Race, racism, and police violence are major issues in our society today. They are interwoven, expressing the problems faced by some groups of people. This problem happened to be caused by the fact that a particular population possesses a different genetic character from the dominant group of the white colour.
Despite the work to curb this issue, many people still find it difficult to accept the black or sometimes Asian race (population). They perceive them as being inferior. There have been several essays and research paper examples on the issue to push more enlightenment on the menace of race and police brutality globally. There are several samples of essay on solutions to the police brutality problem. The aim is to curb the brutality of the police system, and while it has achieved several successes, there is still more to do.
Here we will discuss the concepts and problems related to race, racism, and police brutality.
Definition and Concept of Race and Racism
Race can be defined as a population that differs in the incidence of specific genes from others but is potentially able to exchange genes across the boundaries that separate them. This, in other words, means the different characters expressed by a particular group of individuals. Members of this population with these characteristics are always of the same mating group, so race is a biological concept.
Although a biological concept, race is becoming increasingly challenged daily, and so the use of the term has become so common with the issues of racism. It now exacerbates the problems of racism, a kind of mistreatment of a particular group perceived as inferior.
Another term that should be defined and explained here is racism, also known as Racialism.
Simply put, racism is human discrimination based on certain factors. These factors could be wealth, income, civil rights, health care, etc. The bias arises from the belief that a particular sect of people with common genetic traits is inferior to others. And so, they are treated with lesser value and respect. This is a common problem faced by the black race today.
This other race seen as inferior is commonly recognized by their skin color, being black. Hence the reason some African Americans opt for substitution of skin color. This is because it is the first way of knowing and differentiating them from the other races seen as superior.
Racism is now a complex issue that has gone from just being a term to a major problem suffered by the black race. The problem of racism comes in different forms, but they express the same thing. The common forms of racism include Everyday Racism and Institutional Racism.
Everyday racism has to do with the small discriminations suffered by people of color in their relationship with the dominant white group. This is seen mostly in speeches, glances, and physical movement or restrictions.
Institutional racism involves discrimination in different institutions’ policies, practices, and processes. It comes in the denials of access to certain life areas such as education, housing, and on.
Police Violence
Police violence, known as police brutality, is a significant issue many civilians suffer today. It has become something that has to be taken care of urgently. This is because many people now perceive the police as a major threat to their survival. What is police violence or brutality?
Police violence or brutality is usually applied in the context of causing physical harm to an individual. The harm could go from physical to psychological through intimidation tactics. It has to do with an individual’s human right being violated.
Many people have suffered police violence, and such occurrence has led to the untimely death of victims. In the 2000s, the US government attempted to track the number of persons killed in an interaction with the police. And in 2019, over a thousand cases of police violence were reported by journalists and human activists. The number is on the increase even till today.
One of the major reasons why police brutality is on the increase today is because it is linked with racial inequality. This is known as systemic racism, where a sect of people is mistreated based on their color differences.
Conclusion: The Way Forward
As mentioned earlier, efforts put up to curb the issue of race and brutality have proven less productive. This is why it is suggested that the general public, especially the whites, get enlightened. The issue of racism should be incorporated into the learning scheme of growing kids so that they learn how to accept each other as one irrespective of skin color. They should know that there is no gap between them and the other races. They should be taught the need to pursue peace and love. We all want a better world, and to achieve this, one another has to have a sense of oneness.