Introduction

In Unit 1, when you began your investigation into terrorism and what program your department could undertake to respond to the threat, the chief voiced concerns over how some in the community might view whatever program he decided to go with. There were groups in the community that felt they were being dubbed as terrorists without any justifiable reason. As you have investigated the topic, you have learned many important things that demonstrated that the concerns voiced by the groups in the city were valid, and you learned that a militaristic response to terrorism is not always the best option. Your study of terrorist incidents since 9/11 demonstrated that the large, catastrophic attacks are not the ones that are succeeding. It is the locally radicalized small group or lone individual that is the ongoing threat.

With this in mind, you researched and found that community cooperation and communication seemed to be the key in limiting local radicalization. If radicalization did occur, it was typically a community member or family member that came forward to thwart the act, not intelligence from outside sources. Disenfranchisement, lack of employment, and perceived oppression by the government or authorities can all play into the mix of radicalization in a community. A plan that can address these issues is what is needed.

You believe that community-oriented policing (COP) may hold the key to the type of program your chief wants to implement. It addresses the current threat as well as concerns of the Muslim community in your city. COP is not without its detractors. Some scholars have pointed out that a COP program that only seeks to interact with the Muslim community is perceived as a cover for spying upon Muslims. You know that a true COP initiative will incorporate the entire city and that de-radicalization will just be a part of the whole program, not the only goal. You have decided to inform your chief about COP concepts, and how they relate to the establishment of communication to mitigate radicalization. You will also elaborate on how they foster goodwill between the police and the community.

Before completing this assignment, be certain to complete the Community Outreach: Community-Oriented Policing scenario in the assignment Resources. This media piece contains the thoughts of the stakeholders in the community; the people for whom a COP program would become an integral part of life.

Instructions

For this assignment, prepare an essay in which you:

• Summarize the two core components of community-oriented policing.
• Correlate the two core components of community-oriented policing to combating the cause of homegrown radicalization.
• Evaluate the concern that a community-oriented policing program is a cover for a Muslim-only intelligence gathering program.
• Provide two suggestions for preventing the community-oriented policing program from devolving into Muslim spy program.

Requirements

• Written communication: Written communication should be free of errors that detract from the overall message.
• APA formatting: Resources and citations should be formatted according to current APA style and formatting.
• Number of references: 4–5 peer-reviewed, scholarly references.
• Length of paper: 4–5 pages.
• Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.