Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Those of us who are interested in community policing should watch carefully what is happening in the US. Recent events there reveal what occurs when there is a toxic relationship between a certain section of a community and its police officers. Not only have the brutal killing of Mr. George Floyd and the consequent protests underlined the toxicity of the relationship that exists between certain groups in the US and its police officers, they have also have underlined the importance of having a police force that serves with the support and co-operation of the public that it polices. Regrettably, large numbers among the black community in the US look upon police officers as being members of an organisation that is committed to discriminating against and oppressing them. That is not the case with the majority of police officers, but it is significant nonetheless.

Fortunately, we in Ireland do not have such a toxic relationship between An Garda Síochána and the members of the community that it polices. When one speaks to communities about policing in their areas, be it in the flats of the inner city or in rural Ireland, one of the noticeable features is that they want to see more gardaí on the ground and in their communities. The reason for that is because the Garda is viewed as a community police force that provides community policing. It is not viewed in the same way as a police force in the US, that is, as a law enforcement agency.

I am conscious that we as policymakers need to be constantly vigilant about what is happening in policing in this country. As we know, the Garda can change and public attitudes to the Garda can change. As our society changes, it is important that the Garda change with it. If the Garda is to achieve success in community policing as our society becomes more diverse, it is important that it reflect that diversity. This is why it is important that the Garda continue to recruit from different races and all socio-economic backgrounds. Diversity in Ireland is happening and it should also happen within the Garda.

As policymakers we must ensure that gardaí continue to police by placing the principles of equality, diversity and respect at the forefront of their work. Of course, the problems in the United States go far beyond the toxicity of the relationship between certain black communities and certain police officers. The history of that country is overshadowed by issues such as slavery, segregation and racism, issues that are too complex to go into here. It is fair to say that people who observed the civil rights movement in the US or the great legislative achievements of President Lyndon Johnson, as President and as a Senator, will be extremely disappointed at the fact that in the 21st century, the progress of black people in America is not where it should be.

As I said at the outset, we need to be conscious of racism in this country. We must also be conscious that as a country, we are hugely impacted by events that happen in neighbouring countries. We have a very large country to our west and another to our east and we must be extremely careful that we do not allow the polarisation of politics that has occurred in the United States and the United Kingdom and regrettably, that has existed in Northern Ireland for decades, to happen in this country. The purpose of polarisation in politics is to divide people into different antagonistic groups through the presentation to them of the idea that their issues can only be resolved by affiliation to one political group. What polarisation seeks to do is to convince people not to look at the substance of a political issue but to just affiliate themselves with a particular group. It further holds that anyone outside that group is antagonistic to their interests and should be opposed. I hope we do not see that fragmentation of politics happening in Ireland. As politicians, we all have a responsibility to ensure we confront racism where it exists in Ireland, and it does exist. We also need to ensure we do not facilitate polarisation because one of the extremely negative consequences of polarisation is that it allows the extremes to flourish and on the extremes are the racists.

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