Policing the Police 2020 Notes

Policing the Police 2020

Introduction

  • The documentary investigates the national outcry over police brutality and the efforts of one police force to change, focusing on Newark, New Jersey, as a case study.
  • The central question is whether policing can be reformed in a way that respects people's rights.
  • The film highlights the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Black people and the broader issue of racial inequality in America.
  • The documentary revisits Jelani Cobb's earlier work on police brutality in Ferguson and Baltimore at the dawn of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Newark's History and Reform Efforts

  • Newark, New Jersey, bears the scars of a violent rebellion in 1967 triggered by police brutality against a Black cab driver.
  • Decades later, the city was cited by the Department of Justice (D.O.J.) for abusive and discriminatory policing, including racial profiling, unconstitutional stops, and excessive force, particularly against Black people.
  • Newark became a laboratory for police reform with mandated changes from the Justice Department and the election of Mayor Ras Baraka, a longtime advocate for reform.
  • Baraka and Cobb discuss their shared experiences with police harassment as young Black men in Newark.

Civilian Oversight and Police Perspective

  • After years of calls for civilian oversight, Newark created a civilian review board with subpoena power and the ability to recommend discipline.
  • The film explores the perspective of Newark police officers, particularly those in the gang unit, who are tasked with getting guns off the streets in a city plagued by violence.
  • Officers describe conducting "field inquiries," which involve stopping and frisking individuals based on perceived suspicious behavior.
  • The Justice Department found that Newark police were stopping people without legal justification in approximately 75% of cases.

Constitutional Rights vs. Community Safety

  • The documentary questions whether it's possible to ensure community safety while respecting constitutional rights.
  • Officers argue that they are working to protect the community and that their actions are not motivated by race or a desire to violate rights.
  • Cobb recounts his own experiences with the police, including being stopped and frisked as a young man.
  • An incident involving the stopping and cuffing of a young man who