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African American

In reply to the discussion: White people have always [View all]

gollygee

(22,336 posts)
1. There's a reason for this
Fri May 11, 2018, 09:00 AM
May 2018

That is why police departments were originally formed

http://plsonline.eku.edu/insidelook/brief-history-slavery-and-origins-american-policing

The birth and development of the American police can be traced to a multitude of historical, legal and political-economic conditions. The institution of slavery and the control of minorities, however, were two of the more formidable historic features of American society shaping early policing. Slave patrols and Night Watches, which later became modern police departments, were both designed to control the behaviors of minorities. For example, New England settlers appointed Indian Constables to police Native Americans (National Constable Association, 1995), the St. Louis police were founded to protect residents from Native Americans in that frontier city, and many southern police departments began as slave patrols. In 1704, the colony of Carolina developed the nation's first slave patrol. Slave patrols helped to maintain the economic order and to assist the wealthy landowners in recovering and punishing slaves who essentially were considered property.

Policing was not the only social institution enmeshed in slavery. Slavery was fully institutionalized in the American economic and legal order with laws being enacted at both the state and national divisions of government. Virginia, for example, enacted more than 130 slave statutes between 1689 and 1865. Slavery and the abuse of people of color, however, was not merely a southern affair as many have been taught to believe. Connecticut, New York and other colonies enacted laws to criminalize and control slaves. Congress also passed fugitive Slave Laws, laws allowing the detention and return of escaped slaves, in 1793 and 1850. As Turner, Giacopassi and Vandiver (2006:186) remark, “the literature clearly establishes that a legally sanctioned law enforcement system existed in America before the Civil War for the express purpose of controlling the slave population and protecting the interests of slave owners. The similarities between the slave patrols and modern American policing are too salient to dismiss or ignore. Hence, the slave patrol should be considered a forerunner of modern American law enforcement.”

The legacy of slavery and racism did not end after the Civil War. In fact it can be argued that extreme violence against people of color became even worse with the rise of vigilante groups who resisted Reconstruction. Because vigilantes, by definition, have no external restraints, lynch mobs had a justified reputation for hanging minorities first and asking questions later. Because of its tradition of slavery, which rested on the racist rationalization that Blacks were sub-human, America had a long and shameful history of mistreating people of color, long after the end of the Civil War. Perhaps the most infamous American vigilante group, the Ku Klux Klan started in the 1860s, was notorious for assaulting and lynching Black men for transgressions that would not be considered crimes at all, had a White man committed them. Lynching occurred across the entire county not just in the South. Finally, in 1871 Congress passed the Ku Klux Klan Act, which prohibited state actors from violating the Civil Rights of all citizens in part because of law enforcements’ involvement with the infamous group. This legislation, however, did not stem the tide of racial or ethnic abuse that persisted well into the 1960s.

Though having white skin did not prevent discrimination in America, being White undoubtedly made it easier for ethnic minorities to assimilate into the mainstream of America. The additional burden of racism has made that transition much more difficult for those whose skin is black, brown, red, or yellow. In no small part because of the tradition of slavery, Blacks have long been targets of abuse. The use of patrols to capture runaway slaves was one of the precursors of formal police forces, especially in the South. This disastrous legacy persisted as an element of the police role even after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In some cases, police harassment simply meant people of African descent were more likely to be stopped and questioned by the police, while at the other extreme, they have suffered beatings, and even murder, at the hands of White police. Questions still arise today about the disproportionately high numbers of people of African descent killed, beaten, and arrested by police in major urban cities of America.

White people have always [View all] heaven05 May 2018 OP
There's a reason for this gollygee May 2018 #1
thank you heaven05 May 2018 #5
Its said how telling these truth... some can't deal with it. Civic Justice May 2018 #60
the truth heaven05 May 2018 #64
Just be careful. Dems are on your side. sharedvalues May 2018 #2
true, this nt heaven05 May 2018 #3
. Squinch May 2018 #35
There is no need to stereotype "white people." Doodley May 2018 #4
okay, heaven05 May 2018 #6
No need to apologize. Some of us are too ready to concentrate on a percieved slam and miss... marble falls May 2018 #9
Told you NEVER use the W word, will INSTANTLY bring you trouble. Eliot Rosewater May 2018 #14
Please do not apologize billh58 May 2018 #22
No Need For Apology Me. May 2018 #27
I accept your apology. If you read a post that stated black people... followed by a generalization Doodley May 2018 #36
Using slang language to describe a whole race of people is equally offensive. Doodley May 2018 #40
I won't stop heaven05 May 2018 #65
First of all, there's no such thing as "a race of people." Race is a social/political construct. Garrett78 May 2018 #71
sometimes the "not all white people" thing is really just a bit too much. unblock May 2018 #7
A similar generalization about black people would be unacceptable PatentlyDemocratic May 2018 #12
... Eliot Rosewater May 2018 #15
LOL heaven05 May 2018 #49
Hahahahaha ismnotwasm May 2018 #58
Are you aware this is the African American group? gollygee May 2018 #23
reread my post. in no way did the o.p. accuse every last white person of racist police calling. unblock May 2018 #30
I will be honest, if I was not who I am, and I had to put up with the Eliot Rosewater May 2018 #34
Are you saying being racially sensitive to others is on condition of "more progress?" Doodley May 2018 #39
what i'm saying is that it's not for white people to come into an african american group and insist unblock May 2018 #42
Thank you for saying so. Doodley May 2018 #38
"When one is accustomed to privilege equality feels like oppression".... marble falls May 2018 #67
If there is no consistency of standard in treatment of people of different races, why demand it in LanternWaste May 2018 #69
+100! n/t billh58 May 2018 #24
Do you want to read about "Black people", followed by a description of deplorable behavior? Doodley May 2018 #37
I told you not to come here and pick fights gollygee May 2018 #41
We live that shit every day JustAnotherGen May 2018 #43
every day heaven05 May 2018 #50
Not remotely the same thing. unblock May 2018 #61
I bet you have a huge collection of those, right? marble falls May 2018 #68
Your sentiment is not hypothetical... it's an every day reality for POC. LanternWaste May 2018 #70
++ heaven05 May 2018 #48
Please don't come into this group just to say #notallwhitepeople gollygee May 2018 #20
I would like to say I am shocked. sheshe2 May 2018 #8
This week has been a freaking eye opener, hasn't it? Shocking, deplorable and majorly disappointing. marble falls May 2018 #11
Yes it sure was an eye opener. sheshe2 May 2018 #25
I used to think that as my father and grandfathers have passed and I am in my autum that ... marble falls May 2018 #44
I'm white DownriverDem May 2018 #10
They should be charged with filing a false report bigbrother05 May 2018 #18
They Should Be Charged Me. May 2018 #29
I'd rather a stiff fine and a jailing for repeat offenders. brush May 2018 #62
K&R geardaddy May 2018 #13
OF course it was FUCKING ALERTED ON Eliot Rosewater May 2018 #16
You are correct, Mr. Rosewater geardaddy May 2018 #17
Doesnt it seem like we are living in one of his books, maybe my fave, Eliot Rosewater May 2018 #19
Very much so. geardaddy May 2018 #21
I agree nt heaven05 May 2018 #51
wait, wait, wait -- someone called the du police on a post about racist police calling? unblock May 2018 #26
I know! Oh the irony! geardaddy May 2018 #32
I wonder if AA cops are more aligned with their cop peers than with other AAs. Chemisse May 2018 #28
I think it's an example of how the criminal justice system is filled with systemic racism gollygee May 2018 #31
It seems to me heaven05 May 2018 #52
More than once, I heard the incredulous statement mountain grammy May 2018 #33
yeah, the entrenchment is set heaven05 May 2018 #66
heaven - just a little Group Host here but JustAnotherGen May 2018 #45
... sheshe2 May 2018 #47
thank you heaven05 May 2018 #53
This message was self-deleted by its author hughee99 May 2018 #46
Nazis got people to March and hail. Looks like racists in the US are applegrove May 2018 #54
If a person knows heaven05 May 2018 #55
Heartbreaking but I am sure the brightest minds in the US are on the case applegrove May 2018 #59
let us prevail heaven05 May 2018 #63
One of most vile examples was police sent to stop people fleeing Katrina Hoyt May 2018 #56
yep heaven05 May 2018 #57
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