Features of Human Rights- Police Brutality (Willow Carter)

 Over the past several months the Black Lives Matter protests have been going on across the country, bringing many systemic issues to light. Most prominently, it has brought the issue of police brutality into the minds of many people, and also how the police are treating protestors. I believe that the actions of many police officers during many protests are violating the declaration of human rights. 

Since the protests began in June, there have also been hundreds of reports against the police for using excessive force on peaceful protestors. Along with that, the use of rubber bullets, pepper spray, and tear gas has been widespread among police. This is within violation of article 5 of the declaration of human rights, which states: "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment.". There are dozens of videos of police treating protestors and journalists in ways that can be considered cruel and inhumane. Most notable to me was a video I saw of police pushing over an elderly man who was moving away from them. The man lands onto concrete and the officers who pushed him did nothing to help him as he is seen visibly bleeding. 

Along with that, tear gas has been a commonly used tool of the police during the protests, and it is completely legal for them to do so. However, tear gas is banned from actual warfare because it's considered cruel. This leaves the question: why are the police using a weapon that is banned from warfare on civilians?

The protests began as a call for police reform, and for police to be held more accountable. However, as the protests have gone on, that lack of accountability has allowed them to do things that quite literally violate human rights. The issues are clear, and they must be reformed to allow us to feel safe around the people we trust to protect us. 




Sources: https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/04/us/blm-protests-peaceful-report-trnd/index.html

https://www.insider.com/tear-gas-banned-from-war-why-dangerous-how-to-neutralize-2020-6

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFeewU0HhNE (Warning, graphic)

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