VIA Times – September 2014 Issue Vital News, Vibrant VIews for Asian Americans in Chicago & Midwest
By: Mark Javier
As a child, I remember meeting “Officer Friendly” and being taught that the police were nice, friendly and trustworthy. In large part, that remains true. However, my interactions and experience with the police changed as I grew older. The friendly interactions I was taught as a young child were replaced with suspicious and authoritarian encounters when I reached my teenage years. In college, I was the victim of a physical attack on the campus of my university and the police officers who responded to the incident discouraged me from pursuing charges – it is an encounter I still remember with uneasiness. On the other hand, I personally know friends who are police officers and have tremendous integrity, courage and professionalism. I respect the office of the police and recognize the difficulty in their work. This respect is tarnished when officers with low moral fortitude act against the purpose of our police force – to serve and protect. Recently, police misconduct was in the spotlight when white police officer shot and killed an unarmed African-American teen in Ferguson, Missouri. Many protested the use of deadly force in that instance and a national debate on police misconduct, particularly in poor communities, took center stage. However, police misconduct is not a new phenomenon. Chicago has seen its fair share of police abuse throughout history. One of the most infamous cases is that of former police commander Jon Burge, but that has not been the last. The city of Chicago recently settled two lawsuits dealing with police officers violating the civil rights of residents. In 2012, police shot and killed a 23-year-old manwho was suspected of participating in an armed robbery. Law enforcement initially stated that the man was advancing on officers with what they believed to be a handgun when he was shot. However, the man was found to be holding a flashlight and video evidence revealed that he was struck by a police vehicle and was attempting to run away. In 2013, undercover officers of the Chicago Police Department raided a message parlor and physically abused the petite Asian- American woman who managed the store while yelling anti-immigrant slurs at her. The incident was captured on video and shows the police attempting to locate the video in order to confiscate it. The city settled the 2012 shooting case for $1.25 million and the 2013 abuse case for $150,000. These settlements cost taxpayers valuable money that could be better used to fund schools, employment training programs, or other social services. But the social cost far outweighs the financial cost. When law enforcement crosses the line of executing their duty and venture into the realm abusing their power, they shed the banner of trust and respect that we as children learned to give them and cloak themselves in the same evil as the criminals they are charged with stopping. Communities are then less likely to engage with law enforcement to solve crimes because the community feels victimized at the hands of the police. We end up with communities where criminals can operate without fear of apprehension and where police continue to cross the line of professionalism in order to get the bad guy. Law-abiding citizens bear the cost of this unfortunate circumstance more than anyone. Law enforcement needs to increase its focus on training officers on community interaction and less violent means of enforcement. The culture of police departments and prosecutors’ offices cannot continue to protect and shelter abusive officers. Community members must increase their interaction with law enforcement in order to develop trust and understanding. Police misconduct diminishes the value of the police force and community. Simply put, we cannot afford it.
