FRONTLINE film ‘Documenting Police Use of Force’ to be shown Oct. 16

The FRONTLINE film, “Documenting Police Use of Force,” will be the focus of the Wednesday, Oct. 16, Conversations on Race and Policing program, which will take place at 1 p.m. on Zoom, and include a conversation with filmmakers Sergiho Roosblad and Mike Shum.

Free and open to the public, it can be accessed from a PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android at https://tinyurl.com/csusb-race-policing. This event is also made possible with the support of Erika Howard (director, Impact Strategy & External Relations, FRONTLINE, PBS).

“Documenting Police Use of Force” investigates the deaths that occurred after police used tactics such as prone restraint and other “less-lethal force” methods. The documentary and accompanying reporting draw on police records, autopsy reports and body cam footage, offering the most expansive tally of such deaths nationwide. The film was produced by FRONTLINE and The Associated Press, in collaboration with the Howard Centers for Investigative Journalism.

The Conversations on Race and Policing program began after the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, and its aftermath. Floyd, a Black man, was killed by a white Minneapolis police officer, triggering extensive protests, demands for systemic reform in policing, and profound dialogues on race and racism. This also led to the inception of Cal State San Bernardino’s Conversations on Race and Policing, abbreviated as CoRP.

In subsequent court cases, three other former Minneapolis police officers implicated in Floyd’s death were given prison sentences.

The series has featured scholars, journalists, law enforcement officers, lawyers, activists, artists, educators, administrators and others from throughout the nation who shared their experience and expertise on issues related to race and policing.

More than 110 forums have taken place since, and video recordings of the sessions are posted online on the Conversations on Race and Policing Lecture Series Archive. 

Upcoming programs, all set for 1 p.m. Pacific Time on Wednesdays, include:

• Oct. 23, Jessica Pishko, author of “The Highest Law in the Land: How the Unchecked Power of Sheriffs Threatens Democracy”
• Nov. 6, Lydia Pelot-Hobbs, University of Kentucky assistant professor of geography, “We Deserve Better: Contesting Racialized Sexual and Gender Policing”
• Nov. 13, Daanika Gordon, Tufts University, and author of “Policing the Racial Divide: Urban Grown Politics and the Remaking of Segregation”
• Nov. 20, Michael German, Brennan Center Fellow, former FBI special agent, member of the CoRP organizing group and author of “Policing White Supremacy: The Enemy Within.”

The series organizers currently include CSUSB faculty, staff, alumni, and community members, as well as collaborators from other institutions: Amber Broaden (CSUSB and CSU Dominguez Hills, psychology), Stan Futch (president, Westside Action Group), German (Brennan Center for Justice), Robie Madrigal (Pfau Library), Jeremy Murray (CSUSB History), Matt Patino (Crafton Hills College adjunct faculty and CSUSB alumnus), and Mary Texeira (CSUSB sociology).

For more information, contact Madrigal at rmadriga@csusb.edu or Murray at jmurray@csusb.edu.

Also visit the Conversations on Race and Policing webpage.