Police communication and community trust in multicultural society

1 Critical Issues in Policing The history of policing as it relates to communication with the public has evolved thanks to advances in communication technology. In the early days of policing, communication was limited to word-of-mouth with messages passed to the public from podiums at town halls or from authorities in their place of business. When radio communications and other forms of electronic communication, especially in the Digital Age of the Internet arrived, communication with the public transformed rapidly. Today, police forces can communicate with the public using social media, text messaging, website updates, radio communications, telephone communications, press releases, and town halls. The community can likewise communicate back using services like 911, confidential tip hotlines, direct communication, social media, and more. The exchange of information has become much more advanced and technologically based so as to allow more transparency and understanding between the police and the community (Potter, 2015). The historical interactions between police and a homogenous American society as opposed to today’s interactions between police and a multicultural society show that there is a need for more communication and understanding between multicultural communities and police. Diversity has changed the way that communities think of themselves and it requires police to also better understand the communities they are meant to serve. When society was more homogenous, there was less risk of offending different people of different backgrounds, cultures and ethnicities. Today, these differences are more pronounced and police have to be sensitive to these differences when engaging with communities (Westmarland, 2005). Existing problems in terms of structure of police departments as they pertain to communication with communities and building trust with them are that departments can lack the means to effectively engage with diverse communities and demonstrate respectful discourse with them. Language barriers, community distrust of the police, police distrust of the community, poor training, organizational structure and scapegoating are all blocks to communication most commonly encountered in policing (Hunter, Barker, Mayhall, 2011). Rethinking police organization via reorganization of the structure or small system changes is one way to facilitate change to lessen blocks to effective communication. Another is to prevent scapegoating via establishing mutual respect among people and implementing organizational changes that promote personal development and community service. The critical issues that police managers have encountered historically can be compared to today’s critical issues of immigration, use of force, technology and policing in a multicultural society by showing that technology and culture have changed dramatically over the past half century. The social hazards that police face include isolation from segments of the community that view police with distrust because of negative portrayals of officers in the media. Police can feel marginalized or unfairly critiqued by members of city council or watchdog groups who are looking for some reason to criticize. They can feel cut off from family and friends because of their work shifts—some having to work through the night or put in long hours during the days, whereas most people have a typical 8 hour job that starts in the morning and ends in the early evening. They get their weekends and holidays and holidays off; police, however, have to work all hours and all days of the year. In terms of immigration, officers are torn by two different narratives in society—one that welcomes immigrants and one that fears them and wants them out. Police have to navigate this controversial issue like they do so many other issues—such as race and gender and the use of force. Today’s police are using more body cameras to help protect themselves and the people in their community. In communities where anger has built up over the years, especially whenever an unarmed individual is shot by police, there are calls for more solutions. Technology can help, but there also has to be a cultural understanding that is reached between community members and the police, and the news media also plays a part in how this understanding is reached. Sometimes the media can depict faulty information that sensationalizes an event or heightens tension in the community, and they face little blowback. The media should be working with the police and the community to provide more fair and balanced reporting and not to stoke the flames of tension. In conclusion, policing has altered much since its early days.