All that you write about the whole damn culture needing to shift is absolutely spot on. And...there is a huge imperative for law enforcement to lead the way. I'll share a relatively minor anecdote--from the early 1970s. One of my first jobs as a very young woman was working as a clerk in the police department. The economy was in recession. I needed a job. The federal government sponsored an employment program--The Comprehensive Education and Training Act (CETA) program; among the program's placements were jobs in the public sector. I took a test, passed it, qualified--and the first opening that came up was in the police department. I accepted it with a bit of trepidation...especially when I found I would be working in the Vice and Narcotics Division! There were two squads of detectives, and I and another clerk handled their clerical functions--typing arrest reports, filing (paper!) documents, handling written correspondence, etc. These guys--and they were all guys except for one female in the Vice Section--couldn't have been nicer or more deferential to me and the other clerk. Many of them were old enough to be my father, and they included a Black sergeant. All treated me respectfully, and I would have described them as "nice men," until one day...they had arrested and were interrogating an older Black man on a drug possession charge; it was unusual for me to be there --the only time I can remember being present--while they had someone in custody. And I observed their interrogation. They humiliated the person they arrested. They made him take his false teeth out of his mouth and set them on the desk. They made him remove his shoes. They badgered him. They didn't hit him or rough him up, but they intimidated him psychologically. This wasn't a dealer; in the parlance, he was a "junkie." I didn't understand whatever it was they were trying to accomplish, other than to humiliate the man. Remember, these were the "nice guys." I know this is a single example, but it changed my attitude about cops. There is something about cop culture. When they are in a group, even the "nice guys" can change, turn into not nice guys. My perception of them changed, soured--I figured out a way to get a transfer out of the police department. And the ugly taste of this experience has remained in my mouth. In the few encounters I have had with police officers over the years since then, I have always reflected on this encounter. Although all the officers have treated me respectfully, I know that, just under the surface, there could be a very different individual who under different circumstances could abuse me or anyone else because.they.can.and.usually.get.away.with.it.
Evelyn that is quite the story. It certainly lines up with so much that we hear about law enforcement culture. I know that I've known so many LE types through my work with first responders, but I also see that they have an edge. It's enough to know that I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of the perceived breaking of the law... but I have hoped of course that those I've known wouldn't reveal terrible biases and disrespect in moments like what you describe. Yet I don't know.
All that you write about the whole damn culture needing to shift is absolutely spot on. And...there is a huge imperative for law enforcement to lead the way. I'll share a relatively minor anecdote--from the early 1970s. One of my first jobs as a very young woman was working as a clerk in the police department. The economy was in recession. I needed a job. The federal government sponsored an employment program--The Comprehensive Education and Training Act (CETA) program; among the program's placements were jobs in the public sector. I took a test, passed it, qualified--and the first opening that came up was in the police department. I accepted it with a bit of trepidation...especially when I found I would be working in the Vice and Narcotics Division! There were two squads of detectives, and I and another clerk handled their clerical functions--typing arrest reports, filing (paper!) documents, handling written correspondence, etc. These guys--and they were all guys except for one female in the Vice Section--couldn't have been nicer or more deferential to me and the other clerk. Many of them were old enough to be my father, and they included a Black sergeant. All treated me respectfully, and I would have described them as "nice men," until one day...they had arrested and were interrogating an older Black man on a drug possession charge; it was unusual for me to be there --the only time I can remember being present--while they had someone in custody. And I observed their interrogation. They humiliated the person they arrested. They made him take his false teeth out of his mouth and set them on the desk. They made him remove his shoes. They badgered him. They didn't hit him or rough him up, but they intimidated him psychologically. This wasn't a dealer; in the parlance, he was a "junkie." I didn't understand whatever it was they were trying to accomplish, other than to humiliate the man. Remember, these were the "nice guys." I know this is a single example, but it changed my attitude about cops. There is something about cop culture. When they are in a group, even the "nice guys" can change, turn into not nice guys. My perception of them changed, soured--I figured out a way to get a transfer out of the police department. And the ugly taste of this experience has remained in my mouth. In the few encounters I have had with police officers over the years since then, I have always reflected on this encounter. Although all the officers have treated me respectfully, I know that, just under the surface, there could be a very different individual who under different circumstances could abuse me or anyone else because.they.can.and.usually.get.away.with.it.
Evelyn that is quite the story. It certainly lines up with so much that we hear about law enforcement culture. I know that I've known so many LE types through my work with first responders, but I also see that they have an edge. It's enough to know that I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of the perceived breaking of the law... but I have hoped of course that those I've known wouldn't reveal terrible biases and disrespect in moments like what you describe. Yet I don't know.