Critical Response To Terrorism

After the attacks on Paris not so long ago, top officials with the New York Police Department held a drill to test how the city would respond to an attack like the one in Paris and found out that they had a problem. Three days after the attacks on Paris, the New York police went on an “offense and defense” strategy in response to the terrorism threats. “The story of how the new unit, known as the Critical Response Command, came into being traces the history of the city’s evolving approach to terrorism, from the creation of the counterterrorism and intelligence divisions in the months after the attacks of 2001, to 2004, when the Police Department began pulling precinct officers into counterterrorism details, to the aftermath of the 2008 Mumbai
attacks, when officials realized they needed more firepower and officers trained to respond to multiple, simultaneous attacks.” The officers of New York had to listen to instructions on terrorism threats and on how to use personal radiation devices to detect potential hazards. They learned about four different types of radiation: alpha, beta, gamma and neutron. The Critical Response Command now has a unit of 700 patrol officers called the Strategic Response Group. These officers are also trained and they are equipped with semiautomatic rifles.
In the past, only the Emergency Services Unit had assault rifles in their vehicles, the department is in the process of tripling the number of high-powered rifles at the ready in patrol cars to ensure that every officer trained to use them has quick access to them. I agree and disagree with this plan. I agree because if we ever do get attacked we will have enough firearms. I disagree because people are crazy these days and I think some people will attempt to steal these weapons and that is just going to cause even more drama. “The trouble, according to counterterrorism experts, is that the perception of discriminatory practices by the Police Department in Muslim communities reduces the willingness of many to work with officers in rooting out potential terrorist threats.” (Goodman 5) The next time you visit New York you will see these officers roaming the streets and all times of the day and they are supposed to act as a deterrent to would-be attackers, officials said, and a kind of standing force ready to race to the scene of a strike in minutes. Officials say over the last year, the department has doubled, close to tripled, the ability to respond to a situation where there are multiple locations and multiple
shooters.
Asking yourself is our system racist is an important question, especially in this day and time where there are basically race wars all around America.
People need to understand just because nothing is happening to you, your friends, and/or family doesn’t mean it isn’t a problem. Racism has been a problem since decades ago and it’s disheartening to see that we as a nation are still struggling with this problem. I believe everyone should be aware of what’s going on because racism is a big deal whether you want to talk about it or not and if everyone just sits there and watch, it’s going to get worse each and every day. According to Unlocking America, if African American and Hispanics were incarcerated at the same rates of whites, our prison and jail populations would decline 50%. The great Martin Luther King Jr. said we as a whole nation must undergo a radical revolution of values. What King is saying is to execute a radical revolution we must use a radical approach to the US criminal justice system. We as a nation have to go to the roots of the problems not reform the system. Think about this for a second. Obviously our system is racist and we lead the world in incarceration rates. Is our system making us safer? “Treat people like you want to be treated.” We all learned this when we were little and I think it’s fair to say our justice system has never heard of that saying. If they did the US and even the world would be such a happier place. I just think we all should get up
and come together as a nation to demolish our racist system once and for all. But how? We can create fair educational, medical and employment systems. We could abolish prisons and decriminalize drugs like marijuana. If you rather join groups to help there are so many. INCITE, Critical Resistance, and the Center for Community Alternatives just to name a few.