Our Police Are Out of Control

Another day, another black man killed by police. One newspaper lists the overall total so far this year as 532: people of color, people unarmed, people with mental disabilities. The number may even be higher.

Endemic racism is of course one component, but there's also a larger context: the juggernaut militarization of police forces around the country, and an unconscious change of mission. Too many cops see themselves as soldiers fighting enemies rather than protecting and defending us citizens. They're bristling with military weapons and the attitude that goes with them--as if the war in Iraq were about to break out on the streets of our "homeland."

Here in my own state Michigan, many police forces have put themselves on a list to get Mine Resistant Ambush Proof (MRAP) vehicles from the Defense Department. Don't know what those are? They're vehicles designed to withstand ambushes and attacks from IEDs, improvised explosive devices. Which as we know, have been longterm threats in every state of the Union.

Here's the list of Michigan agencies eager to defend against this violence:

Saginaw Police Department
Highland Park Police Department
Oakland County Sheriff
Wayne County Sheriff
Niles Police Department
Macomb County Sheriff
East Lansing Police Department
Genesee County Sheriff
Westland Police Department
Kalamazoo County Sheriff
St. Clair Shores Police Department
Battle Creek Police Department
Wyoming Police Department
Novi Police Department
Sterling Heights Police Department
Mt. Morris Township Police Department

If you're in Michigan and don't recall ever reading or hearing a news story about mines, IEDs, or ambushes in any of these locales, don't blame your memory. Blame the facts. Blame the Pentagon. Blame the Patriot Act. Blame the overuse of SWAT teams (for things as simple as serving warrants). Blame any government at any level that thinks military weapons should be in the hands of over-zealous police.

Lev Raphael is the author of Assault With a Deadly Lie, a crime novel about out-of-control cops which was a finalist for The Midwest Book Award. His 24 other books can also be found on Amazon.

This Blogger's Books and Other Items from...

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Our Police Are Out of Control