Why are the police so intimidated by protesters?

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ironpony
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06 Sep 2020, 12:07 am

All these protests about defunding the police, and the police in major U.S. cities are actually listening, and defunding themselves.

But the police have gone up against the mafia, terrorist groups, etc. Why are they intimidated by these protesters, who are basically amateurs compared to real criminal organizations? The police have no problem taking on armed gunmen in fights, but people holding up defund the police signs are too scary for them for some reason. Unless I am missing something?



Last edited by Feyokien on 06 Sep 2020, 12:44 am, edited 1 time in total.: poster requested typo fix

Kraichgauer
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06 Sep 2020, 12:45 am

The protesters are something terrorists of the Mafia aren't... they're lawful citizens who can take part in the democratic system, vote, get elected to office, and such in order to bring about change.


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Feyokien
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06 Sep 2020, 1:04 am

[Moved from News and Current events to PPR. No specific news story]



cyberdad
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06 Sep 2020, 1:07 am

The impression I get is most of the protesters are peaceful. The few looting and vandalising are using the protests as a smokescreen to cause trouble. The latter are being used to disenfranchise those supposed to be exercising their constitutional rights.



ironpony
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06 Sep 2020, 2:19 am

Oh okay, but that's what I mean. Why would the police listen to the protests and defund themselves, in the sense that why are they threatened and bending the knee to peaceful people?



cyberdad
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06 Sep 2020, 2:37 am

ironpony wrote:
Oh okay, but that's what I mean. Why would the police listen to the protests and defund themselves, in the sense that why are they threatened and bending the knee to peaceful people?


Black residents of black neighbourhoods would be the last to want the police defunded. The messages from various BLM related groups are hardly unanimous.

Many black and white supporters of protests barely understand why they are protesting, it seems to be a general sense that racial equality still needs more work.



ironpony
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06 Sep 2020, 2:37 am

Oh okay, but why are they protesting if they barely understand why then?



cyberdad
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06 Sep 2020, 3:15 am

I think for similar reasons young men and women arose in the 1960s as part of the general "zeitgiest" of the times. Social media has given rise to many movements around the world including the Arab spring, climate action, #Metoo and now the BLM protests about police brutality.

Often young people aren't sophisticated enough to articulate their arguments but they want to do something about injustice.



kraftiekortie
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06 Sep 2020, 3:31 am

If you’ve experienced being stopped and frisked by the cops just because you ran near a drug location, you would want to end injustice.



ironpony
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06 Sep 2020, 3:50 am

Well technically the police aren't allowed to search you without 'reasonable suspicion' as the legal term goes, so if they are doing that to everyone, they are going outside the scope of their legal authority. However, I don't think that cutting their budget, will end them doing that, if that is what they are doing.



roronoa79
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06 Sep 2020, 3:58 am

Of course they're intimidated by protesters. Police officers are violently terrified of unarmed civilians.
Unless you're a right-winger, then you can bring your own gun and help the state threaten the public.

The police also further the narrative that the protesters are a threat, regardless of whether that is true, so they can justify the use of force against protesters. They prey upon the widespread belief that the police would not resort to force unless it was necessary. Paint the protesters as radicals and criminals and you can crack all the skulls you want.


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ironpony
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06 Sep 2020, 4:01 am

Oh okay but why be threatened by people with signs at all? Why not just ignore them?



kraftiekortie
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06 Sep 2020, 4:03 am

Words on signs could have devastating effects.



aquafelix
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06 Sep 2020, 4:04 am

Police are intimidated by peaceful protesters as the can't shoot them, or if they do the sh*t will really hit the fan



cyberdad
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06 Sep 2020, 4:16 am

aquafelix wrote:
Police are intimidated by peaceful protesters as the can't shoot them, or if they do the sh*t will really hit the fan


Well that would cause a further 3-4 months of riots



naturalplastic
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06 Sep 2020, 4:17 am

ironpony wrote:
Oh okay, but that's what I mean. Why would the police listen to the protests and defund themselves, in the sense that why are they threatened and bending the knee to peaceful people?


you're asking for an explanation for something that never happens. The police cant "defund" themselves whether they want to do so, or not.

Its up to the civilian state/city/county, who vote on budgets, to fund or defund any branch of local government, including the police.

So it's the legislatures, and mayors/governors who choose to (or not to) respond to the voters who are protesting - by "defunding the police".

Since were on the subject "defunding the police" is a really bad slogan anyway. Police forces perhaps need to be reshaped in a radical way. So "reimagining the police", or something like that would be a more on mark slogan.