ANTH 36A: U.S. Policing in Context: Past, Present, Future

ANTH 36a: U.S. Policing in Context: Past, Present, Future

Instructor: Jara Connell

Spring 2018

Tues & Fri 11:00am - 12:20pm

Room: Kutz 132

Contact Information:

Email:

Office: Rabb 260

Office Hours: Tues 1:00 – 2:00pm

Course Description and Objectives:

This course is focused on the practice of policing in the United States. In addition to building a theoretical framework for understanding police power, we will critically examine police policies, narratives, training, culture, technology, and reform efforts through an interdisciplinary lens that prioritizes perspectives on race, gender, and socioeconomic class. What is the function of policing in modern American society? What are the historical roots of contemporary debates about policing? How does society influence police practices? How do those practices in turn shape our society? How might we think beyond contemporary structures to conceptualize a type of “policing” that reflects ever-growing critiques about use of force, militarization, and institutional racism? To answer these questions and many others, we will turn to a variety of sources, including: ethnographic and historical accounts of policing, documentaries, interviews, policy documents, long-form journalism, and social science research on policing. Theoretically, this course is grounded in anthropological approaches to policing and power. Our class readings and discussion will put these theories into conversation with feminist theories, critical race theory, and theoretical perspectives on crime and policing within the field of criminal justice. This will culminate in a contextualized understanding of U.S. policing practices both as they have evolved and in the present moment. Ultimately, this perspective will allow students to engage thoughtfully with contemporary debates on policing and reform efforts.

This class will be largely discussion-based and requires active participation from each member. Students are expected to dedicate three hours of out-of-class effort for each hour of instruction completing readings, viewing assigned documentaries, working on assignments, and writing LATTE posts. This preparation will be necessary in order to meaningfully contribute to regular in-class discussions and small group activities.

Learning Goals:

At the end of the semester, students should be able to:

Understand the evolution of policing practices and philosophies in the U.S.
Critically examine the role of police in U.S. society, how it has changed over time, and how it might be changed in the future
Understand how society influences policing and how policing shapes society
Understand contemporary debates on policing and police reform with greater nuance and historical context
Situate policing within a larger framework of theories and ideas about power, citizenship, and bodies

Course Requirements and Evaluation:

Participation: (15%) This course requires significant participation. The small size of the class means that everyone must participate in discussions. Most class meetings will involve in-class activities and small group assignments. Regular engagement in all of these areas is required to receive full credit in this section. A hand-out on active, productive participation as well as a general grading rubric will be distributed on the first day of class. Attendance is also factored into your participation grade.

LATTE Posts: (15%) You will be required to post a 50-100 word response to the day’s readings, including one proposed question (either for clarification or discussion), by 6:00am before each class. You have 2 “skips” – days you can miss a post without losing points. Late posts will not be counted.

In-Class Writing Prompts: (5% each, 15% total) Throughout the semester, you will complete three short writing assignments in class addressing prompts that I will formulate from the day’s readings. These are not meant to be exhaustive, but rather quick check-ins to ensure that we are all extracting some fundamental ideas from the readings. If you are absent on the day of an in-class prompt, a 1000-word make-up prompt can be completed as a take-home assignment.

Midterm Paper: (20%) You will write a 6-8 page paper analyzing a current event related to policing using concepts and sources from class. A more detailed description of this assignment and a grading rubric will be distributed in class. The midterm paper is due on March 2nd.

Final Paper Proposal: (5%) You will write a 1-page topic proposal outlining your final paper idea, including 3 key citations you intend to utilize. The proposal is due on April 9th.

Final Paper: (30%) You will write a 10-12 page paper exploring a topic of your choice related to policing in the U.S. Final papers should cite a minimum of 10 scholarly sources, at least 4 of which should be from course readings. You will present the gist of your final paper in a 5-minute presentation to the class at the end of the semester. A more detailed description of this assignment and a grading rubric will be distributed in class. The final paper is due on May 9th.

Success in this four- credit course is based on the expectation that students will spend a minimum of 9 hours of study time per week in preparation for class (readings, papers, discussion sections, preparation for exams, etc.).

Attendance Policy:

Regular attendance is mandatory in this course. There are no excused absences, but each student gets one absence that will not count against their grade. After this one absence, a 1,000-word summary and response to the readings assigned on the day missed, due one week from the date of the missed class, will mitigate the absence in your participation grade. If you miss an in-class documentary, it is your responsibility to contact me to arrange a make-up viewing.

Assignment Submission Guidelines:

All assignments will be submitted on LATTE – email submissions will not be accepted and hard copies are not required
All assignments must be in .doc or .docx format (all students can convert files to this format using their Brandeis Google Drive - see instructions on LATTE for details)
All assignments will follow this naming convention: lastname_firstname_assignment.doc

Ex 1. Connell_Jara_Midterm.doc

Ex 2. Connell_Jara_Proposal.doc

Ex 3. Connell_Jara_Final.doc

Failure to format submissions correctly will result in a 5 pt. deduction on the assignment

Critical Dates:

Mar 2nd: Midterm paper due

April 9th: Topic proposal for final paper due

May 9th: Final paper due *For those graduating this May, final papers are due April 28th*

Technology and Course Conduct:

Food and Drink – Food and drink are allowed, but I ask that you please be considerate about noise level when considering snack options.

Punctuality – It is important that you be on time for each meeting; late arrivals disrupt the class. Repeated tardiness will result in a lowered attendance grade. If you need to arrive late or leave class early on a particular evening you should communicate with me before class. Missing more than half of a class (arriving after or leaving before 11:40) will result in an absence.

Classroom Environment – It is imperative that our class be a safe space for discussion at all times. Please be respectful of all thoughts and opinions, even in your dissent.

Cell Phones – No cell phones may be used during class time. Repeated violation of this policy may result in a lowered participation grade.

Laptops and Tablets – Use of laptops and tablets in class will be restricted to moments when it is necessary for students to access assigned readings (group work, certain class discussions of dense texts, etc.). I will announce when it is appropriate to bring out these devices and I will announce when it is time to put them away. Because laptop and tablet use is restricted, please plan to take written notes (both in class and when preparing for class discussions). Any presentation material from in-class lectures will be made available on LATTE, minimizing the need to take excessive, quick notes during class.

Prerequisites:

There are no required prerequisites for this course, but familiarity with anthropological perspectives and a willingness to engage with theory will be helpful.

Disabilities:

If you are a student with a documented disability on record at Brandeis University and wish to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please see me immediately.

Academic Integrity:

Students are required to follow the University’s academic integrity policies in all of their academic work. For more information, please consult Brandeis University Rights and Responsibilities and the instructor. Allegations of academic dishonesty will be forwarded to the Director of Academic Integrity. Sanctions for academic dishonesty can include failing grades and/or suspension from the university. Citation and research assistance can be found at LTS - Library guides.

Communications:

All course communications will be through email and LATTE. If there are changes to the schedule due to inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances, I will notify you through email. Any changes to the syllabus will be announced in class and reflected on LATTE within 24 hours, so you can download a copy from our LATTE page at any time if you need the latest version.

Couse Materials:

There are no required materials for this course, everything will be provided on LATTE.

Course Readings:

Jan 12 (F) – Introduction to course

No assigned reading

Unit 1: Ideas About Policing

Jan 16 (T), 19 (F) – Theoretical Frameworks

Foucault, Michel. Discipline and Punish. (1975) – Ch. 3 “Panopticism”
Davis, Angela. Are Prisons Obsolete? (2003) – Ch 1-3, SKIM Ch. 5

Jan 23 (T) - What do police do?

Manning, Peter. Police Work: The Social Organization of Policing. (1977) – Ch. 4 & Ch. 9
Bittner, Egon. “Florence Nightingale in Pursuit of Willie Sutton: Towards a Theory of Police.” (1970)

Unit 2: Origins and Evolution of Policing

Jan 26 (F) - Origins

Boyles, Andrea. Race, Place, and Suburban Policing. (2015) – Ch. 1 “Race, Place, and Policing in the United States”

Balko, Radley. Rise of the Warrior Cop. (2014) - Ch. 3 “A Quick History of Cops in America”

Jan 30 (T) - Evolutions

Walker, Samuel. “The Rise and Fall of the Policewoman’s Movement, 1905-1975.” (1979)
Kelling, George L. & Moore, Mark H. “The Evolving Strategy of Policing.” (1988)

Unit 3: Culture of Policing

Feb 2 (F) - Training

Harris, Richard N. The Police Academy: An Inside View. (1973) – Excerpts.

Feb 6 (T) - Training

Zimny, Kenneth. “Racial Attitudes of Police Recruits at the United States Midwest Police Academy: A Second Examination.” (2015)
Chappell, Allison and Lonn Lanza-Kaduce. “Police Academy Socialization: Understanding the Lessons Learned in a Paramilitary-Bureaucratic Organization.” (2009)
RELATED: Toch, Hans. H and Richard Schulte. “Readiness to Perceive Violence as a Result of Police Training.” (1961)
RELATED: “Before an Officer Pulls the Trigger…” the1a.org. (Podcast)

Feb 9 (F) - Culture

Klinger, David. Into the Kill Zone: A Cop’s Eye View of Deadly Force. (2004) – Ch. 1 & 2
Karen Frewin and Keith Tuffin. “Police status, conformity and internal pressure: a discursive analysis of police culture.” (1998)
Bornstein, Avram. “Institutional Racism, Numbers Management, and Zero-Tolerance Policing in New York City.” (2015)
RELATED: “The Trials of a Muslim Cop.” newyorker.com.

Unit 4: Technologies of Policing

Feb 13 (T) - Crime Mapping and Militarization

Manning, Peter. The Technology of Policing. (2008) – Ch. 7-8
Vitale, Alex and Brian Jordan Jefferson. “The Emergence of Command and Control Policing in Neoliberal New York,” in Policing the Planet, ed. Jordan Camp and Christina Heatherton. (2016)

Feb 16 (F) - Surveillance and Repression

Burton, Orisanmi. “An encounter with ‘Sky Watch’ on a block in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.” Anthropoliteia.
Stuesse, Angela and Mathew Coleman. “Automobility, Immobility, Altermobility: Surviving and Resisting the Intensification of Immigrant Policing.” (2014)
Ali, Arshad Imitaz, “Citizens under Suspicion: Responsive Research with Community under Surveillance.” (2016)
RELATED: Cunningham, David. “Understanding State Responses to Left-versus Right-Wing Threats: The FBI's Repression of the New Left and the Ku Klux Klan.” (2003)
RELATED: McCoy, Alfred W. Policing America’s Empire: The United States, The Philippines, and the Rise of the Surveillance State. (2009) - Available online through the Brandeis library
RELATED: Ratner, Margaret and Michael Ratner, “The Grand Jury: A Tool to Repress and Jail Activists,” in States of Confinement: Policing, Detention, and Prisons, ed. Joy James (2002)
(Film) Do Not Resist. – Excerpts (In Class)

**Feb 19 – 23: Midterm Recess, No Classes

Feb 27 (T) - Flex Day, Readings TBA

Unit 5: Case Study: Occupy Wall Street

Mar 2 (F) - Understanding Occupy

(Film) 99%: The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film (Excerpts - in class)
(Film) Fault Lines: History of an occupation. Al Jazeera.
Graeber, David. The Democracy Project: A History, a Crisis, a Movement. (2013) – Excerpts.
Juris, Jeffrey S. “Reflections on #Occupy Everywhere: Social Media, Public Space, and Emerging Logics of Aggregation.” (2012)

Mar 6 (T), 9 (F) - Policing OWS

George Ciccariello-Maher. “Counterinsurgency and the Occupy Movement.” (2013)
Greenberg, Michael. “In Zucotti Park.” (2011)
Vitale, Alex S. “Managing Defiance: The Policing of the Occupy Wall Street Movement.” (2012)
Gillham, Patrick, Bob Edwards, and John A. Noakes. “Strategic Incapacitation and the Policing of Occupy Wall Street Protests.” (2013)
King, Mike. When Riot Cops are Not Enough: The Policing and Repression of Occupy Oakland. (2017) – Excerpts

Unit 6: Case Study: Ferguson

Mar 13 (T), 16 (F) - Policing Space and Race in St. Louis

(Film) Spanish Lake (In Class)
Gordon, Colin. “’The Steel Ring’: Race and Realty in Great St. Louis.” (2008)
Boyles, Angela. Race, Place, and Suburban Policing. (2015) - Pgs. 49-206
Smith, Christen A. “Facing the Dragon: Black Mothering, Sequelae, and Gendered Necropolitics in the Americas.” (2016)

Mar 20 (T), 23 (F), 27 (T) - Ferguson

The Ferguson Reports (SKIM)
“The Investigation of the Ferguson Police Department” https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-releases/attachments/2015/03/04/ferguson_police_department_report.pdf
“Department of Justice Report Regarding the Criminal Investigation into the Shooting Death of Michael Brown by Ferguson, Missouri Police Officer Darren Wilson” https://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-releases/attachments/2015/03/04/doj_report_on_shooting_of_michael_brown_1.pdf
“After-Action Assessment of the Police Response to the August 2014 Demonstrations in Ferguson, Missouri”
McSpadden, Lezley. Tell the Truth and Shame the Devil. (2016) – Excerpts.
Hattery, Angela and Earl Smith, “Urban Riots and Protest, or a Logical Response to Policing Black Bodies,” in Policing Black Bodies (2017).
Hill, Marc Lamont. Nobody. (2016) – Ch. 1 “Nobody.”
Lowery, Wesley. “They Can’t Kill Us All.” (2016) – Ch. 1 “Ferguson: A City Holds Its Breath” and Ch. 6 “Ferguson, Again: A Year Later, The Protests Continue.”
(Film) Whose Streets? (In Class)

**March 30 – April 6: Passover Break, No Classes

Unit 7: Reform

Apr 10 (T), 13 (F) - Potential for/of Reform

Bornstein, Avram. “Critical Race Theory Meets the NYPD: an Assessment of Anti-racist Pedagogy for Police in New York City.” (2012)
Weitzer, Ronald, and Rod K. Brunson. “Negotiating Unwelcome Police Encounters: The

Intergenerational Transmission of Conduct Norms.” (2011)

Coats, Ta-Nehisi. “The Myth of Police Reform.” The Atlantic.
Meares, Tracey and Tom Tyler, “Policing: A Model for the Twenty-first Century,” in Policing the Black Man, ed. Angela J. Davis. (2017)
Wright, Ronald, “Elected Prosecutors and Police Accountability,” in Policing the Black Man, ed. Angela J. Davis. (2017)
Lantigua-Williams, Juleyka. “How Much Can Better Training Do to Improve Policing?” The Atlantic.
Manning, Peter. “Policing as a Well-Protected Craft.” Anthropoliteia.
RELATED: Coats, Ta-Nehisi. “The Near-Certainty of Anti-Police Violence.” The Atlantic.

Apr 17 (T), 20 (F) - Reform Realities

Ferguson Consent Decree: https://www.justice.gov/opa/file/833431/download
Baltimore Consent Decree: https://www.justice.gov/crt/page/file/925046/download
(Film) FRONTLINE: Policing the Police. PBS.
Hansford, Justin. “Community Policing Reconsidered: From Ferguson to Baltimore.” (2016)
Raschig, Megan, “Triggering Change: Police Homicides, Community Healing, and the Emergent Eventfulness of the New Civil Rights.” (2017)

Apr 24 (T), 25 (W - Brandeis Fri) - In-Class Student Presentations. No Reading.