Watch How Black Men Aged 5 to 50 Respond When They Hear The Word “Police”

The ongoing conflict between police forces and people of colour in the United States has been well-documented, especially in the last twelve months, but sometimes a simple concept can be a powerful reminder of how entrenched cultures of intolerance and mistrust can become whether the issues surrounding them are in the news or not. In this video, black men from the ages of 5 to 50 were asked to respond with the first thing that came into their minds when they herd the word “police”. Up until about late adolescence, most of the associations are positive — “job,” “helpful,” “officer”. But from the early 20s onward, the connotations become overwhelmingly negative, especially from the older men.

The video comes courtesy of Cut Video, the same outfit that filmed three grandmas smoking weed for the first time. Clearly trying to cover all bases, that crew.