Ken Boettcher

Ken Boettcher argues in the following viewpoint that civilian review boards designed to monitor and curb police abuse do not prevent police brutality. Boettcher maintains that civilian review boards are ineffective because they have little disciplinary and investigative power. Furthermore, the author contends that brutality and racism against the poor and minorities are inherent in the role of police, which is to aggressively defend the interests of the wealthy. Boettcher writes for the People, a socialist newspaper.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. How many police departments were being policed by citizen review boards in 1997, according to Boettcher?
2. According to Amnesty International, how many of the victims of police brutality are racial minorities?
3. In the author’s opinion, what objective should workers strive for to reduce police brutality"

Under the headline “Weak...