Curbing Criminal Injustices
Introduction
The police have always been at the limelight of ensuring the safety of citizen through the continued way of criminology. The Wall Street movement occupation on the other hand has been at screenshots relaying vital issues affecting the common citizen. The movement and brutality of some of the arms of the government in America and Canada are the main issues affecting the judicial systems being monitored under the implementation of criminal law. These movements encourage unhealthy conditions of living and the preponderance of drugs and increased criminal activity. As a result, it has been necessary to address how the two affect the police administration, justice, and law.
“Occupation Wall Street” Movement
Originality of the “occupation Wall Street” movement sprung up from the inevitable change happening in the world such as staggering unemployment cases, the rampant economic crisis and the wretched politicians vying for America’s and Canada’s political arena. Reasons as to why the movement attracted the legislative eye is due to the unorganized marching, chanting, protesting and picketing associated with its links. They are known to be conducting their demonstration in the Zuccotti Park in the business district of Wall Street while. In Canada the occupation movements concur to Occupy streets of Ottawa, Montreal, Victoria, Toronto and Vancouver. They are also identified with their slogan “We are the 99%” meaning that they represent the majority and their wealth difference as compared to the remaining 1% of the wealthiest among the America’s and Canada’s population.
Their activists’ activities have drummed in support for them from other agencies, organizations and institutions. The Canadian Wall Street movement has always been accredited by the ‘Adbusters’ who have been highlighting their issues in their magazine. (Gelder, 2011, p. 16) In America the New York City General Assembly (NYCGA) has been assisting the movement in making vital decisions. All the same it has always been difficult for them to address their own policy demands. Journalists have been facing a difficult time trying to explain to the public the objectives of the movement.
As it is globally known, the “Occupation Wall Street “Movement is increasing steadily showing no signs of retreating from their dubious deeds. They are known as a handy group of activists advocating for decision being made rationally from a consensus point of view. The idea of announcing the occupation was received well by others by strongly disapproved by the police. David Graeber, who was there, thinks the move was audacious and brilliant. (Gelder, 2011, p. 15) the movement has also been attributed with positive outcomes. According to Naomi Klein, Occupy Wall Street movement, along with sister movements around the world are our best hope of dealing with huge global challenges like climate change, overfishing, and massive inequality. (Gelder, 2011, p. 15)
Problematic issues arising with the movement have been encountered when the individuals take the law on their own hands without taking the initial direction of the leaders put in place; even though they have accomplished victories through their well-organized and persistent street action. Again, they are also tied up to the rise of some upheavals worldwide such as the Arab Spring. Arousal of such chaos has been responded to by the police due to the group’s autonomous actions accompanied by violent responses. The upcoming convulsions from the “Occupy Wall Street” movement conjured up media attention and ultimately the whole worlds’ too.
Aware to other people, the “Occupy Wall Street” has been perceived to keeping nonviolent conditions while relaying their issues. They have not been involved with any intentional destruction of property. Their self-defense against police violence has been mainly with cameras, not physical force (though when tensions escalate during confrontations with the police, one sometimes sees a few protesters coming very close to the precipice). (Gelder, 2011, p. 40) Instances of violation of the law by the movement are experienced at the Zuccotti Park where some of the occupants of the movement have pitched their tents. Other basic amenities are also donated to them from other concerned members of the public. Notices of vacating the Park from the police have been issued to the occupants but with no positive feedback of leaving. Other members of the movement have also undergone arrests for misconduct to the police departments executing the vacation programs. (Justin, 2011)
For any organization to hold public meeting, permits from local authorities and police are issued but for the Occupation Wall Street movement, they are never granted these permits. As a result they use “a human microphone” created by the protesters. It uses a mechanism in which the audience reiterates a phrase made by the speaker in unison. The maintenance of law and order by the police has in turn been questioned due to what the Occupants refer to necessity and legitimacy of exercising the enforcement of local ordinances. (Justin, 2011) They assert that the police are unable to carry out their assigned role and that is the main reason why they spend sleepless nights and days trying to power in support for the contentious issues they address to authorities.
Reactions from the police have added spurred up controversies as compared to other members of the public. The police usually figure a creative way to get to understand the motives of the protesters of the movement. A major technique is by liaising with them. Their plans have outraged a lot of cash as it has been used in arresting the rising number of criminals associated with the movement. Despite all that, the ruling enforcement officers have been always been at compromising situations since some of them identify with what the movement is protesting against. Nevertheless, as the arrests of the Occupants increases, the police get severely alleged to enhance brutality making the management of the movement’s plans by the police hard. (Gelder, 2011, p. 21)
Police Brutality
Physical belligerence by the police, when illegally unjustified, is depicted to constitute police brutality. Subjectivity of police brutality has been at the public eye for quite a lengthy period of time. Police officers have been constantly been accused with the use of force while executing their lawful job. To some extent they have extended their job to violating some rights of the suspects and crossing their boundaries to immeasurable extents. This has left citizens more skeptic with their troubled feelings when police say they are acting in accordance to standardized laws set in place. Their mistrust is hardly surprising, given a history of differential treatment in the system of criminal justice, a problem especially apparent in police conduct.
An incidental and common method that the police use to achieve this is by using tasers to temporarily incapacitate the suspect. Forcing tones of electric volts to a human’s body is personally violating their civil rights. The stakes are further raised when the use of an ECD Taser results in death. A Las Vegas man who attempted to flee from the police on foot during a traffic stop December 11, 2010 was killed when they repeatedly Tased him in an effort to subdue him during the arrest, (Dana, 2010) Other ways are through falsifying an arrest, sexually abusing prisoners or those under custody, exercising corruption, and abuse of their surveillance role, racism and repressing politicians.
Sometimes out of fury, police are forced to get personal and bend the laws. An attempt by a suspect to escape or hostile citizens challenging authority evokes such feelings and unlawful actions from the police. Sometimes these actions are self-motivated by politicians. Racism, a worldwide issue also motivates the police to extend the law into their own hands. The 19th Century was a relatively difficult year for Canada since police brutalities were championed in terms of racism. (Ross, 2005, p. 316) Americans on the other hand were transfixed by an amateur video showing Los Angeles police officers beating Rodney King, an African American citizen. (Holmes & Smith, 2008, p. 1)
Police professionalism through proper moral character, adequate education and static personalities has been used to critically assess individuals pursuing the administrative career. Nevertheless, intrapersonal behaviors are not known hence as an individual explores his career as a police, habitual practices change. Behaviouristic issues of the police are the main cause of the prevalence of police brutality. It is said that the formal an informal characteristics of police organizations determine the street-level behavior of police officers, behaviors that foster police-minority and promote police brutality. (Holmes & Smith, 2008, p. 127) Levels of force are set in “a use of force continuum” to put considerations in response to the behavior of the subject too.
Though some social, emotionalized issues suggest inevitability of terminating police brutality, people have tried to devise several unique methodologies of coping with the problematic issue. Canada has the media has tried to show case put to the limelight the unbecoming behavior of the police through the informal government press-control.(Ross, 2005, p. 334) As experienced in Canada and U.S police cars are fitted with cameras and are provided equipment for capturing the arrest trail to provide more acute evidences. Police departments should also be subjected to alterations of their organizational culture. Some organizations have also been set up to investigate brutality claims concerning the police and punish them accordingly. Agencies such as Amnesty International are just but an example. Other effective ways are to dismiss the police officers faced with brutality charges. However this has not been 100% efficient since the dismissed police are later reinstated after a short period of time. This is always through the aid of politicians hence enhancing brutality through political recession.
Monitored progress concerning “Occupation Wall Street” movement and instances of police brutality has shown significant betterment through proper policing of relations pertaining race and wealth. Sometimes it is also perceived that outdoor pressures are indispensable in forcing police administrations to perk up accountability. However, the accountability has been undermined whereby the officers are entitled to safeguards and protection rights that they enjoy instead of taking full and lawful advantage of them. Unless the retrogression of police brutality and “Occupation Wall Street” movement is hastily addressed, criminal activity and enormous efforts of the criminal judicial system to reduce it get deterred.
In summary, “Occupation Wall Street” movement and police brutality have been the main obstacles hindering the decrement of social crimes across America and Canada. They have also caused elusive issues in the handling of criminal justice. This has trigged law enforcement agencies to pursue legal appeals to curd the criminal rise through the two issues. Justice departments across the U.S have been at the fore front to curd criminal activity hovering around
police practice and among demonstrations from activists’ groups such as the “Occupation Wall Street” movement.
References
Gelder, S. V. (2011). This Changes Everything: Occupy Wall Street and the 99% Movement. New York: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Justin, D. (2011). Criminal Justice Degree Schools: Occupy Movement Challenges Law Enforcement Methodology.
Dana. (2010). Criminal Justice Degree Schools: Questions, Concerns Rise with Use of Tasers.
Holmes, M. D. & Smith, B. W. (2008). Race and Police Brutality: Roots of an urban dilemma. New York: SUNY Press.
Ross, J. I. (2005). Violence in Canada: Sociopolitical perspectives. Toronto: Transaction Publishers.
