For this IP, you will have the choice of addressing ONE of two significant events described below.
Event 1
The 1960s was a very turbulent decade as the civil and voting rights movements provoked many marches and demonstrations causing citizens to have numerous clashes with local law enforcement. One historical event was Bloody Sunday on March 7, 1965, which involved peaceful minority marchers with police and was televised across the nation. The marchers were attempting to walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama when they were met by police, and it eventually turned into a riotous situation with police using excessive force to stop the marchers.
Before beginning this assignment, please watch the video by clicking on the link below. Once the page loads, click on the link titled Video: Bloody Sunday.
Bloody Sunday Video
Assignment Guidelines
- Address the following in 3–5 pages:
- Discuss the key points of the Bloody Sunday incident.
- When and where did it occur?
- What happened during the incident, and why did it happen? Explain.
- What impacts did this event have on the relationship between the police and the community that they are sworn to protect? Explain in detail.
- How have events similar to Bloody Sunday affected modern police relationships? Explain.
- By today’s standards, what lessons learned have allowed police to be better equipped to handle situations that do not allow or call for use of force? Explain.
- Be sure to reference all sources using APA style.
Event 2
The 8 years of the Obama Administration and the aftermath of the 2016 U.S. presidential election was a very turbulent time, especially for police and community relations. Many police use-of-force incidents that occurred during this time period resulted in significant protests and riots. Reactions to such incidents were often based on emotions at the event; people did not wait for facts. The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement came into existence, with other fringe groups such as Antifa (short for anti-fascists), complicating police–community relations. A BLM protest that had been peaceful turned tragically violent when a sniper shot and killed five Dallas police officers providing security for the BLM protestors. The suspect, a BLM sympathizer, was killed by Dallas PD when he was cornered in a parking structure. Other high-profile police murders were apparently motivated by strained police–community and race relations.
Review the following videos and associated articles:
Assignment Guidelines
- Address the following in 3–5 pages:
- Discuss the strained police–community relations of the time period of 2014–present.
- Why did strained relations come to be?
- What is the origin of BLM?
- What role, if any, do you think BLM played in the strained police–community relations?
- Identify and explain 1 other incident that appears to have been motivated by strained police–community relations.
- What role might movements such as BLM have in restoring police–community relations?
- Should all persons associated with movements such as BLM be viewed as the same?
- Be sure to reference all sources using APA style.
