Movies and Media are representations of events undergoing in our society. What may be happening on our streets may just become a recreated image of a more drastic problem. On the big screen there are many reoccurrences of police crossing between the acting as a Police officer doing their job, and the image of abusing their poor. Police being aggressiveness can be link to a very dangerous cultural problem in American society.
Television wasn’t recreated until the beginning of the mid-twentieth century.
Most of the first movies, of course in black-in white, were all-time classics of universal love-stories. Eventually, movies and directors want to take these classics in to more action/adventure approach, and upgrading with excessive violence. The resulting balance created these old gangster and mob movies. For example the movie called “Scarface.” The idea was to entertain the entire audience by designing villainous criminals working for the mob ad disobeying the law and not playing by the rules. Scarface’s character is symbolic profile for personifying the aspects of a realistic Mob dealer, Al Capone, from the roaring twenties days in Chicago. This twentieth century film showed the Chicago Police force being as cruel and wicked as the Mob dealer’s character being portrayed. The plot was a simple series of events that later led to the Police force by any means, working to apprehend their suspect. The Police force were endangering many civilians to capture their man. Army tanks were even being used in blowing up neighborhoods. Also people suspected of working for the mob were either shot or killed, with out warning. The police wanted the villainous “Scarface” DEAD or ALIVE!
If you didn’t know the fact that police are protectors for the innocent, and upholders of justice, the police would look just like the “bad guys” in this particular film. Police were shooting and killing as much as the mobs were doing. The mob was the syndicate for injustice and villainy in their city. The police were tired of recapturing and releasing mob dealer’s back on the street, so they wanted to target their main culprits, to remove the plague of mobs. One inference that can made from the plot is that the Justice System and Law enforcement is weak and in-effective. The “good cop routine” was a joke when compared to these highly advanced and intelligent criminals. This is why the Police Chief in the movie wanted the mob to literally die out, if they wanted to return peace and justice That is why the Protagonist, Head of all other officers, wanted to all the Chicago police force to shoot first, and question later. Police according to this film, wanted to show not only the mob, but society as a whole as we mean business. This is an attempt to explain why police are brutal, but is does not explain the justification behind these inhumane actions.
Moving forward in this timeline, in stead of gangster movies, many movies now show officers in stead of acting brutal on the street, more brutal in their habitat, jail and prison penitentiaries. The modern classic would be Shawshank Redemption, starring Morgan Freeman. This movie showed how cruel officers could be behind their own closed doors. This is a non-fictional story. The characters are based on true people as well. The main character named Ande Dupree, who will spend life in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. The reality is that, this movie revealed a side of the law enforcement‘s abuse of power, which is detestable to the public’s eye. The warden and lieutenant Bradley are both abusing power. They run the prisons using brutality at an alarming rate. Since they are corrupt individuals, they killed people who had information of their embezzlements, and attacked inmates of Shawshank to a point where they needed intensive care. When criminals are brought to justice and taken to a federal penitentiary, no one can know for sure what happens to them, because most of them will never step another foot outside beyond their walls. The author wants the viewers to critically question society’s law enforcement actions. Do people who serve, protect, and uphold the law have the right to treat individuals who fall victim to the law with inhuman actions, without any justification of their actions.
An officer’s only primary purpose is to serve for the public good. As the author of the Shawshank Redemption and Scarface tried to illustrate, does it really matter how an officer does his job, whether or not he decides to use excessive power or moderate enforcement procedures to serve for the common good.
Numerous deaths are reported each year caused by police. This is one of the big problems with police brutality. Safe and effective law enforcement is a vital ingredient for a stabilized society. Innocent victims should not have to fear criminals, nor should they fear are own police. Everyone is concerned with their own safety and for the safety of their friend, family and relatives. Aggressiveness in police oppression only can lead to the jeopardy of the one’s we care about. This mentality that is being portrayed in much of the media we see today, only adds to the consequences of the empowering body of law and service of our Enforcement officers.
No matter if an individual is convicted of a crime or is suspected of probable cause, it is the obligation of our American Judiciary System and Due process of law to determine whether or not a person should die, according to the death penalty. These unnecessary deaths due to brutal officers is simply out of control. To further engage in the number of casualties each year, only subjects the American public to more oppression.
On the big screen, it is rather convincing that the actors are only acting. In real public streets and sidewalks, individuals being abused by an officer is representation of how the society reflects how justice should be enacted. This is not an uncommon scenario or a rare moment in our lives. More and more crooked cops are walking in our streets. To watch an innocent person be nearly killed for a small misdemeanor is evidence that the Public as a whole supports that are cops need to do what ever is necessary for the good of the public.
Police should not be any more above the law than any other American citizen. In much of the media and movies, especially that we see today, we let these oppressive cops get a way with abuse. The message is implying that police oppression is right. Police oppression is part of the duty of an officer to serve and up hold righteousness. Seeing an officer kill someone in these movies is saying that, as an officer, it is an officer’s duty to execute those responsible for being insubordinate to the law, regardless of how significant or superficial the crime committed has been.
American government is upheld by law enforcement. The way in which law enforcement conduct this process is the reflection of American society functioning as a whole. American government is a people’s democracy, a government run by the people. Likewise, Law enforcement should be uphold the same principles, a government ruled by the people for the people.
Sources
What side are you on.10 novemeber2007
http://www.bolshevik.org/1917/no30/no30-Screws_out_PCS.html
Explaining police acts of integrity.
http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p_mla_apa_research_citation/2/0/1/1/5/p201155_index.html
What the police do.
http://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/UNDERZONE/about-us/what-do.htm
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111161/
Scarface: The shae of a nation
http://www.filmsite.org/scar.html
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