The social movement‐countermovement relationship is most often one of competition. The subject of police reform has become more complex after calls for greater restrictive police policies and the emergence of Blue Lives Matter. This study demonstrates how Blue Lives Matter acts as a countermovement to police reform, frame it in a historical context, explain why it appeals to sympathizers, and illustrate how it interacts with opposing groups and individuals. This study also assesses how Blue Lives Matter operates in direct opposition to Black Lives Matter and efforts for greater police accountability. The central theme of this literature addresses how the Blue Lives Matter Movement addresses competition, criticisms, and attitudes of Blue Lives Matter adherents and detractors in local and national contexts. This study questions if reconciliation between the stated objectives and tactics of the countermovement is possible without a change in police behavior and law enforcement practices. Conflict theories identify social constructionism as a process in social and countermovements.

PurposeThis study's aim was to systematically review available literature related to the establishment, purpose, operation, and effectiveness of civilian police oversight entities in the United States and to gain a deeper understanding of support, opposition, academic, public, and police expectations concerning their utility.Design/methodology/approach A Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) was used to analyze police civilian oversight literature published between 1992 and 2022.FindingsThe authors find racially biased policing, political investment, police resistance, oversight structure, scope, and authority are key components that determine how oversight is perceived.Research limitations/implications Based on the methodology, the results may not be generalizable. Future researchers should consider expanding public oversight research beyond the parameters, which constrained this paper.Practical implications This article contains implications that should be considered by jurisdictions seeking to develop, restructure, or eliminate public oversight entities and for recognizing the concerns of advocates and opponents of public oversight.Social implications Civilian oversight has long been considered a potential method for public inclusion if not a means for greater public control of police. Over the past few decades, a resurgence of interest in civilian oversight has emerged.Originality/value This article synthesizes literature that spans 30 years of research on public oversight.

Support for police has always involved a law-and-order orientation and protection of interests along class and racial lines. Increasing demands for change and police reform stimulate tension between status maintenance conservatives and reform-minded progressives. Before the Civil Rights Movement, this clash was essentially quarantined. When made public, critics of police were often labeled as radicals, criminals, terrorists, or fringe components of society that seek anarchy or government destabilization through the promotion of special interests. Police critics argue that police reinforce social and racial hierarchies, which deny ambitions and identities beyond majoritarian rule. In the years following the 1960s, the protracted conflict between police and specific segments of society has been more broadly discussed. On one end of the spectrum are those that embrace a structural-functionalism perspective for police. On the other are those that interpret the police as a conduit for oppression. The Black and Blue Lives Matter movements currently frame these arguments by drawing from historical and contemporary events. Understanding the differences and similarities between the movements is fundamental in the continual analysis of race and power in America. The implications for crime and social disorder are also multifaceted, yet criminologists have not given enough attention to how these movements influence perceptions of power and inequality. Sociological literature is at the forefront of shedding light on the dynamics of power-based relationships. This teaching and learning guide extend the conversation and provides a supplemental resource for sociology educators and their students.