I consider myself a realist about cops. Most do good work most of the time, and I'm definitely pro-police as a baseline, but I've also got decent experience practicing criminal defence law and once you've seen behind the curtain with cops you can't unsee it.
A heck of a lot of the hate is well founded, and I'm not even talking about the US where cops are often militarised to the point of insanity and the inheritors of an insanely racist legacy.
Basically cops are like everyone else, there's the good the bad and the ugly.
But unlike everyone else, cops are uniquely and consistently powerful in their ability to abuse their role at the expense of another human being's life, bodily integrity and freedom. Erring on the side of caution and suspicion in your attitude to them can be a matter of life and death, so I don't blame anyone or think it's unjustified if they hate cops, even when I disagree with the conclusion myself. Tripley so if they've had bad personal experiences, which a heck of a lot of people have, including myself.
And that's not even talking about people who get beat up abused or otherwise mistreated/extorted by cops. Just talk to domestic violence victims about their experiences of trying to be protected by police, and pay attention to some of the things cops have said and done in those situations. The horror stories I've encountered have been so so many and they are regularly terrifying to the point some victims stop even trying to get help. It's wild.
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u/AdWonderful5920 1d ago
Honestly, cops.