video, I also do not know what led the police officers to shoot a man, fourteen times in the back! This is such a tragic event and one that should receive justice. But the family did not receive any attention and are left helpless. The family has a right to know what led to the murder of their son. But facts are vague. Maybe the media does not want to show policemen in this kind of light. If you do not broadcast it, it is almost as if it did not happen. But it did. And this man’s family will live with this horrifying tragedy for the rest of their lives.
In both these cases, racism is suspected. I would truly like to hear what these police officers have to say about their actions. What was their excuse for pulling their weapons on such innocent people? These victims deserve justice and so do their families.
I was shocked when I watched the two videos about the wrongful murder of two innocent civilians by a couple of cops. It brought a lot of thoughts to mind, but initially I was thinking that I couldn’t believe people in authority would behave so sloppily. Their actions seemed impulsive, ignorant, and unfair. I’ve taken criminology before and been presented with similar videos that deal with the mistreatment of minorities by police officers. It does not seem to be a problem that is being sufficiently dealt with. Even in the first video, it did appear to be a pretty clear-cut case of murder, yet reporters were saying that there was still a lot of evidence that needed to be worked out. In these cases, I feel as though the court tries as much as possible to work in favor of the police officers involved so as not to tarnish their reputation. The image of the police force in America is almost considered a priority over fairly compensating the victim or the victim’s family for their losses.
The second video was even more disturbing, after seeing how many bullets were actually shot at the victim. This particular case made me wonder if police officers that join the force are already racist or become racist as a result of years on the job. Becoming a cop would seem like the fitting career path for someone who already possesses racist tendencies. They are handed power and authority, and although they are not supposed to abuse this or use this to their advantage, in many cases they do. Often times no one is watching and the cop can act on their racism because they are the ones wearing the blue uniform.
A different perspective would be that officers become racist after serving so long as an officer. This issue was addressed in the movie “Crash,” in which one overtly racist cop says to another rookie cop, “Wait til’ you’ve been on the job a few more years.” The older cop is saying that after seeing so much crime and brutality, you can’t help but develop these feelings. Consider this viewpoint -many of the crimes committed in the United States are by minorities, and this can cause paranoia or racism towards these groups. However, I think this view causes cops to victimize and go after minorities much more frequently than Caucasians, which in turn causes an increase in the crime statistics for Blacks, Latinos, etc. It is almost like a repetitive cycle.
In conclusion, cops must be aware of their actions instead of behaving simply on impulse. This creates negative consequences for everyone and builds skepticism towards the police force. If minorities are afraid of dealing with the police due to racist acts like the ones we have seen in these videos, they are going to refrain from calling the cops. We need the cops to maintain order and prevent violence from being taken into the hands of gangs or regular civilians, and so we must address this issue of police brutality before it goes any further.
These instances which occurred to me are honestly completely appalling. However, I am not particularly shocked by them happening, as I feel that things like this happen every day. Because Sam wants us to take a “neutral” view point on these topics, and try to “put ourselves in other shoes”, I started to think about instead of immediately condemning the officers, that I should in fact put myself into their position and think about the possible factors which went into this situation. Thinking of this kind of reminded me of two movies, one being “Crash” starring Matt Dillon and Sandra Bullock and Training Day, starring Denzel Washington. In “Crash” it starts out with a young idealistic cop, played by Ryan Phillipe. He starts by being completely repulsed by Matt Dillon, who is an older cop and has seen the ins and outs of the streets, and seems to be completely jaded. Matt Dillon goes around and treats blacks different because he claims once you see how the street really is, you can’t help but be prejudice. To try to stay away from giving a full out movie review, in the end Phillipe’s character shoots a black man because he feels he is reaching for a pistol, but actually is reaching for a religious item in his pocket. As terrible as it seems, you really begin to feel for the character, and if you do catch the meaning of the movie, you see how dangerous prejudice and racism is, but you almost can sympathize and realize you don’t have to be a card carrying member of the Ku Klux Klan to be racist. As with those cops, they may not have been undercover white supremicists, but in the heat of the moment they could have let their instincts take the best of them. In my opinion, police officers are just like anyone else. Just like an accountant or a doctor. They make mistakes, but unlike with an accountant, if a police officer slips up once, it could cost them their lives. That is, regardless of how long you’ve been on the job, a huge burden to carry. I personally know a police officer from my home town, who is a family friend. After talking to him, even though I live in a decent middle class town, he still says every time he makes a traffic stop, he gets nervous and uneasy about what could happen. Hearing that from an officer who patrols a suburb, I can’t imagine the emotions and pressure that is on an officer in a huge city filled with criminals, like New York or Los Angeles. Now, I am in no way saying what this person did was write in the killing of Grant. It was nothing but murder, and no matter how you look at it, it will remain murder. But I feel in other situations, police brutality is a term tossed around too often, and they deserve much more respect for the job they do, and for all the pressure they must carry. The question I’d like to ask, to which the answer I feel may be rhetorical, if the victim was white, would there be such outrage? Especially with the note of it being 3 weeks prior to Obama’s inauguration, it seems like they are trying to draw racial parallels which are not even there, as his presidency is completely irrelevant.
These instances which occurred to me are honestly completely appalling. However, I am not particularly shocked by them happening, as I feel that things like this happen every day. Because Sam wants us to take a “neutral” view point on these topics, and try to “put ourselves in other shoes”, I started to think about instead of immediately condemning the officers, that I should in fact put myself into their position and think about the possible factors which went into this situation. Thinking of this kind of reminded me of two movies, one being “Crash” starring Matt Dillon and Sandra Bullock and Training Day, starring Denzel Washington. In “Crash” it starts out with a young idealistic cop, played by Ryan Phillipe. He starts by being completely repulsed by Matt Dillon, who is an older cop and has seen the ins and outs of the streets, and seems to be completely jaded. Matt Dillon goes around and treats blacks different because he claims once you see how the street really is, you can’t help but be prejudice. To try to stay away from giving a full out movie review, in the end Phillipe’s character shoots a black man because he feels he is reaching for a pistol, but actually is reaching for a religious item in his pocket. As terrible as it seems, you really begin to feel for the character, and if you do catch the meaning of the movie, you see how dangerous prejudice and racism is, but you almost can sympathize and realize you don’t have to be a card carrying member of the Ku Klux Klan to be racist. As with those cops, they may not have been undercover white supremicists, but in the heat of the moment they could have let their instincts take the best of them. In my opinion, police officers are just like anyone else. Just like an accountant or a doctor. They make mistakes, but unlike with an accountant, if a police officer slips up once, it could cost them their lives. That is, regardless of how long you’ve been on the job, a huge burden to carry. I personally know a police officer from my home town, who is a family friend. After talking to him, even though I live in a decent middle class town, he still says every time he makes a traffic stop, he gets nervous and uneasy about what could happen. Hearing that from an officer who patrols a suburb, I can’t imagine the emotions and pressure that is on an officer in a huge city filled with criminals, like New York or Los Angeles. Now, I am in no way saying what this person did was write in the killing of Grant. It was nothing but murder, and no matter how you look at it, it will remain murder. But I feel in other situations, police brutality is a term tossed around too often, and they deserve much more respect for the job they do, and for all the pressure they must carry. The question I’d like to ask, to which the answer I feel may be rhetorical, if the victim was white, would there be such outrage? Especially with the note of it being 3 weeks prior to Obama’s inauguration, it seems like they are trying to draw racial parallels which are not even there, as his presidency is completely irrelevant.
“And why haven't we heard more about the second shooting at the hands of the New Orleans Police Department? How many more egregious acts of violence and hate do law enforcement personnel commit against innocent people that never make the news?” I feel like we haven’t heard anything about the second shooting in New Orleans is because the government and media are trying to protect the name of the city. After hurricane Katrina, the city united as a whole to try and preserve what is left. They want the world to know that the spirit is still alive. This shooting (and other police acts of violence from the police) was covered up because New Orleans doesn’t want that spirit tainted. The city wants to be seen as anew…like they are all still united and work together as one to make the city even better than before. And police acts of violence such as the killing of Adolph “Chris” Grimes would give New Orleans a bad reputation. I also find it heartbreaking that the family still does not know why the police acted this way and killed Grimes. I would also like to point out the one reporter in the story; at the 3:10 minute mark he asks, “You know, you hear this family and they seem angry and frustrated, what is the source of that?” Its like, are you serious? Why do you think this family is frustrated? Why do you think they are upset? They lost their son and received no explanation why he was killed. I know that people think there is no such thing as a stupid question, but honestly, just think how you would feel in this situation and there is your answer; no need for the media to investigate who was right or wrong in this matter.
The killing of these two men is extremely disturbing to me. And what I find even more disturbing is that the government is going to give them a large sum of money in what seems like a “cover up,” or to get the families to drop the situations. Well honestly I feel that no amount of money could possibly be able to account for the loss and emotional damage these two families must go through. A family member was killed and that’s not something that can be bought off.
I would like to start off by saying that when I saw the first video of the murder in the Bay area I was shocked. What was not shocking was that right after the shooting, the police officers then tried to confiscate everyone’s phones and cameras. That is deemed unconstitutional and they had no right to do it; they just wanted to limit the evidence that could be used against this case. After watching the video, I cannot say that it shocks me, but I do understand why it has not received the same airtime as the Bay area shooting and that was for the lack of video. The American people want to see these things happening. Having video proof actually shows that what some police are doing is wrong, without speculation. The people can see it for their own eyes. I do not believe the police as a whole are racist. I do believe that some have a skewed perception of certain races because of what they have encountered in their duties, not that it is right, but it happens. Going with point 2, that most of the murders that happen in the U.S. of young black and brown men, are committed by young black and brown men is something I entirely believe is true. I have had two friends that were black/brown be shot and killed by other people who were black/brown. My one friend Ahman Fralin was a passenger in a car that tapped another car at a red light, in April 2006. In retaliation the driver of the other car got out and aimed for the driver, but hit the passenger instead. Just because the two cars tapped, Ahman was shot, paralyzed, and then died six months later. His killer was just captured on the 20th of this month. Only four days ago. Another friend Antonio Johnson was leaving his girlfriend’s house in South Philadelphia in October 2006, and was shot and killed because his cousin owed a gang money. Both black men were killed by other black men, because of “street cred” or street credentials, and it’s appalling that they had to die for other people to feel better. Getting back to the subject at hand, I believe some police officer’s get in to this position of power, and use it to the fullest extent. I am a white woman, and I recently got pulled over by a police officer for going seven miles above the speed limit (72 in 65). The cop’s reasoning is that I passed him and that was just unacceptable which I find to be a ridiculous excuse, but it happened. The cop was not white, and I can not say for sure whether he was black or Hispanic of some kind, but when I did attend court, every single person there waiting for him was white. I’m not calling him racist, but just pointing it out that cops might be racist even if they are not white.
The article about the police officers killing the innocent African American people was really startling to me. I think there is probably more corrupt police departments than I have ever realized. The shooting in New Orleans was the most disturbing to me because they hardly had any information about it. I feel so terrible for the family because they have no explanation as to why this happened to their song. I do think it is ridiculous that the cops shot the boy 14 times 12 being in the back. Obviously, if they really felt they were in danger one shot would have wounded him. It is upsetting to think the boy had a child, had no record, and seemed to be a good man from what his parents were saying. I would like to further investigate this story because I am wondering why the cops were even looking at this boy if he is from out of town, and the only reason he was around was to spend New Years with his family. I could understand if they had been watching him and they thought he was a danger, but the police didn’t even know this boy. It does make you wonder if this was about race, but then the lead investigator was black so I just don’t understand what happened this night. In the first video you don’t see anything suspicious. They shot the man in the back after having him restrained. People were watching this all happen. I understand police need to be aware of everything and protect themselves, but I think that the police are taking it too far. It seems to be a racial issue more than anything else.
This article brought me back to class when we talked about the police officers targeting people of race to pull over for no good reason. I was shocked at that lecture because I have relatives in the police and I cannot imagine any of them targeting because of race. I can’t believe there are actually police that are so corrupt. What shocked me even more was that the police can confiscate money just because they are suspicious. I can’t believe they can get away with technically stealing money. That’s bad, but worse yet is that they use the money on themselves to get new cars or computers. I don’t understand why the police wouldn’t be required to hand the money over to government officials. It makes me sad to think that many of the people lose their money even if they are innocent. They can fight it in the court system but they are probably going to spend more money for an attorney and court costs that it isn’t even worth it to fight.
It is a known fact that police look for and arrest more people of color proportionately than they do white people. It is also a known fact that sometimes people of color are verbally and physically abused by police more than are white people. This is not to say that all policemen are racist or abusive towards minorities. But enough policemen are racist and corrupt that it has become a generalization and a stereotype than many people in the United States truly believe. Most of the people who do believe this, of course, are minorities themselves. As Sam was talking about in class, white people are often blind to these horrendous situations and unfair arrests or traffic tickets because since it does not happen to them, they just assume that the police are being fair and punishing only people who deserve to be punished.
The second case in New Orleans is even more shocking to me than the first story. Chris Grimes didn’t even have a police record. He had a good job and a loving family. His family was not even informed as to why he was killed at the time when this interview was conducted. The story is especially horrendous because Grimes was not just shot once; he was shot fourteen times, twelve of which were in his back. What could he possibly have been doing to make the police think that it was necessary to repeatedly shoot him until he was dead on the ground half a block away from his grandmother’s house?
I hope that the police officers in both of these situations are fired from their current police forces and are never able to find work as police officers again. In addition, I think that they should face serious criminal charges and be put in jail. In fact, I think that they should be put in jail on murder charges and possibly stay locked up for the rest of their lives. Because what they have done is murder. There are not really other ways to look at what they did. I mean, yes, police have the right to fire a gun at someone if that person is resisting arrest and has a weapon and is threatening the lives of others. I am not exactly sure of the exact rules that police officers are supposed to follow regarding the shooting of criminals or criminal suspects, but I do know that whatever these two men were doing did not warrant being shot down and killed. In the first video, a friend of the man killed who witnessed the killing even noted that they were following all of the cops’ instructions and not resisting arrest at all. If the officers involved are not seriously punished, then the judicial system is very, very flawed.
After watching the two videos and reading the blog accompanying the videos, I really don’t know what to think of this particular situation. To be honest, I want to say that I am not shocked that something like this is happening in the United States. Although we claim to be a hate-free and open nation, I personally think that this is not true. These two videos are able to provide support towards that statement as well. I think it is sad but unfortunately true that police officers are not always good. I am not trying to say that none of them are good, in fact that is far from true. I definitely agree with a theory that there are rogue officers here in the United States, most likely in poverty stricken, rough, urban areas. To address the second point in the article, that most murders are made by black and brown people… I’m not sure how to comment on that because I have not seen any proven statistics to back up this statement; however, I will agree that one hears more stories on the news of a person of color killing another person of color more so than a white person… but perhaps that is just what the news stations chose to air on their news. Perhaps the third point in the article is valid. If a person, any person, is racist, that means that the person that they are being racist against is not someone that they would consider to be an equal. I would find it hard to be able to say something or act in a demeaning way towards another person and still consider them equal. Maybe, if the police officer did not see Mr. Grant as “one of his own” or equal, he could have found it easier to commit a heinous act against him by shooting him. I do agree with the fourth point in the article stating that it is not easy to be a police officer in a rough area where a lot of crime is committed. I’m sure it takes a very strong willed person who does not scare too easily to take under such an occupation, but I can imagine that police officer does still feel some sense of fear. Perhaps that is why they tend to be quick to use fire arms as a means of protection, although I don’t think that they should have their weapon out if the person is not showing any type of threat. Personally, I understand how people could make the link between the inauguration of President Obama and the killings; however, I do not think that they are related. Perhaps it was related in the sense that these two particular situations did not get an extreme amount of news coverage but I highly doubt that they were both directly related to the fact that the first black president was just elected. Lastly, I do believe that there are lots of heinous police acts of violence committed on innocent people but I feel as though those cases don’t get a lot of news coverage because the news and the government don’t want society to view the law and the law enforcers in a negative light, if people are afraid of the people who are supposed to protect them, how will they ever feel safe??
I think that putting yourself in the cop’s situation doesn't really give justice to why the police did what they did. Shooting someone in front of his friends and all those people just because you are overwhelmed with the situation you are in does not give any person the right to straight up murder someone. There is just not really any other word for it. Those cops in those situations murdered those people and sure it is wrong to assume the cops are racist because of their actions, but what else do you call it? I am positive many people would agree that a white person in the situation of either of those black men would not have been shot. The videos in class just further prove that assumption, when cops let white people drive away but charge black people and take their money and have to search their cars. I honestly think it is so pathetic. My dad is a corrections officer, and while he may not work on the streets, he is working in a jail all day long with the prisoners, but he never comes home to complain about anyone of any certain race. In fact, the only black man that is part of our family is the person who my dad considers his dad. So, no, I’m not calling police racist, but I do think that was a racist act. You can have sweat dripping down your forehead and people yelling in your face all day, but in no way does that give you the right to shoot them simply because you get to walk around with a gun. Part of being a cop is being able to handle situations like that and handle them properly. Guns are used for protection, and the cops were not being harmed at all by either of the two boys that were shot. If it came down to the point where they were being threatened then it comes time to use the gun, but still, fourteen shots? And twelve to the back? That’s an outrage and there is no excuse. But the point remains that the boy who was shot was causing no harm to the police. It worries me that people who have any sort of power in the world can make such rash and consequential decisions that affect the lives of so many people in such a deep and negative way and it can go unnoticed by the world. This is just two instances that I honestly was so oblivious to and they probably happen all of the time. It kills me that people are still judging people by color and that things like this can come about because of it. Not just white people judging black people, but black people judging white people or any race. No one can really prove that either of these circumstances are directly related to color but anyone who watches the videos has to wonder and it probably leads most to believe that it is in fact related to racism in some way. Hopefully this presidency will have a huge impact on people who still can be so racist because something really needs to change.
I am fully aware that police often acquire an uncalled for bad reputation through the actions of just a small portion of their numbers, but in watching these videos, I can also see how it is hard not to let this happen. The day we watched the video in class about the cops taking money from people they randomly stopped on the highway in Florida, I left class with the images of those cops in my mind. A few minutes later as I was walking to the bus, a police car drove down the street I was walking along. The officer in the passenger’s seat was looking out the window casually at the students, and when the car passed where I was walking I noticed myself giving him a pretty nasty look. Then I realized, those were not the same cops from the video, so why had I frowned at them like they were? I was able to catch myself discriminating against the cops and realize I was wrong in doing so. This might be a harder thing to do for people who have been more directly impacted by racist police acts, such as the family members of the boy who was shot at Bart Station, or the boy who was shot numerous times in the back without explanation. I think these people have a right to be angry. That does not mean that they should hate all law enforcement officers as a result, but I can’t say that I wouldn’t in their situation. When a life is taken in a deliberate act of violence, I think that someone needs to suffer consequences, mainly the killer. Watching these videos, I would be surprised if I found out that the cops involved in the shootings were not white supremacists. This is the only thing that I can imagine would cause them to act in killing these boys. This type of crime should not be tolerated, especially in America. If we allow these policemen to get off with no punishment simply because they are higher in power, then we are no better than the tyrants who ruthlessly kill slaves in the countries mentioned in the Disposable People book. I was angered by these videos, but I know the cops shown only represent a fraction of our law enforcers. Sam makes a great point in saying that people hate police until they need them. I think this is something that could be improved by the citizens, while police officers should work towards targeting and removing the few corrupt cops that give them all a bad name. It will take effort from both sides, but I think there will come a time when police officers are more appreciated for the important roles they play in society and citizens will feel less threatened by the potential of encountering a racist cop.
Between Adolph Grimes and Oscar Grant, it is hard not to be appalled by what happened to them. I continued to look for more videos on the two cases and have come to the conclusion that we cannot know exactly what went down or make a solid determination on the cases until they are thoroughly investigated. If I were the family of either of these young men, I would certainly not be comfortable with the police department responsible for my son’s death investigating and drawing a conclusion on the case as well. How are these families expected to comply and work with police when it was the police responsible for the lives lost?
It’s a shame that these stories show little evidence of the necessity of guns, yet they led to the seemingly atrocious deaths. In one of the other Oscar Grant videos that I came across, it displays a police officer viciously punching Grant in the face, knocking his head back, and from there Grant slides into a sitting position on the floor with his hands held out in front of him, clearly demonstrating his willingness to abide. Unfortunately, I was not a witness to this crime, therefore, I do not know if Grant posed a serious threat to the police. All I can gather from the videos that I watched is a seemingly unaggressive situation escalating into the death of a citizen.
As for Adolph Grimes, the story is not clear. The family has not even received information on their son’s death. The police shot him 48 bullets, hitting him 14 times, 12 of those bullets in the back. He drove from Houston to New Orleans to fulfill a New Year’s family tradition and wound up dead hours later. So far as the public knows, Grimes was not committing any crime when he was shot, but rather, the police had descended on his vehicle as he was waiting for his cousin.
It is heartbreaking to learn of these lives lost and sit waiting for an explanation. Especially for the families of these young men, I cannot imagine whom they feel safe putting their trust in at this point, for the criminal justice system is responsible for the injustice they are suffering. The police department is supposed to settle the unsettled, but I could not imagine being the mother of either of these boys and feel even slightly assured that his case was in good hands. Where do you go when the people responsible for the death are also responsible for investigating the case? It is tragic that these families are left to wonder if the men responsible for their children’s death will be held accountable.
My first reaction to watching the video of Oscar Grant II was “Oh My God” I can’t believe this happened to this man. Then I became angry and pissed off. Actually in almost infuriated by this story. This story is just strait bullshit and I’m in pure disbelief that these “Pigs” are at home with their families still living their normal lives. I’ve never even heard of these stories until I read the blog. How come I never saw these stories in the news, how come I never heard any of my peers speaking about this subject matter???? I honestly believe it’s because the cops try there damnest to keep their dirt under wraps and there sure to keep a low profile when the wrong doings are in their hands. In lieu of the six questions: (1.) If a law enforcement personal don’t feel some type of disgust and anger about this story, then I’m lead to believe that if in the same situation they wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger also. I think its game to them. They know they can get away with this shit, so why not take some people out while there at. I mean come on “They have reason to believe… we did what we had to do. Someone should beat there asses. (2.) I don’t think this question has anything to do with the killings of these two men. Their lives were taken by some corrupt cops; it was not an act of black on black crime. Does this give the officer the right to partake in murderous ventures just because black men do it to? I mean come on I thought the cops are there to protect us from all the bad things out there in the world. When you hear stories like this, it doesn’t put faith in system. It taints their image and reassures the negative stereotypes that are held when speaking about cops. Not only do you have to watch your back for perpetrators, but you also have to watch out for the corrupt cops that would put a bullet in your ass if they felt like it. The justice system is supposed to make us feel safe, but I’m more concerned about them than the mysterious man on the corner. (3) Yes racism does allow people to act in ways that they wouldn’t normally act, but this doesn’t justify them. There are a lot of things I don’t like in this world, but I know better than to go and act in an unruly manner no matter how much I think I’m justified. People must look at other people as just that, people, Black, white, Puerto-Rican, or Haitian, but in the real world that doesn’t happen. Some folks just see color when it comes down to it. And I believe that’s what the officers of both these stories saw: A black man= Armed Dangerous=Bring em’ down, Bring em’ down, Boi ya goin down! (Fthem)(4)Cops must understand the reason people don’t like them is for them same reason “we” don’t like them, negative stereotypes. All’s it takes is one A-hole to mess it up for the rest of them. (5) I think that this comment is irrelevant. If John McCain was to be appointed president the same crimes would have been committed, they would have not been in the lame life, and these poor men’s lives still would have been taken at the hands of law enforcement. (6) Just because we don’t hear about it doesn’t mean that it’s an isolated case, it just means that people weren’t quit quiet enough for this case. I’m sure this happens ALL the time. But why would anyone want to publicize this, it only makes the cops look bad. And what it does is expose the real truth about the dirt they are guilty of….Overall I hope these families see justice and I hope any one affiliated with the wrong doings of these men rot in hell!
Wow! Police Officers are notorious for abusing power, but shooting someone in the back 14 times from several officers is insane. I am going to deal with this case first as I feel it is more ridiculous than the other. Under no circumstance should clips continuously be unloaded on one person, whom may not even be armed. I know that Police Officers have an incredibly difficult job in judging situations, and always should caution on the safe side, but this is taking it too far. “Self-defense” is a term that police have in their back pocket and pull it out all the time in instances similar to this case. Although they clearly were protecting themselves I find it very unlikely that they will get away this forcefully brutal murder. As for the other case, though not as violent it may be even more out of line. As far as we can see and are told by witnesses the victim was 100% cooperating. The victim was on his knees and was in no way threatening these officers. Self-defense can defiantly not be used in this case of what I perceive to be clear cut murder. This officer who shot the victim and the other officer who kneed him in the face while he was defenseless are un-called for. These officers should be prosecuted as far as possible, to not only punish them, but to make an example out of them. Police Officers around the country have to get reminded that they are not gods, and have unlimited threatening power and control. If Police officers such as these got prosecuted very severely, and more cases got prosecuted severely, we would see less abuse of power from Police Officers all around. Just watching these videos makes me furious. I can’t believe that these officers are not instantly punished. I feel bad for the families of the victims in both instances and in all instances of Police abuse. I hope that they win all the cases involved with these murders. Also the fact that both of these victims are black does not help racism and prejudice stereotypes in our country. This makes the white race look terrible, and more sympathy to the blacks, but the main problem is that it just further separates and stereotypes the two races. Racism is still a big problem in this nation. Many steps are taken every day in the right direction to break racism, but instances like these effect families and their friends and neighborhoods for a lifetime, and really hurt the general direction of getting rid of racism. In conclusion I wish the victims families the best. I hope they crush the court cases and punish, prosecute and make an example of these ego driven and power abusive Police Officers.
It’s hard to see and hear stories like this happening. When I think of police officers, and I’m sure most other people feel the same way, but I think of protection, honesty and trust. Maybe I am naive to put so much of MY faith and trust in these individuals who hold so much power over our lives. But is it really that wrong of me to be thinking this? When one looks at a description or definition of a police officer, would the officers involved in these two shootings say that they fulfill, and were fulfilling these duties? Would other officers in their county, state, or country think that they do? Police indeed to a lot of good for society, but when things like this happen, it overshadows all the good they do.
I this that these two killings are so disgraceful, and even if these individual’s whose lives were taken were in the wrong, they did NOT deserve to be taken from this world in the way they were. Taking the life of someone, to me, is unacceptable in almost every situation. These officers did not only kill these two men, they killed a part of each family member, and they killed the dreams of their children and people they loved. In the circumstance, these officers do not think of the power they hold in their hand, or on the side of their belts.
The fact that these police forces or whatever you call them, are not giving the media, let alone the poor families any information, it blatantly saying that they know they fucked up and are trying to either, skew what happened to make it seem like what happened was justified, or make things up to put themselves in the right. It makes me sick to think how much power these people have. They have the power to take innocent lives, to me, the greatest power one could have. They don’t have the right to play God and decide when a person should die.
I know that there has to be SO many more instances like this that happen each day, everywhere. Not all are publicly happening in train stations with a train full of people watching the whole thing unfold. The fact that it happened in this way I’m sure makes covering it up or justifying it impossible. But, they seem to have the power to go against what any person says or sees, so that would be interesting to see how it turns out.
Another thing I am wondering, is if when that first police officer, who pulled the gun out and shot the handcuffed man in the back, killing him, what did his fellow officers think? Did they think “shit, that shouldn’t have happened” or “alright I'm glad he did that so I didn’t have to”?
When I first saw the video of Oscar Grant III being “murdered” by Oakland police officers, I was suddenly overcome with sorrow. I just could not understand how men−white, black, Latino, and any other ethnicity−could just point blank end someone else’s life the way these cops clearly did. After getting over the grief I had felt, my emotions quickly turned into anger. I was angry because it frustrates me when I see so many of these cases occur where innocent black men are “accidentally killed” by police officers.
As a black person myself, I rarely like to use racism as an excuse for something because I generally know that there is always at least one small part of the story that is being left out. However, I have no doubt in my mind that these two killings were due in large part to the fact that the victims were Black men. Even if, in the case of Aldolf Grimes, the victim was guilty of a crime and he shot at the cops, there is absolutely no just cause for 48 shots being fired at one person. Where is the just cause in that? And then to be shot in the back 12 times? I just can’t seem to grasp the concept where that could be acceptable to the cop who was shooting. Being from New York, I have dealt with the cases of Sean Bell and Amadou Diallo and have seen all the cops that did the shootings all be acquitted of their charges, which is just an outrage. However, some people like to think that it is just white cops who are doing the case. In the Sean Bell case, two of the cops in the incident were African American themselves. So people can’t just say that it is a racism that is playing a part in the shootings. Although racism does play a part, it all deals with how people profile a person just from seeing them. Even though the men were innocent, it does not help that they were Black men walking at night in areas that are not that safe. As sad as it is, Black men are always at disadvantage because people of all races look at them sometimes as they are just another “gangster”. I would be lying if I never judged another Black man just by looking at them and then feeling a little safe.
With all this said though, it still does not excuse the actions. And the fact that these cops get away with it shows that justice system needs to be looked at because it is unacceptable. I hope that there will one day be a time when everyone can look at each other without judging, but I don’t think that is possible. I just hope events like these don’t have to keep happening before someone really takes notice.
When I first saw the video of Oscar Grant III being “murdered” by Oakland police officers, I was suddenly overcome with sorrow. I just could not understand how men−white, black, Latino, and any other ethnicity−could just point blank end someone else’s life the way these cops clearly did. After getting over the grief I had felt, my emotions quickly turned into anger. I was angry because it frustrates me when I see so many of these cases occur where innocent black men are “accidentally killed” by police officers.
As a black person myself, I rarely like to use racism as an excuse for something because I generally know that there is always at least one small part of the story that is being left out. However, I have no doubt in my mind that these two killings were due in large part to the fact that the victims were Black men. Even if, in the case of Aldolf Grimes, the victim was guilty of a crime and he shot at the cops, there is absolutely no just cause for 48 shots being fired at one person. Where is the just cause in that? And then to be shot in the back 12 times? I just can’t seem to grasp the concept where that could be acceptable to the cop who was shooting. Being from New York, I have dealt with the cases of Sean Bell and Amadou Diallo and have seen all the cops that did the shootings all be acquitted of their charges, which is just an outrage. However, some people like to think that it is just white cops who are doing the case. In the Sean Bell case, two of the cops in the incident were African American themselves. So people can’t just say that it is a racism that is playing a part in the shootings. Although racism does play a part, it all deals with how people profile a person just from seeing them. Even though the men were innocent, it does not help that they were Black men walking at night in areas that are not that safe. As sad as it is, Black men are always at disadvantage because people of all races look at them sometimes as they are just another “gangster”. I would be lying if I never judged another Black man just by looking at them and then feeling a little safe.
With all this said though, it still does not excuse the actions. And the fact that these cops get away with it shows that justice system needs to be looked at because it is unacceptable. I hope that there will one day be a time when everyone can look at each other without judging, but I don’t think that is possible. I just hope events like these don’t have to keep happening before someone really takes notice.
Even though Americans would like to believe that their government and the police officers employed to protect and serve is all fair and equal, it would be ignorant to think that is always the case. Everywhere in this world there are accounts of injustice where people in power abuse their authority and let their personal feelings and thoughts interfere with their jobs. Police officers are no different. I do not think that all policemen are corrupt or racist, and the sampling of them that are is probably the same as you would find in the general population.
It makes sense that people try to keep these acts of violence and brutality out of the news. They are isolated incidents and very tough to watch. Even though I know it is only that one officer and not all policemen, it still made me feel completely horrified that it ever occurs.
Being a police officer is a very hard job, especially in urban areas with lots of crime. My cousin’s husband is a policeman in Reading, PA, which is a only small city but it has a very high murder rate per capita. In his five years working for the city, five of his fellow officers died in service. It is a dangerous line of work and true that they are not usually appreciated by the people they protect until those people need them. It insults every honest police officer to be compared to the select few that are dishonest.
I’m not sure that the murder of Oscar Grant III is related to Obama’s first day in office happening a few weeks later. Although, other blogs and articles have shown that his election as president of the United States angered some white power groups. It is possible that these few police are a part of one of those racist, white supremacy groups. To me it seems more like an event that occurred at the wrong time. These terrible things happen every day, so it seems to be more ironic than it actually is.
It is unfortunate that because of a select few racist police officers the rest receive a bad rap when instances such as these occur. Racism is a difficult concept to understand and when people are racist their actions can be very scary. Sam’s blog brings up an interesting point: that when people are racist they do not view the other individual as a person. Instead they see the person de-individualized and look at them only as a member of the group they hate. Every person is a just that a person- equal to every other one. Until people can see each other in that way, racism will never be overcome. We are a long way from that in this country and terrible events like that demonstrate it.
Prejudice in the Law?
Sure, these can be incriminating evidence, yet do we truly know what the entire story is. Or is this the distortion of the situation due to media bias and the need to create news that sells? We don’t know the true story behind this story, so we don’t particularly understand the situation. Who knows what happened before the situation, and there may have been hidden circumstances that are being gleaned over. Though, even to me it seems cruel and unusual.
We have to take into consideration the stress and paranoia of the police. They work in a city that doesn’t appreciate them, and the people they try to protect are constantly out for their lives. It’s an extremely dangerous profession, and you don’t know who has a gun or not, and if today may be your last day. There are so many factors that could have determined what happened and whether or not this was completely unjustified.
Though, I cannot argue that something is wrong when the need to use so much excessive force is needed. I cannot say whether it is racism or not. If it was a white person would it be the same? Who knows? Also, in the other shooting there were black cops also, so if it is racism then is it racism from black people to other black people also? It’s all a really confusing concept, since we truly do not know what is going on in these cops minds.
An interesting solution to this could be to train the police cops into better analyzing situations of distress and to better predict more favorable outcomes. This is an important step into figuring out the underlying problems within the police stations. Also a study of the suburbs or areas with high black populations outside of the city would be a great idea, to determine whether or not the pressures of the city affect the law enforcement. The city itself is a very stressful environment and it provides many risks, so that may create cops that are trigger happy.
You know what? What happens if it really is racism? What can you do about it? If even people of the same race do it to each other is there any possible answer, or are you completely screwed and doomed to keep watching other atrocities such as this occur. The policemen should still be persecuted because of their actions though. Getting off without any penalties is terrible and detrimental to society. If they get trigger happy they have to understand the impact and consequences of the decision, plus they should have to meet and apologize to the families who have lost loved ones. The distressing part is no one is doing anything about it, and we need to do anything we can to resolve this issue.
I watched the videos over and over again to make sure I was actually seeing this and not getting my own view of what my black friends would perceive it as. It’s true, that was my first thought but then I went back to what happens next? I had the same feeling I felt in the past when I heard of discrepancy or inequality towards any race. I had this feeling of discomfort and remembering that this world is unjust but after about day my life went back to its normal course. So how much did it really affect me? Of course I prayed for the two families and was sadden by hearing about it but only for a day. The two shootings were definitely sad but not a total shock to me. Not because I do not have a heart or that I am siding with The Burt police but because I’m not disturbed by it anymore. In America when you’re a part of the black community things are in a very different perspective than the next white person in denial. The truth is that I’ve heard it too many times for it to shock me, but to add to that, nothing I’ve seen or heard could compare to these two particular cases because these are to the extreme. Many people do not understand that many instances like this have shaped the way Blacks, Latinos, Asians or any other minority live their normal lives with hypocrisy and slander, so after a while it merely becomes another normal incident. How about the fact that there are hardly any missing victims who appear on T.V. who are black, 99% of the time they are white. It’s not that missing cases only involved white children but those are the only ones to hit the media or catch anybody’s attention. It’s not that people do not notice the lack of attention and energy put into black missing children’s cases but it has not become that important to them yet. Then again we can go back to how could racism or slavery of any kind happen without anybody speaking up and we go back to no answer at all. So, injustice will always happen in my opinion but it’s sad that murder has to be the crime but nobody serves the time. Being the other race or inferior to another can hurt but over time you deal with it and that’s how I’ve gone about it for years now. I guess you stop thinking about it after it’s instilled into your mind for such a long time. It gets to the point where you accept racism or brutality towards minorities. It’s definitely not right but then again its life.
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