Protected by Enemies: Revised

Police Officers are here to protect and make others feel protected, but who do you
turn to when you need protection from them? Police brutality against African Americans
is a rising conflict that has become a disgustingly common occurrence. Police brutality is
extremely racist and minimal punishment is given to officers because of their race. The
political cartoon I chose clearly displays the depths of police brutality against African
Americans; it illustrates aspects of cruel and unusual punishment by officers to the
African American community. Society does nothing about pressing this issue, thus,
consequently, as a result opens doors for police officers to do what they want and escape
punishment. The black community does everything they can to bring attention to these
racial actions by advocating for and demanding change, however, their voices are
silenced by societys lack of action. The police officers involved in these racist activities
are quick to express how their actions are not associated with the ideology issue of race,
yet is a product of abiding by their duty to protect and serve the community or self
defense. African Americans, predominitly men, are perceived as a threat to society;
because of this, they are viewed as targets to police officers and are dangerous to others.
These stereotypes of African American men affect them in various ways that society
either overlooks or simply shows no interest. The political cartoon illustrates just a mild
example of the disgusting prejudice and treatment that African Americans face daily
whether they are in the wrong or not. To society, simply being African American is a
crime in itself.
The political cartoon I chose is an example of police brutality against African
Americans. Police brutality is defined as A civil rights violation that occurs when a

police officer acts with excessive force by using an amount of force with regards to a
civilian that is more than necessary(uslegal). The selected cartoon depicts police officers
brutally beating a young African American male and female black and blue despite
having surrendered. In the cartoon there are a total of three police officers, one white
male and two black males. Although there are black officers in this cartoon, I consider
this cartoon to reflect a racist incident. It isnt easy in society for African Americans to
obtain careers of such high social standards like a policeman because African Americans
are generally stereotyped negatively. Because of that, many of the few African
Americans that do have the privilege of obtaining the job have to let go of their selfidentity and take on the role as that of a white male in order to survive in the field. They,
in a way, become another white police officer because they feel the need to prove
themselves to their counterparts. The cartoon is a perfect example of this. The two black
policemen are going against their own people just to go along with the white police
officers actions. Their batons are repeatedly swinging onto the victims with a great deal
of unnecessary force, thus giving the African Americans bruised, discolored eyes. Their
hands are up above their faces, trying to block the blows of the batons and also show that
they surrender to the officers; however, the officers do not care. These officers are
abusing their power in a way that should lead to a jail sentence, however, there is a white
officer participating in this brutal beating, therefore, more than likely minimal or no
sentencing will occur.
This cartoon is more than just a few policemen beating African Americans to a
pulp, but it perpetuates police brutality as becoming a social norm. the police in the
image arent facing the audience; however, they are aware of the audiences exisentce

and do not care. The beatings take place out in the open, where others are likely to see,
but does that doe not matter to the policemen. They are aware of the fact that they can be
seen and they do not care because as the police, they can escape facing the consequences
of their actions. To a certain extent, there is freedom felt by white policemen to do
whatever they want without consequence. White policemen are frequently able to get
away with murder because of the title they hold and their skin color. Because of this,
there will be an ongoing cycle. In the cartoon, the policemen are positioned standing over
the victims. When looked at closely, this suggests a level of superiority the policemen
have over the victims, very similar to the reality within society. Policemen are seen as
superior beings because they hold guns for a living, however, this is not the truth, they
are human beings just like everyone else.
The background of the image contains a police car with Salisbury Police written
on it to convey that these policemen are officers of the Salisbury, North Carolina police
department. This minute detail reflects a larger picture. Anyone in the Salisbury county
can face this form of brutality. Because of this realization, African Americans within this
city are subject to live their lives in fear. Any suspicious behavior can result in actions
such as these. This image was produced shortly after the Felicia Gibson caseA young
woman sat outside her home, recording the policemen as they victimized her neighbors.
A policeman targeted her recording and demanded her and her family to go back inside
their home. In the process of doing so, the officer claimed that he heard someone giggle
and proceeded to pursue Felicia inside her home, drug her out, and took her to jail for
reasons in which she did not deserve (uslegal). This image was not directly produced to
be an example of this case specifically, but instead it was drawn to display what the

Salisbury Police Officers are capable of. This political cartoon is a prime example of
racial discrimination against African Americans by white officers.
Racial Prejudice against African Americans can cause serious psychological
damage and alter ones view of themselves. In the article Black Men and Public Spaces
by Brent Staples, he explains how because of the way society views him as an individual,
he goes the extra mile to make sure he doesnt give off the wrong idea to anyone he
encounters on a regular day basis. He notes, I began to take precautions to make myself
less threatening. I move about with care, particularly late in the evening(186). The
saddened reality is that Staples must make sure that every move he makes is as calm and
non-threatening as possible. The stereotypes of black men being robbers, muggers,
killers, etc. are very much believed by police officers. White police officers spot African
Americans and automatically assume that theyre up to no good. They pursue them even
if theyre harming no one and eventually attack them for no reason. This is what police
brutality against African Americans is mostly about, white police officers targeting
innocent black people and treating them as if they arent worth more than the scum at the
bottom of their shoes.
Some people may argue that police officers that abuse their powers towards
African Americans arent doing it in a racist manner, that the officers are simply targeting
people who appear to be up to no good. They may argue that it only appears to be racist
because African Americans get targeted often, but thats due to the fact that they are the
race that commits the most crimes; however, these reasons are all invalid. There is no
excuse for police brutality. African Americans are targeted and taken advantage of

because they are the race that is thought the lowest of. They are treated unfairly and the
policemen deserve to be punished.
Racism among the African American culture is not dead. It is very much alive
today and the only thing covering it up is the lies and excuses people tell. The political
cartoon is an eye opener to the fact that society approves of this type of horrific behavior
among police officers. Black men should never have to come up with various ways to
make themselves not seem a certain way because of societys perception of them.
Something has to change. Additional training should be required for police officers in
which would specialize in learning how to handle situations such as resistance, verbal
attacks, and physical attacks. There should be rules made, for example before pulling out
a baton, 3 actions of resistance should be done first. When a baton is then pulled out, only
certain areas of the body such as legs and arms should allowed to be hit. A lot needs to be
changed within the police department itself in order for this world to progress. African
Americans should never fear a group of people who are supposed to be here to protect
them. Who is really here for them besides their own kind? No one.