Use of Voice not Force | Fred Jones | TEDxEustis
Summary
TLDRThe speaker addresses the inevitability of using force in law enforcement, emphasizing the importance of emotional intelligence training for officers. He recounts his own experiences and highlights how understanding and managing emotions can improve interactions between law enforcement and the community. The training encourages officers to empathize and make better decisions, ultimately aiming to reduce the need for force and enhance public trust. The speaker advocates for the widespread adoption of such training to foster more professional and humane policing practices.
Takeaways
- 🚓 Law enforcement often requires the use of force to ensure compliance from unwilling subjects.
- 🛑 A society without the need for law enforcement to use force is unrealistic due to the presence of non-compliant and violent individuals.
- 🤔 The key to reducing the use of force lies in enhancing decision-making and empathy among officers through self-awareness and emotional intelligence.
- 📚 Emotional intelligence training helps officers understand and manage their emotions and those of others, leading to better outcomes in community interactions.
- 💡 The Right Training program emphasizes racial intelligence by combining emotional and social intelligence, promoting inclusive and empathetic behavior.
- 📉 Officers often carry emotional baggage from personal and professional stress, which can impact their performance and interactions.
- 🚨 Training in emotional intelligence can help officers process and manage their emotions, reducing instances of excessive force and misconduct.
- 👮♂️ Personal anecdotes highlight the impact of law enforcement interactions and the importance of empathy and emotional understanding.
- 💔 Emotional intelligence training benefits officers by improving their mental health and enhancing community relations.
- 🏆 Implementing emotional intelligence training in law enforcement agencies shows a commitment to the well-being of officers and fosters professionalism.
Q & A
What is the main topic discussed in the video transcript?
-The main topic discussed is the use of force in law enforcement and how emotional intelligence training can help officers become better decision-makers and improve interactions with the community.
Why does the speaker believe that a society without the use of force by law enforcement is unrealistic?
-The speaker believes it's unrealistic because there will always be individuals who refuse to comply with laws and may even resort to violence to avoid custody, as well as those who harm others for malicious reasons.
What is the 'right training' that the speaker refers to, and what does it entail?
-The 'right training' refers to Racial Intelligence Training and Engagement (RITE), which combines emotional intelligence and social intelligence to help officers understand their own emotions and those of the people they interact with.
How does emotional intelligence training benefit law enforcement officers, according to the speaker?
-It helps officers recognize and manage their own emotions, empathize with the community, and make better decisions, ultimately leading to better outcomes and less use of force.
What personal story does the speaker share to illustrate the impact of law enforcement interactions?
-The speaker shares a story from when he was 17 and was mistakenly detained by police officers who thought he fit the description of a burglary suspect, which led to years of distrust towards law enforcement.
What analogy does the speaker use to describe ignoring emotional issues, and how is it relevant to law enforcement?
-The speaker compares ignoring emotional issues to turning up the radio to drown out a knocking sound in a car engine. This is relevant to law enforcement because officers often ignore their own emotional struggles, which can affect their performance and interactions with the community.
How does the speaker suggest officers can stay emotionally balanced during their duties?
-The speaker suggests using visual aids, such as photos of family and happy memories, and engaging in activities like listening to music that help them stay at the top of the 'emotional ladder' where positive emotions reside.
What statistics does the speaker provide about the mental health of law enforcement officers?
-The speaker mentions that in 2017, 46 law enforcement officers were fatally shot in the line of duty, while 140 committed suicide, highlighting the mental health crisis within the profession.
What feedback has the speaker received from deputies and the community about emotional intelligence training?
-The speaker has received positive feedback from deputies who found the training beneficial and from community members who noted the professionalism of the officers.
What does the speaker believe is the ultimate benefit of emotional intelligence training for law enforcement agencies?
-The speaker believes it shows officers that their well-being is valued, helps them stay aware of their emotional state, and ultimately enables them to use their voice instead of force during interactions with the community.
Outlines
💡 The Inevitability of Law Enforcement's Use of Force
The speaker discusses the necessity of using force in law enforcement, explaining that it's unavoidable because some individuals will always resist compliance, sometimes violently. Despite the desire for a society where force isn't needed, the existence of non-compliant and malicious individuals makes it necessary.
🧠 Emotional and Social Intelligence in Policing
The speaker reflects on his journey in law enforcement, emphasizing the importance of emotional and social intelligence in training. He highlights the significance of understanding oneself to improve interactions with the community and introduces the concept of racial intelligence, which combines emotional and social intelligence.
🎼 Tools to Manage Emotional States
The speaker shares strategies for maintaining emotional well-being, such as using positive visuals and engaging in uplifting activities like listening to music. He explains the concept of the 'emotional ladder,' where emotions range from positive at the top to negative at the bottom, and emphasizes the importance of staying emotionally balanced.
🚔 The Impact of Emotional Baggage on Law Enforcement
The speaker recounts a personal experience with law enforcement that left a lasting impact on him. He underscores how personal and professional stress can affect officers' behavior and decision-making, advocating for emotional intelligence training to help officers manage their emotions and improve community interactions.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Use of force
💡Emotional intelligence
💡Racial intelligence
💡Law enforcement
💡Empathy
💡Emotional ladder
💡Burnout
💡Emotional baggage
💡Community relations
💡Officer misconduct
Highlights
The necessity of force in law enforcement arises from the presence of individuals who refuse to comply with societal laws.
Imagining a society where law enforcement can use less force and avoid confrontations during encounters.
Understanding ourselves can make officers better decision-makers and empathetic towards the community.
Personal story of joining law enforcement in 1997 and the impact of human diversity training.
The significance of racial intelligence training which combines emotional and social intelligence.
Explanation of the 'emotional ladder' and how officers can manage their emotions.
Importance of positive visual aids, like family photos, to help officers stay emotionally balanced.
Music as a tool for emotional regulation after a stressful day.
Identifying and addressing emotional 'knocking sounds' in officers to prevent burnout.
Personal experience of a wrongful police encounter as a teenager and its lasting impact.
Training in emotional intelligence could improve officer empathy and interaction with citizens.
The impact of personal stressors on officers' performance during high-stress calls.
Addressing emotional baggage is crucial to prevent excessive use of force and misconduct.
The role of emotional intelligence in preventing officer suicides and promoting mental health.
Emotional intelligence training shows officers that they are valued as individuals, not just as employees.
Transcripts
[Applause]
[Music]
registration well I put your speed use
of force what is it in terms of law
enforcement it is the amount of force
used to compel an unwilling subject to
comply what if we could live in a
society where law enforcement did not
have to use force doesn't that sound
great it's never going to happen and
I'll tell you why it's never going to
happen
it's never going to happen because there
will always be those that will not
comply with the laws of society and they
would do anything not to be taken into
custody even killing those pursuing them
and then there are those that will hurt
and torture others for no other reason
but to watch them suffer those are the
evil ones and yes they do exist but
let's set those scenarios aside there's
Wallis and others what if we could live
in a society where law enforcement
agencies across the nation can have
their officer use less force on any
given day and what if we could live in a
society where a simple encounter between
a law enforcement officer and a citizen
doesn't become a confrontation you know
like the ones we've seen on television
so how do we change the narrative the
philosopher Socrates he put it best when
he said know thyself is the beginning of
wisdom so I'm going to talk about how
nor now R selves can make officers
better decision-makers and I'm going to
talk about how understanding our own
weaknesses and our own struggles can
help us empathize with those that we
make contact with in a community so
let's get started so how did I get here
was in 1997 I joined the law enforcement
community and at the end of the Academy
we had to take a human diversity class
or I used to call it a how to treat
people that don't look like you class so
in my class you know we had white folks
and we had black folks and we had
Hispanic folks and and we talked about
stereotypes and well why can't you say
that I can't say that anything and there
was a lot of tension but we survived it
we learn from it and moving forward I
continue to take those classes and I did
benefit but I always felt like there was
an element missing in 2016 a supervisor
approached me and said he wanted me to
take another human diversity class and
I'm thinking to myself 97 98 99 I'm
probably the most our first person I
know but he promised me that this one
was different
and so I went and he was right this one
was different because it was inclusive
it wasn't just about how to treat them
but how to treat ourselves it was called
the right training racial intelligence
training and engagement and it dealt
with emotional intelligence plus social
intelligence equals racial intelligence
in essence looking at our own emotions
first understanding where we are at all
times emotionally plus have an
understanding of those that we make
contact in the community when equal to
equal to better outcomes and that's what
we all want and so
we did this training the officers were
engaged and we talked about things like
you know what to do what to do when when
you're headed to that call of a horrific
child of his case a child neglect and
and he talked about the emotions that
you go through to when you your head to
that next call that's the tragic suicide
you know and one of the the things that
really stood out in this training to me
was one about the emotional ladder it
utilizes a picture of a ladder and on
each rung of a ladder there's an emotion
at the very top of the ladder we have
emotions such as happiness and joy and
gratitude as you make your way down to
the bottom we have emotions such as hate
anger anxiety fear at the top is where
we want to stay at the bottom is where
some of us live even us the law
enforcement so we did some training we
talked about what to do when you find
yourself at the bottom of the ladder we
use visuals how many of you have cell
phones all of us so what's on your cell
phone see we talked about helping
pictures that will bring us back to the
top of that ladder and for me I have a
picture of my beautiful family plus my
dogs I have a picture of our great
vacation experiences and I have a pitch
of my pension because that keeps me on
the top of the ladder
but we also talked about doing things
that take us from the bottom in and
keeps us up here toward the top and for
me it's music now when I have a very
frustrating day at work I leave the
office and walking down the sidewalk and
I don't care who's around me I think of
music cuz I love music so I'm thinking
one of my favorite artists don't be
great and there's some drift away and
I'll just kind of go right to the verse
that I love when my mind is free he no
melody can move me when I'm feeling blue
get sauce coming through to soothe me
see y'all go to church right some of you
nod your head but that's what it does
for me it gives me back to where I am
and I understand where I'm where I'm at
at all times you know so what are we
talking about as far as understanding
our emotions identifying where we at at
all times
imagine your best friend calls you in
the middle of the night they say they're
broken down they need you to come get
them and so being a good friend you are
you call out of bed you get dressed you
jump in your car and you're driving down
the road to pick your friend up a couple
miles down the road you hear this
knocking sound in the engine you know
you know something's wrong and it's not
the first time you've heard it so what
do you do you probably do what you
always do you turn up the radio you
drown it out and you keep driving you
know there are those of us in law
enforcement we have that same kind of
knocking sound going on inside of us but
it's an emotional one you know be it
through burnout from the job is there
some kind of family illness that we're
going through and what do we do we turn
up the volume of life and we drown it
out we ignore it and agencies across the
nation they tell their officers to take
your vehicles there person
and I want you to go out there and I
want you to help those who are broken
down now imagine there's these agencies
they would see thousands of calls of
service it could be a novel one call
simple hang up call or it can be a
homicide and everything in between
armed robbery sexual battery and they
send them out there to try and fix those
things but they have to start with
themselves and that's where emotion
comes in comes in it teaches us how to
identify our emotions and you know when
I'm speaking with my deputies about this
they love the training they thought it
was the one of the greatest things
they've experienced and so we talked
about what happens when we make contact
with an individual that can help
short-term and long-term effects on our
community for example that if you would
travel back in time with me I am a 17
year old on the cross-country team it is
a beautiful Saturday morning and I'm out
for an 8 mile run and about mallow
sticks I see all these police cars
converge in front of me they jump out
they ask me where I'm coming from I said
I'm on an 8 mile run I I'm at mile six
right now so you're saying that you
wasn't over there or late it was just
broken into no sir it wasn't me well
Allah you fit you fit the description of
the suspect so they placed me in the
back of a patrol car they took me back
to the scene they took me out of the
patrol car they went upstairs to the
house and they escorted an elderly lady
out to the yard and asked her is that
the guy that broke into your house and I
remember her
Squiggy and I'm thinking to myself I'm
about to go to jail something I didn't
do
but she said no it wasn't him and so it
plays me back in the patrol car they
took me back to where they met me at
they dropped me off they didn't say
anything they they took off to find the
culprit and I remember being angry and
being confused now I remember running
those last two miles with tears
streaming down my face and for the next
11 years or so before I got to law
enforcement every time I would see an
officer coming my way I will go the
other way because they took me back to
that 17 year old and then when I did
become a law enforcement officer I
realized that they were just doing their
job but I also know it's not just what
you do it's how you do it what if these
officers have been trained in the
emotional intelligence could they have
utilized some empathy maybe walked in my
shoes could they have even apologized
for the misunderstanding that could have
had a different impact on me than had
now fast forward to today imagine an
officer he said it to a violent domestic
violence call lights and sirens this
officer is going through a divorce his
teenage son was just expelled from
school he just recently filed for
bankruptcy what do you think he would be
on that ladder could it affect him when
he Rob's it
Rod's at the scene could it affect him
on a traffic stop you know we carry a
lot of emotional baggage and we must
learn how to process it when we hear
about these instances of excessive use
of force officer misconduct it is easy
to drive the narrative of race now I
know it's something you're going to say
well oh you know of course you're an
officer sergeant Jones
you're gonna take you're gonna take up
for your officers you know I've been in
law enforcement for about 21 years but
I've been black for 50 years and in both
cases by some I've been painted with
that broad brush of you people and
nobody likes it so why don't we work on
getting to the root of the problem that
I don't know what happened in each of
those instances that you may see on
television but what I do know is a
seasoned law enforcement officer and as
a supervisor in Internal Affairs that a
light of emotional intelligence plays a
role in officers behavior we are not
robots
this emotional intelligence training
isn't just about how we treat other
people it's about how we treat ourselves
and we are not robots
people may think south they're doing our
jobs with just machines but underneath
these badges there are humans and a lot
of times there are humans that are
crying out for help
in 2017 USA Today released the report
and it brought to the light that 46 law
enforcement officers were fatally shot
in the line of duty 140 committed
suicide
you know I'm I'm proud of the men and
women that I work with every day I'm
proud of this profession I'm even
prouder of the leadership that brought
emotional intelligence training to us I
think we're better agency because of it
I received positive feedback from our
deputies and I get calls from the
community about how professional our
officers are and I think every agency
should train their officers and
emotional intelligence training I think
it serves multiple purposes for one as
the agency here's your opportunity to
show your officer that I care about you
more than just as an officer but also as
a person and it allows that officer to
be aware and stay aware of where they
are emotionally at all times especially
when they make contact with the
community and last but not least it
gives an officer a great opportunity to
use their voice instead of force
you
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