This dissertation is broadly concerned with the relationship between democracy and race in the United States federal government. To analyze this problem, I rely on archival research from the 1967-8 National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (commonly known as the Kerner Commission, after chairperson Governor Otto Kerner) to examine how the discussion and management of hundreds of so-called "race riots" in the summer of 1967 both challenges civil disobedience and embodies structural racism. Employing a content analysis of the final 425-page Kerner Commission government report, I assess the categorization, labeling, and language used to describe and document the hundreds of "race riots" and related state violence through acts of police misconduct that engulfed the country in the summer of 1967. I rely heavily on the report and background research itself, as well as major books related to race riots and presidential commissions, such as Anthony Platt's 1971 The Politics of Riot Commissions and Steven Gillon's 2018 Separate and Unequal. I incorporate theories of exit and the entitlement to rights advanced in literature by scholars like Jennet Kirkpatrick, James C. Scott, and Hannah Arendt. This dissertation is concerned with the relationship between morality and civic participation in democratic politics. I analyze Christopher Kutz's book Complicity: Ethics and Law for a Collective Age to delve into the ramifications of democracy and US citizenship being considered a kind of "collective project" and further contemplate what obligations and implications exist for citizens in US democracy against racial injustice. Since the Kerner Commission coincided with the rise of "law and order" politics in the nation's political vernacular, it represents a unique opportunity to witness an ideological shift toward a Garrison state and neoliberal ethos, both of which undermine the country's espoused democratic values, resting on the grammar of equality and justice for all. The Kerner Commission can provide valuable lessons in studies of political domination that remain pertinent to overcoming oppression and injustice today. / Doctor of Philosophy / This dissertation is broadly concerned with the relationship between democracy and race in the United States federal government. American democracy espouses moral virtues related to freedom and justice for all, and yet structural racism remains pervasive in how the government operates. To analyze this problem, I rely on archival research from the 1967-8 National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (commonly known as the Kerner Commission, after chairperson Governor Otto Kerner) to examine how the discussion and management of hundreds of so-called “race riots” in the summer of 1967 both challenges civil disobedience and embodies structural racism. I rely heavily on the report and background research itself to do a content analysis. I also use major books related to race riots and presidential commissions, such as Anthony Platt’s 1971 The Politics of Riot Commissions and Steven Gillon’s 2018 Separate and Unequal. Given that this dissertation is concerned with how morality shapes civic participation in democratic politics, I analyze Christopher Kutz’s book Complicity: Ethics and Law for a Collective Age. Since the Kerner Commission coincided with the rise of “law and order” politics in the nation’s political vernacular, it represents a unique opportunity to witness an ideological shift toward a Garrison state and neoliberal ethos, both of which undermine the country’s espoused democratic values, resting on the grammar of equality and justice for all. Individual advocates as well as scholars can learn valuable lessons from the Kerner Commission about oppression and injustice in today’s society.

Autoscopy is a poetry collection that constellates together the speaker's ancestral experience of Jewish diaspora and genocide, the ongoing oppression and genocide of Palestinians, and the anti-Black racism that led to the police-murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. In all, the speaker is at once close and far from what they witness, both personally impacted and implicated by their witnessing. In documentary, translation, prayer, elegiac, confessional, and experimental modes, these poems locate the possibility and need for a reimagined mode of kinship, using diasporic and queer desire as a means of reparation. / Master of Fine Arts / Autoscopy is a poetry collection.

Police brutality is a problematic feature of the American society that has caused civil unrest among the vast majority. The excessive use of force from American police forces sparked off a wave of protests during 2020 in which people called for the abolishment of unnecessary and unethical police violence against civilians. The importance of the Black Lives Matter movement has been highlighted by the authoritarian response to the protests and the inhumane treatment of ethnic minorities in the United States. But given the strong protection of the freedom of speech and the freedom of assembly in the U.S. constitution, the problem seems to be intertwined with inappropriate attitudes of officials rather than written shortcomings in the law. In this thesis, I investigate how structural racism has affected the freedom of assembly in the United States, which is done through a critical review of relevant literature and documents concerning contemporary challenges for the Black Lives Matter movement. Various reports have addressed the mishandling of Black Lives Matter protests from American police forces and their arbitrarily use of the law to disperse them, e.g., by classifying predominantly peaceful demonstrations as “unlawful assemblies”. This is the kind of dishonest behaviour that I scrutinize further in this study, which is of great importance since it affects peoples’ human rights and ultimately threatens the collective well-being of the American people.  I also investigate and critically discuss the components of a sustainable understanding of the freedom of assembly, which is done through a theoretical analysis of the views of Ronald Dworkin and Jeremy Waldron. From this analysis, I learn about substantial problems that may arise from different theoretical understandings of this right and about the importance of spreading awareness of different forms of racism. Only by acknowledging the existence of racism in our societies, we can protect vulnerable groups from derogatory behaviours and together achieve social justice.

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South Africa has been synonymous with police brutality for many years. This stigma remains till this day. The South African Police Service and the Government has tried in vain to change the image of the South African Police Service. This research was conducted to analyse the prevention of police brutality in the Western Cape, focusing on Cape Town. This will include the effects police brutality has had on the community, and the resulting breakdown of relations between the police and the community. This study will compare statistics of police brutality related incidents from South Africa with that of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia and Nigeria. This comparison will indicate if South Africans do suffer more brutality cases at the hands of the police or is brutality by police officers a worldwide phenomenon. The research questions that were asked during this study are if police brutality is a problem, why does police brutality occur, how does it affect the community and what can be done to prevent police brutality. This study used a mixed method of research methodology to attempt the answer the complex questions asked. This included survey questionnaires that were distributed to police officials, Community Police Forum members and the community around the Cape Town Central Business District. Semi structured interviews were held with members of the police’s departmental hearing section. Literature was also obtained regarding police brutality. Prevention of police brutality strategies from the United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia and Nigeria were obtained to compare these strategies and determine which have been successful and could be a benefit to the South African Police Service. The current strategies the South African Police Service have also put in place will be discussed which will include legislation, white paper on safety and security, the green paper on police practice and the National Development plan 2030. Combining all the information obtained, this research will provide findings regarding the phenomenon of police brutality and possible recommendations that could assist with the prevention of police brutality. This in turn will help build a better relationship between the South African Police Service and its Citizens that they swore to protect and serve. / Criminology and Security Science / M. A. (Criminal Justice)

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Throughout the pages of my thesis, I comprehensively analyze the processes, intentions, and production of my thesis film Stay Woke. My examination will exhaustively probe every stage of the film from development to preproduction to production to postproduction and beyond. Individual aspects of this process including writing, casting, locations, production design, cinematography, directing, budgeting, scheduling, and postproduction workflows will be detailed. As I make elaborations in each section, I will explain my learning experiences from each day’s new tasks, challenges, and lessons. All of these things will be framed with regards to the overall goal and themes of the film.

This exploratory and qualitative investigation is used as a research strategy to indicate a preventative policing style for public violence in the Eastern Free State. The research's integration of problem-solving methods may be used in instances where public violence is common and pre-empted. The study researched the policing of public expression against poor service delivery in a democratic South Africa after the adoption of a new Constitution. The Scanning, Analysis, Response and Assessment Model is applied by way of a service-oriented, preventative policing style involving the principles of the Community Policing Style. The dissertation argues that though the South African Police Service's handling of public violence in the Eastern Free State, was reminiscent of the former public violence of political oppression, it should gradually move away from the military approach to a preferred community policing style and include relevant role players in using a systematic and service-orientated preventative policing style to address public violence. / CRIMINOLOGY / MTECH: POLICING

This exploratory and qualitative investigation is used as a research strategy to indicate a preventative policing style for public violence in the Eastern Free State. The research's integration of problem-solving methods may be used in instances where public violence is common and pre-empted. The study researched the policing of public expression against poor service delivery in a democratic South Africa after the adoption of a new Constitution. The Scanning, Analysis, Response and Assessment Model is applied by way of a service-oriented, preventative policing style involving the principles of the Community Policing Style. The dissertation argues that though the South African Police Service's handling of public violence in the Eastern Free State, was reminiscent of the former public violence of political oppression, it should gradually move away from the military approach to a preferred community policing style and include relevant role players in using a systematic and service-orientated preventative policing style to address public violence. / CRIMINOLOGY / MTECH: POLICING