Switching Roles

What if the people that live in low income neighborhoods and the police officers that patrol those neighborhoods had the opportunity to switch roles with each other? Many times the focus of strain is always looked at from the residents of these neighborhoods, but never from the police officers that patrol these neighborhoods. Police officers are faced with strain when assigned to these neighborhoods too. No, not by economics, but by the stress of trying to have a community oriented attitude in a dangerous neighborhood, while at the same time fearing to be shot and wondering if they will make home to their families. I must admit that I can understand an officer having a different attitude, while patrolling low income neighborhoods than the suburbs. It’s hard having community oriented policing in such communities, when a officer knows that the majority of the residents label them as the enemy or pig, rather than hard working men and women trying to serve and protect them. While both feel like their issues are more important than one another, each must try to look at it from the opposite side.

Low income neighborhoods should examine the pressure that officers are under and officers should look at the amount of strain low income residents are trying to cope with. Then, maybe they might be able to understand both situations. For example, there is a program called Walk a Mile. This program “Walk a Mile is a national educational program that pairs policymakers with constituents who are either low-income parents or youth living in foster care. The pairs spend a month together learning about each other's lives, gaining new perspectives and "walking a mile" in each other shoes” (Walk a Mile). They should have the same program for officers that patrol these type of Low income neighborhoods.