Police brutality is unfortunately, but inevitably, becoming a common trend in America. Tensions within the public, and particularly within the African-American community, are increasing due to the latest cases of police brutality. Many believe we have made progress overall, but in reality, racism is still extremely popular. The use of brutal and deadly force by some police officers, resulting in unnecessary deaths, puts individuals on the edge of going about their daily lives. Law enforcement, the people we trust with our lives, are unfortunately the same people who do it. Some people may want to argue that these cases, such as the shooting of Michael Brown and the choking of Eric Garner, are isolated incidents. Many would also say that a police officer's job is too difficult and that sometimes a police officer must use such force to enforce the law and protect themselves while on duty. However, through everyone's efforts, we can stop these atrocious individuals and create a safer environment for civilians. The ACLU is an organization that works tirelessly to make this happen. The ACLU “aims to preserve and expand the constitutionally guaranteed rights of people who have historically been disenfranchised on the basis of race.” Raising awareness and creating organizations that try to help these people makes the world a safer and more comfortable place to live. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay One of the main commonalities that becomes clear from these incidents is that many people shot or killed by police are unarmed to begin with. with. A perfect example of this situation occurred between Oscar Grant and Officer James Mehserle. Grant had been “detained by BART transit officers on a station platform in Oakland, California, following an altercation” (Bach). He was unarmed and was asked to lie down on the station platform, to which he complied. He is then shot dead by “Mehserle, who claims to have confused his weapon with his Taser” (Bach). The officer released his statement saying the event was a complete accident and there were no consequences. However, this is not an isolated incident. Another act of police brutality occurred in July between Eric Garner and an NYPD officer. Garner “was suspected by the New York police of selling untaxed cigarettes. When he refused to be arrested, a police officer strangled him. Garner repeatedly screamed, "'I can't breathe!' » and died shortly afterwards » (Bach). It is unacceptable for a person to die at the hands of a police officer when they have no weapon on them and do not pose an immediate threat to the officer. After the public hearing on these cases, many are suggesting "a new law that would require law enforcement to wear cameras to prevent inappropriate police behavior and maintain a higher level of accountability" (Bach) . In hopes of this new law being implemented, studies were conducted "in which police officers were asked to wear cameras" and "a California study found that police brutality plummeted when cops were recorded” (Bach). This shows that when police have oversight, they are less likely to violate an individual's constitutional rights. It is disappointing that adult individuals must be supervised like children to ensure that they do not harm those they deem beneath them. The main reasonwhy the police mistreat certain people is due to a single factor, the color of their skin. Redditt Hudson, an individual who became a police officer to use the power of being a police officer to help his community help his community, says that "a few police officers ran a website called St. Louis Coptalk, where officers could post about their experiences." and opinions”. The site became so full of racist comments that the administrator shut down the site. In the chat, "cops routinely called anyone of color a 'thug,' whether they were the victim or just a bystander" (Hudson). This highlights how racist police officers really are. Hudson recalls that the police often abused their power and “responded forcefully to even minor infractions” (Hudson). The reason the police do this is often because they feel superior to these minorities, and also because of their hatred towards these individuals. The only thing that seems consistent with all of these cases is that "police officers are rarely held accountable for their actions" and that they don't "think too seriously about the consequences" (Hudson). If more police officers were punished for these crimes, there would be fewer incidents, and therefore fewer people killed or injured due to excessive use of police force. Those who are supposed to protect the public should be the last people individuals should fear. Statistically speaking, the number of cases of police brutality in America is significantly higher for minorities than for Caucasians. According to the ACLU, “seven in ten blacks said they were treated less fairly than whites in their dealings with police.” This is mainly due to racism within the police force. This holds true given that “most unarmed people killed [in 2017] were people of color (48 were black, 34 were Hispanic, 2 were Native American, and 2 were Pacific Islander – 50 were white and 11 were unknown). » (D’Onofrio). These numbers make it incredibly clear that only minorities are being targeted. Additionally, “27% of people killed by police were black. In all murders, only 1 percent of the officers involved were charged with a crime” (D’Onofrio). This is why so many people are upset that there are no sanctions for officers who abuse their power. Without appropriate sanctions, things will not change. The ACLU is one of many organizations dedicated to raising awareness about the massive number of cases of police brutality. They argue that "the authors of the Declaration of Independence presented a bold vision for America: a nation in which there would be equal justice for all." More than two hundred years later, this goal has still not been achieved” (ACLU). This is because people are naive to what happens behind closed doors, or simply turn a blind eye to these events. Although many may not know it, "despite the fact that whites commit drug crimes at a higher rate than blacks, blacks are incarcerated for drug crimes at a rate 10 times higher than that of whites” (ACLU). The average person would not have known this information before reading it, which is why the ACLU provides the public figures to give individuals something more plausible. The ACLU also looks back on one of the most well-known movements today, the “Black Lives Matter Movement”. This movement's "relentless work on the issue of police corruption has contributed to the release of four unprecedented reports from the U.S. Department of Justice that confirm the widespread presence of corruption.