Jan 28 2009
Police Brutality and State Violence: How Communities are Coping
Last October, the ACLU of Southern California released a report titled “Racial Profiling and the LAPD”. This report was conducted by Prof. Ian Ayers from Yale Law School and Yale School of Management. The results of this study raise grave concerns that African Americans and “Hispanics” are over stopped, over frisked and over arrested, compared to Whites. On January 13, the LAPD responded to this report at the police commission meeting, where Chief Bratton was present. Also present were numerous community members who unleashed their anger at the LAPD for its history of injustice and brutality. The community’s response is reflective of their experiences with the deeper phenomenon of institutional violence and dehumanization.
GUESTS: Karume Jones, Community Coalition of South L.A., Joyti Chand, associate coordinator of the Civil Rights Unit at South Asian Network
One Response to “Police Brutality and State Violence: How Communities are Coping”
What is profiled most is inability to get help from the legal community supposedly dedicated to upholding people’s rights. Black, male, mentally-ill, come first on the list of in-season individuals. White, male, mentally-ill are next. If you regard those killed by the police, you will find “history of mental illness” in the victim often highlighted by the error-ridden reports of police shootings in the media.
Relax. It’s not you. It’s just some nut.