Police brutality has become a rising issue of concern for the American public in the past eighteen months, and it doesn’t seem to be getting any better. At Spring Valley High School in Columbia, South Carolina, a female student was beaten by a school resource officer after she refused to leave the classroom. A video of the attack has gone viral on the internet, raising many questions about what role police officers should play in schools. The police officer, Deputy Ben Fields, was suspended as of Wednesday, October 28th, by the Richland County Sheriff, Leon Lott. Some are criticizing Fields for his use of “muscling techniques” to get the student out of her seat. However the fact that the student is black and Fields is caucasian is obviously stirring controversy

“It was disgusting and terrible. I believe that police need to calm down. It was purely an act of racism because if she was white, then he wouldn’t have done anything,” said WHHS senior, Jenna Bellofatto.

However, some people feel that Deputy Ben Fields’ actions were justified in his actions.

“I think the officer had to do his job in an unfortunate situation. He was slightly excessive but he wasn’t wrong in what he did,” said WHHS SRO officer, Mark Dubois.

It seems as if the Deputy was trying to handle an incredibly difficult situation in the only way he knew how. While none can understand why Fields had to use such a brutal approach, this incident raises an important question about how officers discipline their students.