impersonation embodied in this gear is intentional, i.e., marketing?
[courtesy digby]
I’m inclined to think so.
Given that policing (or, similarly, military) grants some legal sanction to exercising authority over others, I have always presumed that authoritarian personalities would be disproportionately attracted to those lines of work, and thus disproportionately represented in their ranks. Including the ranks of those making purchasing decisions and/or writing grant proposals to tap into Pentagon/Homeland Security programs that provide military surplus equipment or grant money to local law enforcement (which have been the major driver of the ongoing militarization of local law-enforcement entities).
(Disclaimer: This does NOT imply all law enforcement personnel are authoritarians. I presume many enter policing “to protect and serve” (as the noble slogan goes) their communities/nation. The Dallas Chief seems such an example. My premise is simply that a higher proportion of them probably are authoritarians than in the general population. Hard for me to imagine how it could be otherwise, absent very rigorous screening methods, which I think probably no one would claim currently exist in practice.)
It’s not hard to see what the appeal to authoritarians would be in the design of the gear pictured above. Even just the “gee whiz, cool stuff” attraction is probably significant for them.
Is this just brilliant marketing playing out?
Regardless, (like digby, I think) I find what that photo seems to say about the state of the union disturbing indeed.
Yeah, curious that the Congressional Black Caucus voted to keep the supply line open from DoD surplus to community policing, no?
“Community policing” used to mean something different from what it seems to now. Departure from its former meaning during the Bush years is part of what has created this situation. Failure to adopt a program of authentic community policing ever or co-opting it to the school-to-prison pipeline has made it worse.
bind.
For very good reasons, they want protection from crime. They don’t want cops shooting their unarmed (or legally armed) young men without very strong, legitimate cause.
Go figure.
See also reply below to tarheel, also somewhat relevant.
Of course it is. And so much different from the cabbie service uniforms (which used to emulate military uniforms until the military did its fashion readjustment with camos.)
But then, sufficent deployment of symbols can reduce the risk of violence if properly handled. The current directors of Security Theater have lousy production values and wind up inciting instead of de-escalating violence. And as peaceful disobedience increases, the guys in the suit whing out in frustration. They are used to deference and obedience; they are trained to be in total control of the situation. As a result in peaceful protests they are easily disoriented.
But they cannot allow the protesters to control the situation for political reasons; allowing that would cause a contagion of disobedience, not always for good causes.
And they want to destroy the village in order to save it–a self-defeating propensity if ever there was one. #blacklivesmatter is a test of just how much institutional racism and racist peer pressure exist in a police department. And it is the white officers in black majority communities who seem to be the worst.
authoritarian streak I referred to:
There’s really no question in my mind that there are cops out there whose attitude is that it’s every citizens duty to “do what I tell them, when I tell them; not question it; and never mind if I’m ordering them to do something illegal or that violates their rights”.
It’s a problem.
I heard a piece on NPR (in one of its better, less-corporate-captured moments) within the last few days that was quite good on this subject (roughly, police reform in the direction of real “community policing”). Interview with a former cop (at least I think I heard that) who I think also has a book on the topic. (Ah, here it is. He’s “Former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper”. The money quote (precisely on point for the current topic):
‘She was making her stand’: image of Baton Rouge protester an instant classic
the full story behind that, er, “arresting” photo.
The analogy to the guy confronting the tank in Tiananmen, as well as the photo that became a popular poster in the 60s-70s of the anti-war protesting hippie chick placing a flower in the barrel of a rifle pointed at her within arm’s length had already occurred to me.
Her composure (and the courage it reflects) is remarkable and compelling. (If I’m strictly honest, I have to confess I have a bit of a crush on her now!)
My first thought when I saw this on my social media feeds was “grace under pressure.” On the basis of the photo alone, this woman immediately earned my admiration. Iesha Evans is a nurse and a mom, and willing to stare down militarized police. Says a lot about the strength of her character, as well as a lot about a society that is so gripped with fear that it would permit police to militarize in the first place.
so interesting. first saw the photo on this diary, didn’t know where it was from, I thought it was staged, looks like a dance actually