RACIST AND AUTHORITARIAN TENDENCIES IN THE POLICE FORCE

 

George Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 25, 2020. 

Jacob Blake was shot seven times in Kenosha, Wisconsin on August 23, 2020. 

So in a matter of three months, colored men were killed and shot by the police.

This shows a very  low regard of the police on the people they are supposed to serve. Worse, the  men were not confronting the police. Floyd was killed by an officer who stepped on his neck until he could no longer breathe while Blake was shot 7 times while wanting to go inside his SUV. He is now paralyzed and is in serious condition in the hospital

If you will examine the map of the USA, you will find, the two states, Minnesota and Wisconsin are contiguous areas in the north. This speaks a lot about the authoritarian and racist consciousness of the police and of that portion of the States. 

 What is authoritarianism?

 It is "the enforcement or advocacy of strict obedience to authority at the expense of personal freedom.

"lack of concern for the wishes or opinions of others."

 

For a police officer to possess this kind of consciousness is very odd indeed. A police officer is supposed to solve crimes and not be the criminal himself/herself. 

Racism is the "belief that different races possess distinct characteristics, abilities, or qualities, especially so as to distinguish them as inferior or superior to one another."

And for police officers to have an authoritarian and racist consciousness. combined is to have a powder keg in the police stations. 

The killing of George Floyd strengthened the movement: Black Lives Matter in the United States.  

Actually, racism has a long history in the States. It started during the colonial era, when slaves were kidnapped from Africa and other Caribbean countries for sale in the plantations in the continent owned by white people. Many histories have been written already about this. 

In this regard, I would suggest that a psychological test be conducted on all the police forces all over the world, not only in the US, measuring the level of consciousness with regard to racism and authoritarianism. Those who have a high score on these items ought to be removed from their positions and transferred to the department of social welfare, their guns surrendered to authorities. They must be made to serve the needy and disadvantaged groups in society. 

The need to stop crimes especially against minority groups including women,   should start now.  

Martin Luther King Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia on January 15th, 1929. He was a pivotal advocate for African Americans during the Civil Rights Movement in the United States.