Minnesota State Patrol during the George Floyd protests on Friday, May 29, 2020, equipped with stab proof vests, helmets with face guards, and large wooden batons for defense against violent protests.
Riot police are police who are organized, deployed, trained or equipped to confront crowds, protests or riots.
Riot police may be regular police officers who act in the role of riot police in particular situations, or they may be separate units organized within or in parallel to regular police forces. Riot police are used in a variety of different situations and purposes. They may be employed to control riots as their name suggests, to disperse or control crowds, to maintain public order or discourage criminality, or to protect people or property. The militarization of modern police has brought militaristic riot gear and new technologies that allow for their duties to expand above normal police duties.[1]
Through the 1900s and into the 2000s, riot gear technology has advanced with the help of the militarization of riot police organizations. Some riot gear technology, including tear gas, was originally created for its use in the military, specifically the First World War.[2] In the United States in 1969, it was recorded that the riot police had extensive militarized gear including bulletproof vests, multiple-purpose grenades, water cannons, helicopters, batons, radio communication, barbed wire, police shields, and riot vehicles.[2] In 2017, economic and political protests in Venezuela brought upon a new era of Venezuelan riot police gear with military vehicles that included features like tear gas launchers and water cannons.[2] The military vehicles were used as perimeter defense lines to contain the protests, and provide the riot police with enough power to inhibit the advancing violence. These military vehicles used by riot police around the world are commonly sourced from military product companies including Norinco, a Chinese military product manufacturer.[2]
In the United States, the federal 1033 program allows for police departments, including riot police units, to request military equipment for circumstances that have arrived or that may arrive in the future.[1] Because of this program, police militarization has expanded across each state allowing state riot police to receive military style gear similar to that of the Special Weapons and Tactics teams.[1] The police departments that received 1033 program funding are primarily smaller police departments.[1]
Riot gear became the key tools for police forces to combat large demonstrations, including political and economic protests and labor demonstrations, that sought change without the explicit consent of the presiding government.[2]
Riot police duties
Riot police are tasked with police operations that require advanced tactics and equipment to control crowds and maintain public order. These duties may differ between riot police organizations in different countries, but they are often similar in that they are tasked with maintaining order that is decided on by the presiding government.
In Poland, for example, riot police are used in a variety of different ways including but not limited to:[3]
Maintaining public order when threats from risk assessed sources are present.
Searching and assisting police forces in capturing wanted fugitives.
In case of widespread emergency, acting as a mobile force to protect and serve the public.
Securing government officials, particularly from foreign countries, during their travels.
Maintaining public order during demonstrations including political protests.
Supporting police forces in apprehending and suppressing criminal group activities.
Acting as backup police force for any police units that may need assistance in their everyday duties.
Participating and overseeing training for riot police units and non-riot police units.
United States riot police
The United States has a long history of riot police being used in public events.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement and anti-war protests resulted in many instances of large protests across the country. In some cases, these protests would involve clashes between protesters and riot police. The riot police, at this time, did not have as advanced gear and technology, which forced the riot police to have significant face-to-face violent clashes resulting in injuries and deaths of both protesters and police. The 1980s brought in a new era of riot police that intended to use less face-to-face clashes by using more militarized gear and negotiated management. The use of negotiated management sought to improve the riot police's ability to communicate verbally among police and protesters in an attempt to lower violence, increase periods of calm, and improve public views of protest policing.[4]
In 1999, the World Trade Organization protests in Seattle disrupted the negotiated management tactics by riot police.[4] The WTO protests went on for days with continuous clashes between protesters and police with tear gas, concussion grenades and riot shields.[5]
In August 2014, Michael Brown, an unarmed African-American eighteen-year-old, was shot and killed by police in Ferguson, Missouri. Protests began immediately following the reports his death. The Ferguson Police Department enlisted help from the St. Louis County Police Department to contain the ongoing unrest from the crowd of protesters. The St. Louis County Police Department enacted the county's Code 1000 plan, enabling the department to receive direct assistance from nearby police departments. Riot police from multiple police departments combined in response. For multiple days, these protests were both peaceful and, in some locations of the protests, disorderly. The riot police utilized riot gear including rifles, riot shields, tear gas, non-lethal weapons, and armored vehicles. After the police officer that shot and killed Michael Brown was identified to the public, the protests reignited with more riot police in helmets, face protectors, gas masks, riot batons, shields, and kevlar vests. The riot place were later supported by the Missouri Governor's call for National Guard assistance until the protests continuously diminished.[4]
In 2016, protests by groups of indigenous people, including the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, protested the building of the 1,200 mile Dakota Access Pipeline in North Dakota. Large groups of protesters blockaded the construction zones for the pipeline, which prohibited the ability for the DAPL to further expand. Private security were the first to respond, which escalated the protests and created violent clashes between private security personnel and protesters.[6] Following a federal judge's order to allow construction to continue, riot police arrived on the scene. The riot police arrived with armored military vehicles, helmets, face protectors, kevlar vests, shields, and other standard riot gear. Water cannons, pepper spray, and non-lethal weapons were used to disperse protesters and destroy protester encampments on the construction sites.[7]
French riot police
French riot police, equipped with full riot gear, stand in formation in front of a Yellow Vest protester in 2019.
In 2018 and 2019, France experienced massive protests known as the Yellow Vest Protests. The Yellow Vest Protests were primarily in response to rising costs of living, low wages, and vast inequality between higher and lower economic classes. These protests were immediately met with the French riot police. In some areas of Paris, including Place d'Italie, protesters became violent in response to the police presence. These protesters vandalized private businesses, including banks, and setting fire to police barricades. The riot police responded with standard riot police gear including tear gas, riot batons, and riot shields.[8]
In 2023, French police shot and killed a 17-year-old, leading to national protests that required the use of riot police. President Macron, and the French government, repeatedly called to quell the protests. Some Paris suburbs experienced damaged buildings and burning cars on the streets. Throughout France, upwards of 40,000 police officers were dispatched, many of them fitted in riot gear. French riot police used tear gas, riot batons, and riot shields in an attempt to slow down the protests. Approximately 170 police officers were injured during the protests.[9]
Quality of life for riot police
The riot police occupation has been considered one of the more stressful jobs in law enforcement. Riot police are frequently placed on the front lines of violent protests and riots, possibly putting each individual police officer's health and safety at risk. Studies, in recent years, have shown a correlation between higher stress levels among police officers leading to lower quality of life ratings.[10]
In 2018, a Turkish study, researching the quality of life in riot police, found that riot police are significantly affected by negative mental health. The research found that roughly 50% of the riot police examined showed clear signs of both anxiety and depression. Furthermore, levels of anger among riot police were high, which was shown in combination with anxiety and depression to lower the quality of life for these officers. It is hypothesized in the research that the lower quality of life indicators could result in more aggressive action by riot police. The research concluded with an argument for developing programs to minimize negative mental health factors in riot police including the use of regular mental health screenings.[10]
Criticisms
Historically, riot police have been criticized by labor unions and organized strikes. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, labor unions and picketers were subjected to harsh police crackdowns that involved bouts of police brutality to squash the labor movements. Labor historians have argued that riot police became a strong wing of the government in protecting capital. Industrialization brought in more aggressive police response to labor protests to force workers to abandon their efforts. The ramping up of riot police violence in deterring labor organization caused radicalization and politicization among workers and worker organizations throughout much of Canada and the United States.[11]
The recent trend in police militarization across the globe, especially the United States, has brought upon direct criticism from police abolitionist groups. Police abolitionist movements have called for the defunding and replacement of police forces in favor of social programs that support quality of life in people, thus reducing the need for people to commit crimes. Riot police are considered under the police categorization for replacement because of the instances of brutality on protesters in mass protests such as the Ferguson Protests.[12][13]
In Cyprus, riot police have come under fire recently for hiding their identities when performing police duties such as crowd control. Cypriot law enforcement has been using helmets and gear to cover their faces and badges in order to remain anonymous when dealing with protests and crowds. Citizens of Cyprus believe that riot police hiding their identities allows them to avoid repercussions for actions they may take during their work. On the other hand, 37% of Cypriot riot police believe that "citizens file complaints against the police for no reason".[14]
Riot police in the United States, France, and many other places, have experienced a rise in protests against the police. These protests have been met by riot police with the controversial use of specific militarized riot gear. In the Dakota Access Pipeline protests in North Dakota, riot police used water cannons during freezing temperatures which caused a potentially lethal and dangerous situation.[7] In the George Floyd protests of 2020, riot police used pepper spray, police projectiles, tear gas, among other riot gear resulting in numerous protester injuries.[15] When police escalate the use of force and arrests are made, studies have shown that the results often create more violence.[15] The use of force, sometimes deadly force, is the point of interest for many protests around the world.
Portugal – Corpo de Intervenção | Unidade Especial de Polícia | Polícia de Segurança Pública and Grupo de Intervenção e Ordem Publica/ Guarda Nacional Republicana
In the United States, a SWAT team is a generic term for a police tactical unit.
Non-lethal weapons, also called nonlethal weapons, less-lethal weapons, less-than-lethal weapons, non-deadly weapons, compliance weapons, or pain-inducing weapons are weapons intended to be less likely to kill a living target than conventional weapons such as knives and firearms with live ammunition. It is often understood that unintended or incidental casualties are risked wherever force is applied; however, non-lethal weapons minimise the risk of casualties as much as possible. Non-lethal weapons are used in policing and combat situations to limit the escalation of conflict where employment of lethal force is prohibited or undesirable, where rules of engagement require minimum casualties, or where policy restricts the use of conventional force. However, these weapons occasionally cause serious injuries or death due to allergic reactions, improper use and/or other factors; for this reason the term "less-lethal" has been preferred by some organizations as it describes the risks of death more accurately than the term "non-lethal", which some have argued is a misnomer.
Riot control measures are used by law enforcement, military, paramilitary or security forces to control, disperse, and arrest people who are involved in a riot, unlawful demonstration or unlawful protest.
The Motorized Reserves of the Citizens' Militia, commonly known as ZOMO, were paramilitary-police formations during the communist era in Poland. These elite units of Citizens' Militia (MO) were originally created to fight dangerous criminals, to provide security during mass events, and help in the case of natural disasters and other crises; however, they became known instead for their brutal and sometimes repressive lethal actions of riot control and their role in quelling civil rights protests.
The Police Tactical Unit (PTU) is a paramilitary specialist unit of the Singapore Police Force and comes under the direct command of the Special Operations Command. Based in Queenstown, it is the main anti-rioting and disaster-management unit of the police force. They are also called upon to handle cases of serious crime in progress, particularly cases involving firearms. From 2004, PTU officers also presented greater public prominence when they conducted patrols in public areas, such as at Orchard Road, Holland Village and Serangoon Gardens Estate, partly as a response to greater terrorism concerns.
Crowd control is a public security practice in which large crowds are managed in order to prevent the outbreak of crowd crushes, affray, fights involving drunk and disorderly people or riots. Crowd crushes in particular can cause many hundreds of fatalities. Effective crowd management is about managing expected and unexpected crowd occurrences. Crowd control can involve privately hired security guards as well as police officers. Crowd control is often used at large, public gatherings like street fairs, music festivals, stadiums and public demonstrations. At some events, security guards and police use metal detectors and sniffer dogs to prevent weapons and drugs being brought into a venue.
A riot shield is a lightweight protection device, typically deployed by police and some military organizations, though also utilized by protestors. Riot shields are typically long enough to cover an average-sized person from the top of the head to the knees, though smaller one-handed models may also be used. They are generally intended to be used in riot control, to protect the user from melee attacks with blunt or edged weapons and also thrown projectiles, or non-lethal weapons such as rubber bullets and water cannons. They can also be used as short-ranged melee weapons to push back the opposing force. Most riot shields do not offer ballistic protection; ballistic shields are instead used in situations where heavily armed resistance is expected.
The Police Tactical Unit is a unit within the Hong Kong Police Force which provides an immediate manpower reserve for use in large-scale emergencies. Unit companies are attached to all land Regions and are available for internal security, crowd control, anti-crime operations, disaster response and riot control throughout Hong Kong. The PTU is often referred as the 'Blue Berets', which is in reference to the blue berets worn as part of the uniform.
The Public Order & Riot Squad (PORS) is the full-time riot squad of the New South Wales Police Force. PORS reports via the Counter Terrorism and Special Tactics Command to the Deputy Commissioner Investigations and Counter Terrorism.
The Mobile Brigade Corps abbreviated Brimob is the special operations, paramilitary, and tactical unit of the Indonesian National Police (Polri). It is one of the oldest existing units within Polri. Some of its main duties are counter-terrorism, riot control, high-risk law enforcement where the use of firearms are present, search and rescue, hostage rescue, and bomb disposal operations. The Mobile Brigade Corps is a large component of the Indonesian National Police trained for counter-separatist and counter-insurgency duties, often in conjunction with military operations.
The Garda Public Order Unit – commonly known as the Garda Riot Squad – is a unit of the Garda Síochána, Ireland's police force, that deals with public disorder, including riots and protests.
The Mobile Gendarmerie (GM) is a subdivision of the French National Gendarmerie whose main mission is to maintain public order and general security. Contrary to the Departmental Gendarmerie, whose jurisdiction is limited to specific parts of the territory, the Mobile Gendarmerie can operate anywhere in France and even abroad as the Gendarmerie is a component of the French Armed Forces. Although the term "mobile" has been used at different times in the 19th century, the modern Mobile Gendarmerie was created in 1921.
The Federal Reserve Unit, or better known by the abbreviation as FRU, is a riot control force and a paramilitary special response team that can be deployed at any time to engage in any emergency or public unrest in Malaysia.
The Public Security Forces (PSF), formerly known as the Bahrain State Police, are the principal Bahraini law enforcement arm of the Ministry of Interior. They are commanded by Maj. Gen. Tarek Al Hasan and include all Ministry of Interior field units responsible for maintaining order and security in Bahrain.
Operations Support Group (OSG) police are specialist police within the New South Wales Police Force. They are trained in public order (riot) response; weaponless control ; violent prisoner cell extractions; high-value asset protection; navigation and terrain search; bomb searching; and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) response.
The Public Order Response Team (PORT) is the full-time riot unit of the Victoria Police. PORT was formed in June 2011 and was originally part of the Operations Response Unit (ORU). The core function of PORT is to respond to demonstrations and public order incidents within metropolitan Melbourne. PORT may be tasked to assist with search warrants and with situations that require a highly visible police presence.
The militarization of police is the use of military equipment and tactics by law enforcement officers. This includes the use of armored personnel carriers (APCs), assault rifles, submachine guns, flashbang grenades, sniper rifles, and SWAT teams. The militarization of law enforcement is also associated with intelligence agency–style information gathering aimed at the public and political activists and with a more aggressive style of law enforcement. Criminal justice professor Peter Kraska has defined militarization of police as "the process whereby civilian police increasingly draw from, and pattern themselves around, the tenets of militarism and the military model".
A blast ball, also known as a tear gas ball, rubber ball grenade, sting ball grenade, or stinger grenade, is a ball-shaped, rubber coated, less-lethal grenade designed for law enforcement and riot control applications. A blast ball is similar to a stun grenade in that, when detonated, it generates a loud noise and bright light; however, it also releases a chemical irritant and occasionally also rubber pellets or fragments.
The Special Tactical Contingent, nicknamed the "Raptors", commonly known as the Special Tactical Squad (STS), is a specialist riot contingent of the Hong Kong Police Force under the command of the Police Tactical Unit (PTU).
On June 1, 2020, amid the George Floyd protests in Washington, D.C., law enforcement officers used tear gas and other riot control tactics to forcefully clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square, creating a path for President Donald Trump and senior administration officials to walk from the White House to St. John's Episcopal Church. Trump held a Bible and posed for a photo op in front of Ashburton House, which had been defaced by graffiti and damaged by a fire set during protests the night before.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
