Effects of Poor Ethics on the Community
Poor ethics have negative implications on both social and corporate environments. Poor ethics has been a problem globally for several years now, with many people misusing their power to harass others. Many ethical considerations have been established to guide people on what is considered right or wrong. Regardless of many efforts to help the world be a better place for everyone, many cases have been recorded showing social injustices. A good example of poor ethics is seen in the 1991 Rodney King incident, where a harmless man was recorded being ruthlessly beaten by 14 LAPD officers (Reyes & Houston, 2019, p.315). Poor ethics can lead to loss of jobs, loss of organization credibility, and young people living in constant fear.
The first effect of poor ethics is the loss of jobs. Law enforcement lays off anyone found on the wrong side of the law. In the Rodney King scenario of 1991, King was engaged in a drunk chase with the LAPD. He was later captured and beaten in broad daylight after being handcuffed. A civilian happened to record the scene and forwarded the video to the media station. This LAPD had unjustly beaten the drunk person. This, according to the law, was a poor form of ethics (Reyes & Houston, 2019, p.319). After a series of hearings, two police officers lost their jobs and were sent directly to prison to serve their sentences.
The second effect of poor ethics is the loss of organization credibility. The organization where the ethical issue is found experiences a couple of victimization due to the declined goodwill. After the Rodney King episode, the LAPD law enforcers’ credibility faced huge scrutiny (Platt, 2020, p.75). There were a lot of questions asked about the management of the police force. People lost trust in the LAPD’s ability to take care of the residents if such behavior was being entertained. The government had to intervene and change the whole department to regain lost trust. It took several years for the police department to regain its former glory.
The last effect brought about by poor ethics is constantly living in fear by young people. The whole episode about Rodney King was traumatizing to watch. The ruthless beating by 14 heavily armed police enforcers on a handcuffed person was a revelation of police brutality at its fullest. This image might have traumatized a young black American who is always experiencing racial profiling in his or her daily life (Platt, 2020, p.70). After seeing law enforcement, which is supposed to help them in times of need, the young person can act unethically can fear even walking out of the house. Poor ethics in society make the neighborhood unsafe for some people, especially those who pose as threats. The Rodney King video might have made a child in the black neighborhood traumatized.
In conclusion, poor ethics causes loss of jobs, loss of institutional credibility, and traumatizing effects on young people. Rodney King’s 1991 case has been the reference for poor ethics, and it ensured the police officers who found guilty, taken into prison. The LAPD lost its hard-earned glory due to loss of credibility. The world was shocked by law enforcers’ uncouth behavior, which consequently led to the loss of trust. The last negative implication of poor ethics is a traumatizing event for the young child in a black neighborhood. Black people received a lot of unfair treatment because they posed a threat to others. From the above details, poor ethics need to be looked into to treat every human fairly.
Reference
Platt, M. B. (2020). Hoodies on the Floor: Exploring Black Members’ Legislative Response to Police Brutality. National Review of Black Politics, 1(1), 69-79.
Reyes, Jr, H. G., & Houston, K. A. (2019). Perceptions of police brutality: Does audio matter?. Psychology, public policy, and law, 25(4), 315-321.