Black Communities and the Culture of Surveillance differences between modern day and post-reconstruction period (1865-1877)
The culture of racial discrimination in the United States began before 1865, during the slavery period. The Whites considered the people of color as inferior. The attitude continued to impact the relationship between the two communities after the end of the civil war. The period between 1865 and 1877 marked the reconstruction era in the Southern States. The primary activities during the era involved reintegrating the Southern States from the Confederation. Besides, the federal government focused on reintegrating four million slaves into the United States. Such efforts were crucial in creating cohesion and integration in the United States, where all the citizens would have equal rights and opportunities. The government and the judiciary did not take part in promoting unequal treatment among Black Americans. The period that followed after 1877 saw the criminal justice department label Black as criminals. Such new perceptions developed the culture of surveillance. From a practical point of view, this culture continued to the modern time where the police officers consider Blacks as violent. The culture of monitoring among the people color forms the basis of unethical practices like police brutality targeted to some cultural groups. Today, state and federal administrations install advanced surveillance cameras to enhance security and avert crime. However, the usual offender stereotypes motivate the police officers to target the Blacks disproportionately. Such practices reveal that the culture of surveillance continues to affect communities in modern times. Although the One may consider the United States to be a democratic country, the Culture of Surveillance that targets Black Communities in the contemporary day and post-reconstruction period (1865-1877) shows a significant difference.
The culture of surveillance that targets the Black communities in the post-reconstruction period remained low. In 1865, Congress established the Freedmen Bureau and passed the Civil Rights Bill.[1] This statement implies that the federal government focused on supporting the freed slaves by integrating them into the community. The Freedmen Bureau ensured that the people of color enjoyed similar rights as the Whites. Besides, the Civil Rights Bill ensured that all people participated in elections irrespective of their gender or race. The Fifteenth Amendment, enacted in 1870, banned the State disfranchisement based on race and not gender.[2] The new laws focused on protecting the rights of the people of color. From a critical point of view, the federal administration concentrates on protecting all citizens’ fundamental rights. Such laws discouraged the emergence and development of a culture of surveillance in the United States. By 1875, the Civil Rights forbid racial discrimination in Public Places.[3] The amendments to the law focused on establishing systems where all people would take an active part in building the country’s economy. The freedom ensured that the criminal justice system enhanced equality when promoting security in the country. Therefore, the cultures of surveillance that target the people of color remained insignificant during the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877).
The primary political focus during the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877) was on supporting the existence of the federation. In 865, the Southern States focused on enacting Black Codes that would restrict freedmen rights.[4] This case shows that the state government in the Southern part of the United States focused on protecting the agricultural sector. Restricting the slaves would allow the Southern States to maintain free labor, which was instrumental for supporting the farm sector. The behavior adopted by the Southern States motivated the Federal administration to focus on enacting Thirteen, Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments.[5] Such activities did not provide room for the judiciary and criminal justice systems to develop the culture of surveillance to target people of color. The majority of the freed slaves focused on protecting their rights and freedoms through welfare movements.[6] From a practical point of view, most Blacks took the initiative to advance their interests instead of dealing with stereotyping by the police officers. The efforts were crucial in ensuring the existence of the federal system. Therefore, the culture of surveillance did not exist during the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877) as Blacks focused on supporting the presence of the federation.
During the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877), some states focused on developing policies that would lead to sustainable racial solutions. Massachusetts was at the forefront of developing strategies that would lead to sustainable measures of the serotyping.[7] The statement administration in Massachusetts did allow the development of the surveillance cultures. Such thoughts imply that all people had equal rights before the law. The Republican party had the most significant members as Blacks from the South.[8] This case suggests that the Whites did not focus on labeling the Blacks. Instead, they allowed them to practice most of the rights established through the constitutional amendment. The judiciary played a significant role in ensuring that the Black enjoyed their fundamental rights.[9] This statement plays a significant role in revealing that the criminal justice did not take an active part in the development of the culture of surveillance that targets the people of color during the 1855-1877 periods. Instead, the courts and police officers were instrumental in ensuring that all people enjoyed equal rights. Therefore, the cultures of surveillance were not practical during the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877).
On the other hand, the culture of surveillance advanced after the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877). The culture of surveillance emerged between the 1950s and 1960s when the FBI began to spy on the Black protestors.[10] The security agencies began to target people of color. The practice was instrumental in labeling the Blacks as violent and uncivilized people. Besides, the methods lead to the establishment of biased security strategies in the United States. As opposed to the period between 1865 and 1877, the federal government supported the promotion of national security through real-time surveillance.[11] The practices enabled the police officers to target the people of color as an effective way of averting crime. From a critical point of view, the government of the United States played a crucial role in establishing a security strategy where the Blacks were significant suspects. The criminal justice system failed to contain the practice by the police officers of racial profiling.[12] This statement implies that targeting the people of color developed from poor behavior to a culture in the United States. Today, the police officers, as the citizens of the United States from different dominant communities, associate Black people with crime. Therefore, the culture of surveillance emerged in the twentieth century, which allowed police officers to target the Blacks and associate them with wrongdoing.
Police officers in the twenty-first century in the United States rely on advanced surveillance technologies that target the Blacks. For instance, police officers use reactionary technologies and focus on street-level crimes.[13] This statement implies that the criminal justice system focus on installing high technology cameras and surveillance gadgets to enhance security. However, such methods continue to target the people of color as opposed to the Whites. In practice, police officers consider Blacks youths standing in a group or moving bat night as criminals.[14] This statement implies that racial labeling concerning dealing with crime in the United States remains a significant problem. Security officers seem to hold negative perceptions towards people of color. Modern Capitalism places undue burden of the Black people.[15] This statement refers to activities like slavery, forced labor, and dispossession, which relates to forces of surveillance. Besides, the legal justice systems seem motivated by such thoughts to label black people as criminals. Therefore, today’s criminal justice system appears to promote the culture of surveillance that targets people of color compared to that of the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877).
The development of technology plays a crucial role in enhancing surveillance among the residents in the United States. News from the media show that security agencies continue to spy on millions of Americans.[16] This statement implies that the federal government takes an active part in supporting the surveillance culture. However, such practices do not target people from all communities in the country. A good example is where the federal administration control immigrants who reside in the United States.[17] The strategy enabled the security agencies to enhance their surveillance on people of color. The practice leads to biasness in the fight against criminal activities in various cities. The national government in the United States invests on security cameras that can help the police officers to track the movement of individuals across the country.[18] This statement suggests that the federal government focuses its effort on enhancing the surveillance culture. The practice targets the Blacks whose number in American prisons remains high. Therefore, the central administration today plays an essential role in promoting surveillance on the people of color in the United States.
The culture of surveillance that targets the people of color remain significant today than in the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877). A recent study revealed that the practice of labeling Black youths as criminals exists even in learning institutions.[19] In this case, most higher learning institutions consider the Black teenagers to have low educational attainment. Such perceptions play a crucial role in allowing failed educational support among these teenagers. In most cases, the educational programs fail to provide programs that can enhance educational outcomes and lower chances of misconduct among the people of color.[20] This statement suggests that the culture of surveillance affects the learning institutions. The radicalized thoughts about some communities in the United States form the foundation of the surveillance culture. The existence of partial ideas in the education sector has a significant impact on the surveillance practices observed in many Western Cities.[21] This case suggests that the elite people continue to hold racist thoughts, which makes them support the culture of surveillance that targets the Blacks. The results of such practices include maintained racial boundaries. Therefore, the culture of surveillance remains prevalent in the United States today than in the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877).
The brute image in the twenty-first century promotes the culture of surveillance in the United States. A recent study reveals that the Whites consider Black males as brutal.[22] The perception had some impacts on the criminal justice system in the United States. For instance, Police officers tend to use excessive force when handling Black teenagers as compared to the Whites.[23] From a practical point of view, the increased surveillance that targets the Black Teenagers exposes them to unwarranted violence in the security agencies. Such practices did not exist in the late nineteenth century. Researchers maintain that police officers arrest and charge unarmed Black teenagers.[24] The case implies the security agencies enhance their behavior towards surveying the reactions by the Black teenagers. Therefore, the culture of surveillance that targets Black teenagers remains common today than in the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877).
In summary, the Culture of Surveillance that target Black Communities in the modern-day and post-reconstruction period (1865-1877) shows a significant difference. Today, the security agencies, the federal government, state administrations, and the department of criminal justice support increased surveillance of the Blacks. The culture of racial discrimination in the United States began before 1865, during the period of slavery, but seems to remain significant today. The Whites seem to consider the people of color as inferior. The attitude continued to impact the relationship between the two communities after the end of the civil war. The period between 1865 and 1877 marked the reconstruction era in the Southern States. The period was instrumental in enhancing racial equality in the United States. Besides, the culture of surveillance was not common in the United States. However, the biased culture has stronger in modern times. The emergence of advanced technology and surveillance cameras enhanced police officers’ ability to strengthen security in the streets. However, such practices remain ineffective since they rely on biased notions that Blacks are violent and irresponsible people. The policies to control immigration enable the security agencies to enhance their surveillance on people of color. The practice leads to biasness in the fight against criminal activities in various cities. The national governments in the United States invest in security cameras that can help the police officers to track the movement of individuals across the country. Besides, the increased surveillance that targets the Black Teenagers exposes them to unwarranted violence in the security agencies. Such practices did not exist in the late nineteenth century. Therefore, the culture of surveillance on the people of color remain significant today than in the post-reconstruction period (1865-1877).
Bibliography
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Cooper, Joseph N., and Billy Hawkins. “An Anti-Deficit Perspective on Black Male Student-Athletes’ Educational Experiences at a Historically Black College/University.” Race, Ethnicity, and Education 19, no. 5 (September 26, 2014): 950–79. https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2014.946491.
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[1]. Kevin M. Schultz, HIST: US History since 1865, Google Books (Cengage Learning, 2015), 16.
[2]. Schultz, “HIST: US History Since 1865,” 16.
[3]. Schultz, 16.
[4]. National Park Service, “Reconstruction and Repression, 1865-1900 – Civil Rights (US National Park Service),” Nps.gov, 2016, 1, https://www.nps.gov/subjects/civilrights/reconstructionandrepression.htm.
[5]. National Park Service, “Reconstruction and Repression, 1865-1900 – Civil Rights (US National Park Service),” 1.
[6]. National Park Service, 3.
[7]. James Schouler, History of the United States of America: 1865-1877. The Reconstruction Period, Google Books (Dodd, Mead, 1913), 23.
[8]. Carol Berkin et al., Making America: A History of the United States, Volume 2: From 1865, Google Books (Cengage Learning, 2011), 402.
[9]. Berkin et al., “Making America: A History of the United States, Volume 2: From 1865,” 403.
[10]. Dia Kayyali, “The History of Surveillance and the Black Community,” Electronic Frontier Foundation, February 13, 2014, 3, https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/02/history-surveillance-and-black-community.
[11]. Kayyali, “The History of Surveillance and the Black Community,” 3.
[12]. Eric Foner, Reconstruction: America’s Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877, Google Books (Harper Collins, 2011), 40.
[13]. Constantine Gidaris, “How Police Surveillance Technologies Act as Tools of White Supremacy,” The Conversation, 2020, 4, https://theconversation.com/how-police-surveillance-technologies-act-as-tools-of-white-supremacy-127435.
[14]. Gidaris, “How Police Surveillance Technologies Act as Tools of White Supremacy,” 4.
[15]. Brandi Thompson Summers, “Black Lives under Surveillance,” Public Books, December 1, 2016, 1, https://www.publicbooks.org/black-lives-under-surveillance/.
[16].Malkia Amala Cyril, “Black America’s State of Surveillance,” Progressive.org, March 30, 2015, 5, https://progressive.org/magazine/black-america-s-state-surveillance-cyril/.
[17]. Amala Cyril, “Black America’s State of Surveillance,” 6.
[18]. Kenan Malik, “As Surveillance Culture Grows, Can We Even Hope to Escape Its Reach?,” The Guardian, May 19, 2019, 3, sec. Opinion, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/may/19/as-surveillance-culture-grows-can-we-even-hope-to-escape-its-reach.
[19]. Joseph N. Cooper and Billy Hawkins, “An Anti-Deficit Perspective on Black Male Student-Athletes’ Educational Experiences at a Historically Black College/University,” Race Ethnicity and Education 19, no. 5 (September 26, 2014): 950, https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2014.946491.
[20]. Cooper and Hawkins, “An Anti-Deficit Perspective on Black Male Student-Athletes’ Educational Experiences at a Historically Black College/University,” 950.
[21]. Natalie P. Byfield, “Race Science and Surveillance: Police as the New Race Scientists,” Social Identities 25, no. 1 (January 7, 2018): 91, https://doi.org/10.1080/13504630.2017.1418599.
[22]. CalvinJohn Smiley and David Fakunle, “From ‘Brute’ to ‘Thug:’ The Demonization and Criminalization of Unarmed Black Male Victims in America,” Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment 26, no. 4 (January 20, 2016): 350–66, https://doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2015.1129256.
[23]. Smiley and Fakunle, “From ‘Brute’ to ‘Thug:’ The Demonization and Criminalization of Unarmed Black Male Victims in America,” 3.
[24]. Smiley and Fakunle, 4.