A couple of thoughts here... First, I don't understand the paramilitary image that the police are sending these days. When I was a kid, we were taught that the policeman (and fireman) were your friends and they would help you if you had a problem.
Somewhere that changed... I don't know if that is because of outside influence or they feel they need to present that image... The guys that I've known to that were cops never subscribed to that paramilitary stuff..
Then there's the coverage of the "protests" and riots. IMHO, this is just a small number of thugs that are taking the opportunity to behave this way. It's just a big party to them. The media laps it up and its coverage is all about them and paints the communities with a broad brush.
Just recently, there was a police shooting in Syracuse. Black "victim", white female officer, in the middle of a party in a subsidized housing area. She got the crap knocked out of her at the scene after the shooting. There was some grumbling, and a march on city hall, but when all was said and done, the locals came forward and supported the police officer and bore witness to what happened.... But of course, that wasn't really news...
The media loves this crap... It gets people to watch the news and read their excuse for a newspaper. It makes $$ by being able to sell advertising. So they stoke the fire.