Alexandra Camargo
Questioning the police force and its true intentions has proven long overdue with the recent murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. These instances of police brutality in the United States, along with many others, have called for a close examination as to what the police truly represent and who they truly work for. Police abolitionists have shed light on the origins of this system of law enforcement. Although many argue that the police do not inherently hold implicit biases against black people, history proves that this sentiment is rooted in such a system that was specifically developed to enforce oppressive social systems in order to benefit those already in power and continue to oppress those who lack power, as seen through the containment of slavery and labor revolts.
It may be difficult for many to believe the police hold unconscious prejudice against people of color, however, many studies have proved this to be true. Implicit bias – a term used to describe attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner – has been a term circulating among people calling for some sort of police reform. In 2017, a study was conducted by professor Josh Corell, who teaches at the University of Colorado in the neuroscience and psychology departments, in regards to whether or not police officers act upon their implicit bias. The study ran officers through a simulator that repeatedly challenged them to identify what objects black and white subjects were holding in their hands and then decide whether to shoot them. In repeated trials, officers were quicker to decide to shoot armed black subjects than armed whites and took longer deciding to spare unarmed blacks. He found that officers were most likely to act upon preconceived biases when put through mental stress. This study showed that officers do hold an implicit bias against black people, which has led to many suggestions that police departments should hold implicit bias training for all their officers in order to bring awareness and fix this problem. However, as we continue to analyze the predisposed stereotypes police officers are found to hold despite educational training, the effectiveness of this preventative measure is doubted. Journalist Tom James, a former state political correspondent, decided to survey a group of officers after an implicit bias training. He found that many officers did not deem the training of much importance. One officer, in particular, tried to justify his own biases by insisting that the use of force on black people seems to be more likely linked to their “higher degree of crime.” Therefore, this showcases that officers do have some sort of predetermined bias against those of the black community, which in turn derives from the original establishment of law enforcement in the United States.
Law enforcement, police officers, in particular, emerged from the colonial need to police and contain African slaves. Prior to the American Civil War, the South had been actively profiting off of African labor through its cash crop dependent economy. Its most important crop, cotton, was being shipped out internationally, due to the high demand for textiles. Thus, informal groups of police formed to catch and return slaves that tried to escape from their owners, being wealthy white farmers. Hence, when a police officer rests his knee on an innocent black man for 8 minutes until he dies, it is only logical that he is being influenced by the initial sentiment of racism that the system he enforces originated from.
After slavery became outlawed, labor strikes became the new target of law enforcement. During the Gilded Age, which was known for its governmental corruption at the beginning of the 20th century, the economy boomed with the rise of the first millionaires who acquired their high-end status through the exploitation of wage workers. Due to these men’s wealth, congressmen were easily influenced and were willing to protect their industries – including the railroads, finance, and factory systems – by beginning to implement law enforcement groups in large urban cities. These groups largely targeted labor strikes and unions, which were organized due to low wages and harsh conditions brought about by the new industries. The main goal of these strikes and unions was to bring awareness to the corruption occurring within these industries; however, they were almost always met by police resistance and violence. Truly, it was no coincidence that the people who were being exploited the worst happened to be newly freed black people and poor European immigrants. This policing system, which evolved immediately after there was no more use for slave patrols, was established by congressmen specifically to uphold the wealth and corruption that white, wealthy men were facilitating, and continue to facilitate today. Olivia Waxman, an honors graduate of Columbia School of Journalism, argues that this institution allowed for, “the drive to professionalize the police ...which means that the concept of a career cop as we’d recognize it today is less than a century old.” (How the US Got Its Police Force) She insists that it was with this introduction of policemen to control labor unions that the police began to modernize into what we are most familiar with today.
What many people fail to realize when they first begin to approach this “broken” system is that the system was never broken, as history entails that it has been successful at ensuring that its original purpose for establishment continues to date. We must realize that police reform is impossible when these policemen refuse to learn from implicit bias training. How could you possibly mend a system that has yet to mature from its oppressive beginnings? Thus, we must take the appropriate steps to begin to break this system apart and dissolve it piece by piece.
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