Yurielle Menard/Contributing Writer
The Black Lives Matter movement has swept the nation in hopes of drawing awareness to the fact that the life of a black individual is just as valuable as the life of any other individual. The movement has received intense backlash from skeptics producing impulsive reciprocated movements such as Blue Lives Matter and All Lives Matter.
While all these movements have their rights in evolving, black lives are being taken by police. Subsequently, the decisions made by the Justice system does not respect and value these lives that are being taken. For example, the notorious verdict of the trial of George Zimmerman in the 2012 murder of Trayvon Martin was “not guilty.”
The United States’ justice system has failed its people by showing favor by a certain type of American. In a forum conducted at FIU, students were given the opportunity of engaging in intimate conversation with police, where police asserted that those who follow the orders given by police should be ensured safety. However, following the law doesn’t seem to be the recipe for a guarded life either.
The justice system has failed to implement its purpose. How can we deem an institution legitimate and sovereign if it follows through a certain type of American citizen? Since when was a conditional clause attached to our right of being safe?
People rally at the news of any act committed against the community by police. Rallying has also now become an opportunity for law enforcement to barricade individuals exercising their right to assemble.
Social media outlets broadcast protesters carrying signs, some not even speaking. Yet, law enforcement is armed. Lately, it seems as though the police have deemed us the enemy and that we are at war with the State.
A study by the American Civil Liberties Union on the militarization of police found that the local and state police, specifically SWAT teams, are being trained more similarly to warfighters than crimefighters.
The study analyzed the role that militarization of the police has played in communities and the way policing is carried. “Militarization of policing encourages officers to adopt a warrior mentality and think of the people they are supposed to serve as enemies” the report said.
“Reform must be systemic; the problems of overly aggressive policing are cultural and cannot be solved by merely identifying a few bad apples or dismissing the problem as a few isolated incidents.”
Also in the study provided by ACLU, weapons have been provided to local and state police departments through a program from the federal government called 1033. The 1033 program provides surplus weaponry from the U.S. military to the local and state police departments.
According to an article by Taylor Wofford on newsweek.com, The federal government has been arming local and state governments with the military’s surplus weapons since the 1990s. In 1990, the United States Congress enacted a law, the National Defense Authorization Act, that “transfers” arms from the Department of Defense to “state agencies.”
The federal government has provided state and local police departments with the resources used to deteriorate our population. By making this legal, the federal government is an enabler. If there is a reformation that should happen, it must be systemic. Simply firing officers or transferring them is not the solution. This matter not only belongs to a particular race, gender, or religion – it is an issue that affects all. Currently, one’s safety in the hands of law enforcement is a matter of chance.
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The opinions presented within this page do not represent the views of FIU Student Media Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect individual perspectives of contributing writers and/or members of the University community.
Image retrieved from Flickr.
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