"The Secret Policeman" - BBC 1 9pm tonight (21st Oct 2003)

Try to watch The Secret Policeman tonight at 9pm BBC1.

Saw a trailer and it looked really interesting. About a journalist who went under cover to train as a police officer and he unearthed some pretty scary attitudes to the ethnic minorities in our society.

I feel that it might provoke an interesting discussion on here.

Footage for the programme includes one officer dressing up in an improvised Ku Klux Klan hood. Reporter Mark Daly faces criminal charges over his move to infiltrate recruits as part of the work to assess whether institutional racism still exists within police ranks. GMP has confirmed it suspended three officers after senior officers viewed footage from The Secret Policeman programme.(source)

I'll be watching for sure... sounds very interesting/shocking.

Kinda destroys everything I was saying that the police have come a long way in removing racism in the force.

If this is indeed true I will be most appaled at the acceptance of such behaviour in todays police service.

The British police have a VERY GOOD reputation in the world for professionalism and service to the public.

This may just destroy that dogma once and for all. I'll make my opinion after the programme.

Can't wait to watch the show.

Its just a journalist playing the police at there own game, they have secret investigations to solve crime, why can't we do the same on them.

Although he faces criminal prosicution he should be awarded for showing the police in there true light.

Originally posted by Geoff

Footage for the programme includes one officer dressing up in an improvised Ku Klux Klan hood. Reporter Mark Daly faces criminal charges over his move to infiltrate recruits as part of the work to assess whether institutional racism still exists within police ranks. GMP has confirmed it suspended three officers after senior officers viewed footage from The Secret Policeman programme. (source)

 

Leftwingers may prefer to read the article on the Guardian website instead

They have an interview with him too.

Originally posted by Abby

Leftwingers may prefer to read the article on the Guardian website instead

 

They have an interview with him too.

Why leftwingers only? Are you afraid that someone who is not leftwing may read something there that may upset them?

When we see these individual policemen tonight I suspect that for racism we could equally substitute sexism and homophobia as well. I don't suppose it's a barrel of laughts in the police service as a woman and or gay officer.

Originally posted by max

Why leftwingers only? Are you afraid that someone who is not leftwing may read something there that may upset them?

Well yes actually.

They may find things like truth, facts, informed opinions and liberal writers.

I'm sure you can see how bloodthirsty rightwingers would be upset.

Originally posted by Abby

Well yes actually.

 

They may find things like truth, facts, informed opinions and liberal writers.

 

I'm sure you can see how bloodthirsty rightwingers would be upset.

How on earth do you expect them to read anything let alone absord it with their hands shaking, the spittle dripping from their lips and the red mist of denial forming over their eyes?

removed by spook

May I join what I suspect will be a host of Forum members in thanking Spook for not being vile and corrupt like those half a dozen Police Officers we have watched tonight. I hope he will quickly shop the very few that he comes across.

I am heartened that he (Mark?) only found six seriously bad ones out of hundreds of decent people, but sorry that until only yesterday, those six were happily kicking excrement in the face of all those people who believe in law and order. All those people that think that for instance bobbies on the beat is a good thing and that if only more police were engaged in crime detection and reduction all would be well in the world. That all coppers are naturally good.

From now on, I hope that people will think "More police is a great idea but please can we suss them out first, as individuals, so that we know that they are stopping your actual criminals rather than someone with a black or brown face"

I wasnt shocked, I have seen it from personal experience in a few limited number of cases myself, but I was horrified that despite the very best efforts of the Greater Manchester Police (or whichever), they were not able to detect these six officers and get them chucked out and blacklisted.

I reckon the ONLY way to catch the rotten apples is through covert activities and I take my hat off (not of course a helmet) to the guy from the BBC who has I am quite sure put his own life on the line for doing this.

I happen to support the police by and large, although I know most people will find that hard to believe, I have even been quite close to a few in my time. But I also know that it only takes one or two corrupt Officers with a penchant for arresting and harassing a few people in an ethnic minority grouping, to poison the views of huge numbers of those communities AND their supporters.

I remember an ancient Not the Nine O'Clock News sketch where Rowan Atkinson as the Sergeant, questioned the arrest of someone for weating a loud tie in a built up area and for being in possession of thick lips.

It is at times like this when you wonder if enough advances have been made.

Personally I reserve my most scoriating (first time use of the word, wonder if I got it right) for the Tutor who giggled and smirked when the Asian Officer wasnt coming back and told his group that he had explicitly been told NOT to smile so that they didnt think he was racist, but DID IT ANYWAY

Outraged of "not Sheffield"