“POLICING AIN’T WHAT IT USED TO BE”: AN ANALYSIS OF BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTESTS AND CHANGES IN POLICE DEPARTMENTS

Abstract

Using research on the history of policing, police relations in the United States, and the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as interviews with current and former police officers, this paper explores the effects of the BLM movement on police departments. Beginning with a literature review on the BLM movement, policing in America, and the historical impacts of protests, the aim of this paper is to further understand how different cities and police departments adapt to cries for change. This analysis suggests that it is difficult to generalize patterns on a larger scale because policing is dependent on local trends and intends to show the current impact of BLM movements in both police-community relations and the concrete restructuring of police departments. By investigating the changes in police departments in connection to BLM protests, this paper expands the conversation around the ongoing racial and socio-economic crises in American cities.