Teaching and learning guide: Dynamics of an American Countermovement

Abstract

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.