The job of police officer has always been difficult. However, in today’s society, their job is even more challenging than ever. “What It’s Like To Be A Cop In America- One Year After Ferguson” by Karl Vick examines the lives of police officers in the city of Philadelphia. The article opens with a quote from Captain Joe Bologna. “Every time a police officer fires his weapon, the reputation of the department is on the line,” he says. This quote sums up a lot of Vick’s points throughout the article.
Vick begins to tell a story of a cop named Trevor Peszko who has always been very passionate about his work. Vick talks about a time when Peszko approached a car and immediately noticed a camera on the speedometer ledge.
This leads Vick into his first main point. Wherever cops go, cameras follow. People are so quick to whip out their cell phones and record a situation. Social media has not been in police’s favor lately. It seems as if every day, new videos surface of a cop in the line of duty.
These videos are typically not posted to show support for the police. What these videos are doing is destroying the relationship between the police and the people they are supposed to protect. This is because cops are seen as a central figure rather than individuals, cops are having to answer for the actions of other cops across the country. Vick writes, “The watchmen are used to being watched.”
This lack of trust between the public and police leads to more and more resistance from citizens. Vick cites a survey that says 52 percent of Americans express confidence in the police which ties the lowest level since 1993. Vick then discusses the different duties police in Philadelphia deal with on a day-to-day basis. An officer is quoted saying, “Everything is harder” because of the terrible relationship between the public and police.
Throughout the night, a woman is quoted saying “F*ck the law,” another example of Vick’s central point. Citizens do not trust those sworn to protect them. Vick gives readers an example of one of Officer Burgess case in which he killed a man who put the officer in a life or death situation. Burgess explains that even though he knows what he did was right, it still often feels wrong.
Vick discusses new plans for police officers to receive more training on police history in America. Police officers talk about how viral videos are not always what they appear to be. They talk about the fact that many videos do not capture why the police were even called to the location in the first place.
Police commissioner, Charles Ramsey, is excited for the use of body cams. He hopes they will shed light on what actually transpires on a call. Vick talks to more officers about how difficult it is to arrest someone who does not want to be arrested. He also quotes Bologna again saying, “It’s right that we’re held to a higher standard. We have tremendous power.”
Vick then brings up another major point saying that society is somewhat responsible for the divide in some neighborhoods. He discusses how blacks were not allowed mortgages and gets an officer's opinion on the matter. The officer says that only 20 percent of people are truly responsible for the crimes in the area.
He concludes his article with a summary of one more officer’s work. There is a car crash and an off-duty police officer stops when he sees. He then comforts the victims and does everything can to better the situation. Onlookers put their phones away after a state representative, Vanessa Brown, asks them to. From there, the crowd is thankful for the police officer's work and everyone realizes that police are, for the most part, their to help, protect, and serve.
