Community Perspectives on the LAPD
Community Perspectives on the LAPD
The beating of Rodney King—perhaps one of the first instances of police brutality caught on videotape by a bystander and shared through the media—brought a firestorm of criticism to the LAPD and exposed what many in the Black community had long known to be true: that violence was not an exceptional occurrence in the department’s dealings with communities of color, but rather a frequent and recurring reality. In order to account for the experiences of communities of color, and thus propose possible solutions to the way the LAPD policed in these communities, the Independent Commission cast the scope of its investigation beyond analyses of practices and policies internal to the department and looked to the community itself for input. Among the documents collected and studied by the Commission were reports and writings by several local organizations and activist groups—the Committee Against Police Abuse (CAPA), the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, People Against Racist Terror (PART), and the Los Angeles NAACP (1-4 below)—that all worked to fight racism and police abuse, and in some cases offered the Commission recommendations about how to implement a better policing model.The commission also solicited and gathered input at community hearings in which people were encouraged to make their voices heard. A transcript from a hearing held at the First A.M.E. Church on April 25, 1991 (5 below), includes a multitude of testimonies from community members who spoke briefly but powerfully about their experiences with the LAPD and recommended ways the department could address racism and foster better relations.
