Observations on the crossovers of policing and social class

After much delay, various technical issues and procrastination, this post is finally out for you all to read.

                                                   19th-century artwork of police in London

In modern society globally, and ingrained in many different cultures and political systems, the role of the police is regarded as functioning as extensions of the state and representatives of the law, to maintain social security and ensure that these laws are abided by. This explains the common perception that the presence of the police acts as a symbol of repression and presents class struggle (which, to a considerable extent, it does). However, historically, the police appeared to be a lot more in line with the working classes, advocating solidarity and unionisation within the workforce, and so appearing to take on the image of ambassadors for trade unions and the community in which they live and work. It is through observing these differing perceptions of the police, and their changing attitudes around race and class over time, that their political dimension, and the potential overlaps of this with socialist values, can be further understood, and conclusions can be drawn regarding where they would fit in and the extent of their influence in a society governed by class, image and material wealth, in which the core constructs of race and gender heavily influence this.

Before state-led policing was developed in the UK and became accepted as the primary effective means by which the existing social order could be preserved, the military had greater social influence and community presence, taking on many of the same roles as the police. This was before the time of Robert Peel's establishment of the Metropolitan Police, in the form it is known today, in 1829, and the Bow Street Runners in 1748 (the main alternative to the military of this time, consisting of a group of non-uniformed people with the roles of preventing and investigating crimes, and deciding on further actions regarding criminals) which functioned as the first forms of conventional policing (n.d.). The individuals who were involved in policing through these organisations were primarily working class and advocates for trade unions. While the position of the police in historic and present society seems to appear as something of a means of preserving existing class structures, maintaining order and hierarchy, thus making it appear contradictory to refer to them as representing socialist and working class values, they can be seen as significantly greater representatives of these values than the systems featuring the military before their introduction in society did (Reiner, 1978). Because of this, this supposed transition to a more socialist means of maintaining social security that Reiner describes here, when emphasising the unionisation of the police, however, is all very much relative. This is especially true considering that unionisation is not necessarily purely an overtly leftist principle, with many authoritarian centrists, right-wing libertarians, anarcho-capitalists and neoliberals potentially seeming like key advocates for unionism (Figg, 2025). This could be through using them as a means of further promoting free trade, fulfilling their own personal interests within the workplace (especially for economically right-wing people who are employed in a profession that could be seen as very working class), as well as those who had used unions as a means of training and developing solidarity within military groups (with many joining the military appearing to very much perpetuate ideals that completely oppose leftist principles). This is reflected in Reiner's description of the police membership in trade unions as having been derived from reasoning from a "diametrically opposed angle", and adds that trade unions are in many ways synonymous with class consciousness, referencing Lockwood's view of them as "the main vehicle of working class consciousness", so would, therefore, very much conflict with many common perceptions of the police.

Moreover, the socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of the regions in which the police would operate are also crucial in observing the primary roles of the police, the way they are regarded by their communities, as well as the image that they wish to portray. This would mean that they would become hugely susceptible to globalisation and cultural and demographic change, such as loss of jobs, migration, changes in lifestyle and inequalities, in which the differing interests of communities would often fail to be satisfied (Larsson et al, 2025), in which “conflicts between and within diaspora groups become enacted anew in a different configuration”. This can be reflected with widespread anti-migrant protests by many on the far right, as well as alternative protests by those aiming to counter this, along with the recent increasing intensity of geopolitical conflicts between nations such as India and Pakistan in relation to issues regarding Kashmir. This would present an opportunity for globalisation to reflect the changes observed in the general attitudes of the police, as well as perhaps indicate the increasing homogeneity of the ways they operate, and their role in society from a political perspective. This sentiment is echoed by Marshall McLuhan, a Canadian media sociologist, who refers to the world as being something of a global village. This idea presents for, not only the metaphorical distance between nations to be reduced as a result of increasing  communication and ability to collaborate on international affairs through time-space compression brought about by globalisation and infrastructural development, but also for greater homogeneity to be observed globally in relation to governance, security and positions on law enforcement. This has become clearly apparent when observing the increasing popularity of policing very much akin to that in the Western world becoming globally prominent. Equally , it is important to note another factor to consider when evaluating the political standing of the police and how integral they might be in a leftist society is the cultural and demographic characteristics of them as an institution, as well as specifically those members of the police who historically participated in trade union activism during the Industrial Revolution. At this time, while policing was (and still very much remains to be today) a field in which primarily white males were employed in, it was likely mainly the black police who engaged in these activities considering that the rising agitation and reactionary police activities became of “racist appeal to whites”, as well as that mostly black rank and file police used these unionist actions as a means of challenging intradepartmental racism and police brutality (Ray, 1977).

Furthermore, there is also clear evidence on the major emphasis of capitalist principles in acting as the foundations of policing globally, with private financial means of funding the police and controlling their employees being commonplace. This can be observed with the Industrial Revolution in the UK, in which an efficient workforce and effective management in the policing sector was very important at this time. This would be achieved through the private financing of the police by the Bank of England, as well as the Bank of England benefitting themselves through employing solicitors to help investigate cases of fraud and forgery, who were assisted by the police. Many other institutions around this time including insurance companies and private railway developers began to follow suit and employ private in-house investigators, surveyors and assessors to respond to the demands of a nation undergoing rapid economic development and industrial growth (Godfrey and Cox, 2016). This was an era of mass privatisation and rising international trade with many companies employing private police inspectors to oversee their operations. Moreover, this influence extended to the police themselves in that the police force became increasingly divided into several smaller private branches at the time of Queen Victoria’s succession in 1837. This was the point at which policing appeared quite clearly a truly capitalist occupation that was built upon capitalist and right wing principles.