Why are people so down on the police?

I've always wondered what is behind that reluctance.

Stupid anecdote, but when we moved, I 'inherited' an electricity/gas provider. They wouldn't accept a customer without a name, phone number and DOB, and in a moment of weakness so I could get on with the job of getting rid of them, I gave in to them.

Couple of weeks later their systems were hacked and all this information was leaked to people who shouldn't have it.

Your life is rarely made better or easier by increasing the number of people who know who you are, where you live, when you were born and how to contact you.

This is, of course, your choice and I wouldn't criticise anyone for giving their details to the police if they feel comfortable doing so. The point I'm trying to make, probably not very well, is that whilst the police may not be "anyone on the street", there is no more reason to provide them with personal details than anyone else, unless they have a legitimate reason for asking for them. If your experience is being routinely stopped and asked for your details for no other reason than the colour of your skin, then there comes a point when you refuse. It's nothing to do with what might happen with your details, but simply making a stand about being profiled and harassed.

For context, I'm white - my step kids (grown up now) are not.

As I do not have to. Not done anything wrong so why should I have to.

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I get that but it’s the bit after, what do you think will happen if you do give it? What’s going to happen when they have your name? This is the part I would like to understand

One reason to keep your identity private is that if they know who you are they can check out your record on their computer. They can access all the info they hold on you, and that might well influence how they treat you.
The less they know about you the better. They don’t need to know it, so don't tell them. It also adds to their info on you.
It is extremely likely they know a lot more about you than you realise. Don’t facilitate their snooping.

It isn’t about the intention of the police once they’ve got the information, it’s about pushing back against the entitlement of (mostly white) cops demanding information from non-white young people without any legal power to do so.

It’s never happened to me because I’m white but the sheer number of times my friends have been stopped walking around London means they feel oppressed.

It's slightly different if you're driving, you're required to identify yourself if pulled over.
Whilst I agree that it's unlikely anything negative is likely to happen as a direct result of providing ID when asked to do so, I wouldn't do it unless I was required to by law.
I'm white and wouldn't dream of speaking on behalf of a person of colour or any member of any sort of marginalised community that's the victim of police harassment but the idea that, if stopped, you should go along with whatever the police officer feels like asking of you, whether required by the law or not, doesn't sit right with me. I've been involved in a lot of direct action over the years so have spent a lot of time messing about with unfriendly coppers, being directly lied to and having the law bent because they don't like you and want to spoil your day, I can't imagine that being my daily experience because of the colour of my skin.
By unquestioningly complying with any irrelevant or unlawful demands, just because a copper has asked you to, tips the balance of power in an already wildly unbalanced scenario further in the favour of the police.
I'm sure it's not what you're trying to get at but your position comes across as sounding a bit "if you've done nothing wrong you've got nothing to fear", which is clearly very authoritarian and more importantly just not true.

Anyway, just my 2p on the matter based on my experience, hopefully didn't come across as being on the offence, I'm genuinely interested to hear other people's experiences.

A lot of concise replies that hit the nail on the head really.

your position comes across

I thought their position was clearly not that, fwiw. But @Dogtemple there doesn't have to be a reason associated with the 'after' - although I concur with @adroit 's thoughts on that - it's the 'now' that provides the reason. Choosing not to comply when there is no reason to and their motivations are based in prejudice and power.

I think you're possibly relating it to your experiences too much (where the reason for withholding information is due to fear of what comes next).

As my solicitor once said 'You'll never regret what you didn't tell the Police'

You're right, I didn't phrase that part too well. I wasn't trying to suggest that's what Dogtemple was saying, I'm not sure how best to clarify but I'm just trying to say that in my mind it's a slippery slope towards that sort of thinking if people don't question police authority.

I am white, and European with a foreign name. Have had the attitude change when saying my name.

As my solicitor once said 'You'll never regret what you didn't tell the Police'

This.