New Jersey and elsewhere have seen an uptick in police brutality. These cases have also seriously impacted people of color.
What’s happening with police brutality?
Instances of police brutality have affected people of color and especially Black people. More and more Black people are victims of police brutality in situations where they end up being killed. Many incidents have involved unarmed people mistaken to have weapons.
How are people impacted by these police brutality cases?
Police brutality against people of color has been shown to have a serious impact on the mental health of Black people. There are also hate crimes being perpetrated, but police brutality ranks as the top issue that plague people’s mental health. A study revealed that when Black people view stories on the news about police brutality against other Black Americans, it has a significant effect on their mental health. Meanwhile, it was found that these situations do not affect white Americans’ mental health.
These findings are not new. Previous studies have also shown that police brutality against Black people has serious impacts on the mental health of other Black people. Studies have revealed that Black men are more likely to be killed by police and that they are twice as likely to be unarmed compared with white people.
The research study found that the worst effects on people’s mental health occur in cases where no legal action is taken against the offending police officers. This sparks a sense of injustice in Black people and leads to serious effects like post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. The study found that Black people reported having 0.26 bad days per week when the news reported police misconduct and other racial incidents affecting Black Americans.
While turning off the news and not reading it can provide temporary relief, the real problem lies with society. Black people may need therapy to cope.