jesscater

TL;DR Body cameras encourage an important precedent in the police force. It allows police to demonstrate their accountability to the community, deterring illegal activity in both officers and the general public. It can give more comprehensive evidence in arrests, and insight into the effectiveness of law enforcement techniques

In the aftermath of George Floyd’s death last year, the [CEO of Axon Enterprise Inc] ( https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2020-06-05/should-police-officers-wear-body-cameras) (one of the largest companies specialising in police technology) stated that ‘we can’t change politics, but we can build tech… that’s what we do, we apply technology to social problems’. Of course, no technology can completely eradicate social problems, and wrongful police behaviour such as the George Floyd case will unfortunately not always be caught on camera. Nevertheless, police body cameras are certainly a step in the right direction.

Research shows that [officers wearing body cameras experience more amicable police-citizen interactions] (https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/251416.pdf) and less resistance in cases such as [domestic violence] (https://www.startribune.com/police-body-cameras-are-newest-tool-against-domestic-violence/301380871/) incidents, as well as improving public perceptions of the police force as transparent and trustworthy. Generally, this leads to less complaints about police misconduct, greater compliance from the public, and better evidence to call upon in any lawsuits or disputes.

As shown in recent years, if police lack transparency and accountability for their actions, they may irreparably damage their public image. This makes it incredibly difficult for them to appropriately perform their duties. Police body cameras are an innovative device that can help to prevent this dangerous situation.

TL;DR In the modern age, Nationalism and patriotism have become too indistinguishable. Too much of this sentiment can lead to isolationism and internal division at a time when Globalism and international unity is needed most. Brexit is a key example of this.

I acknowledge the differences between ‘Patriotism’, as ‘love for your country and loyalty towards it’ and ‘Nationalism’, as ‘the belief that a particular nation is better than other(s)’, but I maintain that it is difficult and perhaps problematic to see no potential crossover between the two. After all, there is a reason that Collins Dictionary, among others, lists each as a synonym of the other.

Patriotism can be innocent and beneficial, like supporting your country’s sports teams or celebrating national holidays. This can create a sense of national unity and boost tourism. However, the dangers of national patriotism outweigh these positive aspects.

During Brexit, Nationalist sentiment circulated under the guise of patriotism, concerning the need to ‘take back control’, regain British independence and rediscover our national identity’ as if the internationalist-style European Union had taken this away from us. The obsession with distinctly English patriotism, seen by the Brexiteers’ common use of the St. George’s flag and rhetoric of England ‘standing alone’ against Nazi Germany, also uprooted divisions between the four nations of the United Kingdom.

Ultimately, if this patriotic mentality guides our political decision-making, we may be making ill-informed choices, for the wrong reasons. National patriotism can so easily fixate us on inward-looking, isolationist thinking – to the detriment of us and other countries. Globalism and the rise of international issues like terrorism, climate change and immigration require us to think of the greater global good instead of just the ‘greater nation’. In the twentieth-century, this could unite us more than patriotism ever could.

WORKS CITED:

Collins Dictionary, 'Patriotism Definition', https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/patriotism

Collins Dictionary, 'Nationalism Definition', https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/nationalism

Ringeisen-Biardeaud, Juliette, '"Let's Take Back Control": Brexit and the Debate on Sovereignty' (May 2017), https://doi.org/10.4000/rfcb.1319

O’Toole, Fintan, ‘Brexit is driven in English nationalism. And it will end in self-rule’ (June 2016), https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jun/18/england-eu-referendum-brexit