New video showing Delaware police arresting three teens in Christiana Fashion Center parking lot goes viral on social media, prompting calls to consider how police treat minors It is rising.
But the behavioral and mental health effects of these interactions on children are also cause for concern.
A video of a police officer kneeling on a 13-year-old boy’s back Posted on TikTok A few days before the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention New Report on Rates of Teenage Mental Health Deterioration.
This report and new data are a reminder to those working with teens that repeating images of black people in distress can cause emotional distress and behavioral change. It is also now concerning to face the mother of a teenage girl seen on video being thrown to the ground by Delaware State Police.
what happened?
Marnesia Whaley, the mother of a 17-year-old girl who was arrested Saturday night, said her daughter and three friends had gone to the main event at the Christiana Fashion Center. They heard screaming in the parking lot and went to investigate.
Whaley said her daughter saw Delaware state police pin the boy to the ground, so the girls pulled out their cell phones and started recording.
In the video, a policeman with his knees behind the boy on the ground stood up and passed in front of the person recording. That’s when he caught Whaley’s daughter, she said.
Ms Whaley said the police grabbed her as she walked away and pulled her arm behind her. In the video, the Trooper can be seen holding the girl with her arms behind her back.
Her daughter was charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct for using “profanity” and “failing to disperse,” according to court records.
“She wasn’t resisting…she was terrified,” said Whaley, who hadn’t interacted with police until that day, but started recording after watching a similar video of her interactions with police. Whaley said when officers grabbed her daughter, “she had a mild panic attack.”
What are the police doing and are they investigating?
A spokesperson for the Delaware State Police said it was aware that a “partial video” showing the arrest outside the main event was circulating online and that “the incident is being investigated internally.”
Some people have already provided information and video from the scene, but police are asking anyone with more information or who may have witnessed the incident to call (302) 739-5911. I asked him to contact the Home Affairs Department.
Mother of teenage girl shares mental health concerns
Whaley kept his daughter home from school on Monday after the girl’s arrest on Saturday night, concerned she was not expressing her feelings for what happened just 48 hours ago. She also received a message that morning from William Penn High School informing her of an increased police presence due to the incident. 15 year old classmate killed.
“I think I just increased [police] Today, existence can be a little traumatic,” Whaley said.
Whaley’s mother said police need to be better trained on how to treat juveniles because teenagers are not adults. And she’s calling for accountability for what she believes was excessive force applied to her three teens arrested in a TikTok video.
“From what I saw in that video, there was absolutely no compassion,” Whaley said of the teens’ emotional state.
Mental health of black teens affected by violent police videos
Mental health experts say children and teens who experience violence as victims or bystanders are more likely to internalize the trauma. Adolescents in Japan have a similar reaction.
a 2019 Study abroad at the University of Southern California Black and Hispanic youth repeatedly exposed to violent police videos online reported experiencing symptoms of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, a study found.
Tysheik Covington, a school counselor in Delaware, says exposure to this type of content creates a vicious cycle of reactions in children that are detrimental to their own safety.
Child treatment experts said that unsupported children tend to “act as people who need to protect themselves” after watching or learning about violent police videos.
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Covington said casual exposure to videos depicting police abuse can desensitize children and cause them to adopt defensive postures when encountering them. She said they are likely to be afraid while wanting to assert themselves because they are still children, but officers view the behavior as offensive.
She said how police treat blacks and browns is a national issue, not just a Delaware issue.
“It’s not like you can move somewhere to get away from it,” Covington said. [for teens]it feels like the inevitable.
What professionals can do for parents
The CDC advises that declining mental health among teens can be mitigated by connecting with family, friends and community.
As a local school counselor, Covington also provides these tips to parents to help them manage their teens’ mental health.
- Keep an eye on social media
- Check mobile phone usage
- Spend some time with your children discussing concerns and explaining viral news.
Reporter Anitra Johnson’s work focuses on actions taken to change, improve and give back to suffering communities.contact her ajohnson@delawareonline.com Or call 302-379-5786 for tips and story ideas.follow her Facebook.