Police Brutality Exists Everywhere But in America, It Has Reached Another Level

This post has been inspired by the recent riots in America that caused global outrage because of the police killings.

But before I say anything about the police brutality in America, let me tell you an interesting story about the policing situation in my own country Somalia.

Just as recently as in late April, the Somali government-imposed night curfew in the capital Mogadishu due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic in order to curb the spread of the virus.

But a certain incident in one night involving the police marked the beginning of the end of this night curfew.

Here is what happened on the night of 24th April 2020 in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.

As the police were trying to impose the night curfew by all means, unfortunately, one policeman shot and killed a young man who was standing outside his home shortly after the Iftar(breaking the fast by drinking or eating) as was reported by the local news.

But that was not all, I wish it has stopped there, tragically the bullet didn’t and it went further killing another young lady who was pregnant inside the house.

A few hours later, word spread around the area about this violent act committed by the police. People living in the district area immediately came out in large numbers outraged about what happened.

Then the following morning, an angry crowd from all walks of life joined together for a march to protest the use of brute force and live bullets by the police on innocent civilians gathered in central areas in and around the capital demanding justice for the victims.

The Mayor of Mogadishu rushed to the protest scene immediately to calm things down and diffuse the situation before it escalates into nationwide protest.

He promised the crowd that justice will be served for the victims as early as possible and politely requested them to return to their normal activities.

The police commissioner also announced the firing of the inspector who was in charge of the district police station in which the incident took place as well as arresting the police officer who committed this unforgivable crime.

The police officer is currently on trial as you are reading this post and if convicted which is most likely that he will be, he will then be sentenced to the death penalty and taste the death that he caused to two innocent lives.

That was the last time we heard about police brutality in our country.

Update: As was expected the police officer has been convicted of first-degree murder by the court and maybe he will be hanged or will be shot to death. He has been given the chance to appeal the decision.

The situation in America

The above story happened in a country that is recovering from a civil war that has continued close to thirty years in which law and order were forgotten by its people unlike America, the undisputed world leader in the last thirty years after the end of the cold war and world power since the last century.

As someone who was following the news lately, I was shocked to see the footage of a policeman kneeling down on the neck of an unarmed black African-American man for more than eight minutes leading to his death.

To be more precise I am talking about the recent killing of George Floyd that caused outrage not only in America but around the world as well.

He has since become an icon for justice and freedom all over the world but the way of his death and the subsequent scenes of the protests that followed were not something you would normally expect from a country like the US.

What was even more disturbing were the images that spread like fire all over the internet displaying the use of force by the police on the peaceful protesters that were only demanding justice for George and reforms that will put an end to the police brutality in the US.

Despite the fact that some of the protesters were committing unacceptable violent actions such as looting, destroying properties, and confronting directly with the police, but the truth is and to be honest, that cannot justify the mishandling of the whole protest scenario by the authorities which have certainly let the American society down in general.

It has also shattered the image that many people around the world believed about American liberty, justice, and freedom.

The death of George Floyd has shown the world how deep racial injustice exits inside American society especially when it comes to police brutality against the African-Americans and other minority groups.

His death has also sparked the prominent rise of the Black Lives Matter movement to the global stage since it was established back in 2013 mainly for the cause of advocating for non-violent civil disobedience in protest against incidents of police brutality against African-American people.

Just three weeks after the death of Goerge Floyd, as protests were continuing all over the US. It seems as though his killing was not enough, another young African-American man was killed by the name of Rayshard Brooks. Guess who did it, again it was the police.

Final thoughts

This act of police killings on its own unarmed civilians should and must stop. The old system has failed America in this regard. Its time for the American people to take a united stand against police brutality in a very peaceful way.

The policymakers should also come up with new policies that will protect the rights of every citizen irrespective of their color skin, race, or religion and bring justice to them all.

I would like to conclude this post in the words of Malcolm X who said the following beautiful words:

“I am not a racist. I am against every form of racism and segregation, every form of discrimination. I believe in human beings, and that all human beings should be respected as such, regardless of their color.”

Thank you for your precious time.