The Michael Brown and Eric Garner cases have ripped the scab off a long-festering sore. People are tired of being abused by police who are supposed to protect them and their communities. That’s what the protests are all about, and the protests aren’t going away because no one in authority is dealing with the issue. And about stuff like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N30tT93FChQ
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUVqAcRMuPU
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuGcaxzY1vs
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbQUltNOqo8
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6QVyI_F_dg
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dzEbMFv20w
and this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iYtzGHTLJk
I could go on and on and on and on, etc., but you get the idea …
The problem isn’t bullies who wear police uniforms. Cops are human, like the rest of us, and you’ll always have a certain amount of this behavior in the ranks, especially given the stressful nature of police work.
No, the problem is a system that lets bullies get away with bullying, that imposes no accountability for bad behavior — not even for behavior that violates laws or expressly stated policies (as we saw in the Garner case), and that allows bad cops to remain on the streets and continue being bad cops.
Of course, it’s not just that, nor that simple. There’s another and more fundamental problem. The police mindset has changed. Today, when cops approach a citizen, they want the citizen to instantly comply with the cop’s orders. Perhaps this springs from a heightened perception of danger, or even the idea that anyone might be a terrorist or mass shooter. Whatever. In any case, the mentality of our police today is that asking a question or disputing a police action or asserting personal rights is itself an arrestable offense. As citizens, we shouldn’t accept that, because doing so would turn our country into a police state.
America’s police have turned inward. They no longer see themselves as public servants, whose foremost duty is to protect and serve the citizenry. Now, they put themselves first, and their obsession with “officer safety” seems to govern everything they do. I’m not saying they shouldn’t be safety-conscious. But what should be a simple and common sense concern for officer safety is being twisted and distorted into a monster that arrests people for asking why they’re being stopped and questioned, treats cellphone video as a mortal threat, and even shoots kids. There is a need for a fundamental rethinking of this mentality. Now, after several high-profile incidents that call into question whether our police are protectors or enemies, that need is being shouted from the rooftops.
That is the true meaning of these protests.