"Rethinking the Police" (Daniel Reinhardt)

TITLE: Rethinking the Police: An Officer's Confession and the Pathway to Reform
AUTHOR: Daniel Reinhardt
PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2023, (224 pages).
 

The general perception of the Police force has taken a beating these days. From Michael Brown to Breonna Taylor, Daniel Prude to George Floyd, instances of police brutality on minority communities are becoming far too common. Those who claim that the issue is due to individual racists will have to explain why in 2023, five African American policemen killed Tyre Nichols, a black. According to author Daniel Reinhardt, the problem is beyond individuals. It is embedded in a system that nourishes systemic discrimination. In other words, if the perpetrators are guilty, the environment that breeds them is worse. As a 24-year-veteran of the police force, Reinhardt knows the system from the academy to street patrols. The question remains. If law enforcement agencies, courts, the federal agencies are aware of the problem, then why is there so little progress for better policing? Reinhardt puts his finger on the lack of changes from the inside out. With so much attention on external factors, internal factors have unwittingly been minimized. These factors refer to culture, worldview, and "implicit social structures." He goes on to describe the three key cultural factors: "Social distance," "Unchecked power," and "social structures." 

With public admission of "systemic racism" in the system of policing and the unjust treatment of minority communities, many are clamoring for seismic changes. Reinhardt defines "systemic racism" not as something external like laws or written policies, but as unwritten laws and entrenched practices. He frames the book in two parts. Part One traces the history of the Police and highlights the ups and downs of the force. He asserts that the foundation of the Police was essentially based on Christian principles of fairness, peace, and "judicious exercise of power." The trouble begins when people start to diverge from the original principles. With corruption comes greed. Wth civil protests come power unhinged. The author goes on to describe how the three cultural factors led to dehumanization and abuse. Add to that is toxic leadership that makes positive changes difficult, even impossible. This caused the rise of problems like biased enforcement, brutality, and unjust use of power. The fight against crime led to "zero-tolerance policing." Statistical analysis reduces neighborhoods into mere numbers instead of understanding the contexts of each community. He points out a major cause: That the rules the police followed nourished the spread of systemic racism. 

Thankfully, Reinhardt provides us with a bigger writeup in Part Two of the book about reforming for positive change. He calls the policing leadership to go back to the Christian foundations based on servanthood, service, true peace, fairness, and justice. Sharing his personal expression about hitting a wall of resistance, he urges the reformation of police culture toward one of humility and willingness to change. He proposes a model of servant leadership that is based on John David Trentham's principle of integrating social sciences and law enforcement. This includes a "follower-first" practice that includes union, community, and mission. They are summarized as follows:

1. Leaders are followers first, meaning they practice what they preach
2. They are "one" with the people they lead
3. Authority and power are to be used "judiciously and benevolently."
4. Mission as justice and peace

It also includes the need for a "shepherd" attitude and leadership characteristics.  He then proposes a "new strategy of peace" that encapsulates the principles he had listed. At the very top are leaders who focus on influencing and inculcating the virtue of servanthood. They lead the way for everyone in that policing is not simply enforcing the law but building relationships with the communities they serve. 

The next level of leadership is the officers and subcultures needed to infuse the principle of servanthood. In the interactions, the model must be exercised with the fundamentals of professionalism, respect, equitable treatment, trust, and public cooperation. Community policing means a deeper level of personal interaction with citizens and crime prevention. This calls for a smaller geographical area of responsibility to enable each officer to spend time building rapport with the community. A key focus is on how to improve relations with the African-American community. 

My Thoughts
I want to offer three thoughts about this book. First, I feel that the idea of servanthood is sound but the learning curve is steep. The subject of servant leadership has been around for over 60 years but we are still talking about putting such a theory into practice. This proves the age-old maxim that the longest distance in the world is the distance from the head to the heart. I could even venture to say that servant leadership is necessary in all spheres of society. Yet, in some way, the author might have seen this concept as a necessary corrective to what is happening to police forces in America and most of the Western hemisphere. The key driver for reform seems to come from the strong pushback from the public who are fed up with the racist treatments of the Rodney Kings and the George Floyds are becoming more blatant and frequent. Is systemic racism the cause? The author says yes. Is the solution to defund the police? The author says no. That would be a blunt strategy that is likened to throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Perhaps, the way forward for the police is to maintain the mindset of a servant. Like running a marathon, as long as one paces in the right direction, the goal will be in sight eventually. As the author admits, there are "no quick fixes" so readers will need to check their expectations when reading this book.

Second, though difficult, reforming the police is increasingly a necessity. With widespread public negativity, every single mistake by the police will be scrutinized meticulously. There is very little room for forgiveness. As long as positive steps are being put forward and implemented, there is hope. This is not simply about systemic racism. It is about the safety of all communities and the trust between the police and the public. Just like what the German Pastor Martin Neumueller warned about the failure to speak up for the needy, we should not see systemic racism as something affecting any one specific race alone. The biblical understanding of community is that, if one part of the body hurts, everyone hurts. It takes two to tango, so while it requires the police to make changes to their policing, the community needs to play its part to be more cooperative instead of confrontative. Be supportive of reforms. Be patient for as long as possible. 

Third, relationships matter and they matter greatly. This is the single biggest takeaway that I have when reading this book. Just like servant leadership needs to be propagated at all levels, relationship-building needs to happen at all levels. That means the police hierarchy and their fellow officers; the cooperation between neighbourhood watch groups and the police; relationships between the authorities among neighbouring jurisdictions; and regular human bonding events between the law enforcers and the public. At the end of it all, we should not simply be defined by the colour of our skin or the uniforms we wear. We need to respect the sanctity of life, to build trusting relationships with the people we live and interact with daily. In this regard, the author is wonderfully positioned to show us the way. As a former police officer, he understands what it means to serve, to protect, and to uphold the law. As a Christian, he knows the gospel as a bridge that brings together law, grace, and peace. Thankfully, he has written this book as a resource to help us think Christianly about policing and the foundations of decent and just policing. 

Daniel Reinhardt (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) served as a police officer near Cleveland, Ohio, for twenty-four years. After retiring from the police force, he was assistant professor at the Heart of Texas Foundation College of Ministry at the Memorial Unit, a prison in Rosharon, Texas. Currently, he is associate director of student life and applied ministry at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with his wife, Yvette.

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5.

conrade

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This book has been provided courtesy of InterVarsity Press via NetGalley without requiring a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.