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From Ferguson to Baltimore
Hansford, Justin
http://www.solidarity-us.org/site/node/4460Date Written: 2015-07-01 Publisher: Against the Current Year Published: 2015 Resource Type: Article Cx Number: CX21225 Combined with racial profiling, combined with the practice of predatory profiling and predatory policing, police departments are using parking and traffic tickets as a revenue base to increase their budget. All these bring us to a place where police violence is rampant. The more contacts you have with the police, the more possibilities you have of being subject to a violent interaction. Abstract: - Excerpt: I can tell you stories of times where I've been harassed and accosted by police officers. One particular time I was with my little brother and my cousin. We'd gone to get a piece of pizza, and got back to our car. A police officer comes up and says, "Hey you! Put your hands up!" And I'm like, "all I'm doing is getting a piece of pizza. What'd I do?" And his response was "Get the F--- up against the car and shut up!" and "Do it right now!" He didn't say it as nicely as that. And so, I was frisked and called racially derogatory names. It was particularly a painful experience for me because it happened in front of my little brother, for whom I consider myself a mentor. This is something I would never let anyone else do to me on a regular basis, but I know how quickly situations can escalate with the police. The use of predatory policing, racial profiling, and humiliation as a tactic has created a long legacy of conflict between our community and the police. Subject Headings |