Faces of Policing

In this sad week for American policing, two pictures from the past. On the left, from a labor protest in the Los Angeles area with police looking militaristic and intimidating. On the right, of police at Palm Springs Gay Pride showing support for the community.

American policing is often contradictory, with too many situations where significant parts of the population are seen as bad and needing to be controlled, but also having police outreach to communities that were once seen as targets. The Dallas police department, the target in today’s shootings, was known for its efforts to deescalate situations and to work with community groups.

I suspect the problems are only marginally related to policing, instead more reflective of a culture where strong group boundaries, and the strong (sometimes lethal) enforcement of group boundaries, has replaced the willingness to take the time and responsibility for maintaining culture as a joint activity.