Systemic Racism and the American Justice System

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Experts Findings
Bases for Systemic Racism
Public Opinion and Recent Events
Systemic Racism and Racial Disparities Prevalence
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Systemic racism is not a myth as it was perceived since it affects many Americans, especially minority groups. One of the biases concerning this position is that most citizens consider justice systems as tools to serve a particular political agenda. Another way of thinking that may affect this kind of discourse is the wrong observation of data. Since racial minorities constitute an insignificant percentage of the overall population, an objective inquiry may seem unjustified. Such views mostly influence debates that do not examine plurality in statistical inferences. Taking into account reliable data and recent events in the United States of America, it is evident that racial discrimination is deeply ingrained in the justice system.

Experts Findings

According to Brayne (2020), political systems shape policing, as well as human rights protections in the United States of America. Sarah Brayne, an assistant professor of sociology, analyzes policys role in law enforcement and predictive regulations. The resource is fundamental in showcasing discrimination that is founded on public policies. The book illustrates how the justice system is tainted by the unequal themes used in the formulation of laws. For instance, the police departments use of big data has been identified as one of the drivers for racial discrimination facilitators since it reinforces stereotypes through surveillance systems. These violations are also interpreted in terms of cooperation between big data brokers and law enforcement agents. Corresponding inferences are fundamental in realizing the deliberate formulation of discriminatory and unequal policies to propagate systemic racism.

Kovera (2019) reveals the role of stereotypical perceptions in racist actions, law enforcement, and corresponding decision-making. Margaret Bull Kovera, a presidential scholar, as well as a professor of psychology, reveals some of the evidence regarding institutional racism. The analyzed data is fundamental to realizing the implications of stereotypes that propagate systemic discrimination.

Alexis Russel Piquero, a criminologist and a criminology professor, offers the reasons behind the overrepresentation of minority groups at prisons and other agencies in the justice system. Since the racial disparities in terms of violation of law or apprehension are likely to be higher among the racial minorities as compared with Whites, it is critical to examine the implications of systemic racism in these incidents. This professional provides insights regarding the unwarranted targeting of specific persons or areas based on racial composition.

Alfred Blumstein, a scientist and a criminology professor, and Allen J. Beck have documented apparent rates of the racial groups disproportional trends in the United States. Their research is fundamental in revealing the institutional racial instigated disparities. The associated study provides insights regarding policy instigated variation, as well as existing systemic racism. While some agencies may depict a reduction in disproportional incarceration, the racial disparities in the correctional facilities, as well as other judicial systems, continue to rise.

Bases for Systemic Racism

Systemic racism affects all minorities, namely Hispanic, African-American, and Asian-American communities. Some of the laws, policies, institutions, and norms in the justice systems are not particularly racist. However, their implications, as well as results in the community, are shaped by racial supremacy or deductions that focus on overwhelming certain minority groups. In this regard, policies in the justice system are influenced by political systems whose aim is to suppress particular communities. This history has been in previous administrations, and it has re-emerged in the current administration. For instance, radical changes were implemented in felony laws whereby classifications were adjusted with the strategic aims of subduing the black community. Such motivations are evident in the light of political meetings where the speakers, such as Donald Trump, openly declare harsh terms against a particular group.

The current president of the United States, in the past, was also recorded declaring his hatred towards black youth who had been suspected of killing a young woman. Similarly, policies, such as War on Drugs and War on Crime, were racially motivated, and they shaped present racial disparities in America. One of the notable impacts of these two policies is mass incarceration, which affected the majority of African American youth. On the same note, policies of this kind reveal systemic biases propagated in policing and police departments. According to Blumstein and Beck (2018), incarceration continues to rise among Blacks than Whites. These racially motivated policies and corresponding government institutions corresponding culture continue to suppress minority groups, leading to dehumanizing effects.

Public Opinion and Recent Events

The Wall Street Journal NBC poll showed the publics dissatisfaction after the death of George Floyd, an African American man, who was murdered by the police. While the results may not be based on particular scholarly inferences, in terms of analysis and interpretation, they reflect U.S. citizens position regarding institutional racism, especially in the police department. The NBC poll proved the citizens dissatisfaction concerning the police actions towards the people of color (Brooks, 2020). On the contrary, the public, including the White participants, were not troubled by the violent protests but by police actions.

The polices cultural change is revealed to be lethal to African Americans, especially those victimized. Even though this poll does not indicate a definite trend of how police treat black people, the murder incident revealed, in daylight, some of the circumstances that Blacks, as well as other minority groups, undergo in the hands of policemen. Since the police department is one of the justice systems structural components, why does it consistently mistreat African-Americans? The polices actions are selective, and they disproportionately affect specific community members than others. This discriminatory behavior indicates a predominant culture to treat members of society unequally due to their color.

Another poll in 2014 revealed a public opinion regarding the police officers actions towards the Blacks. Following the death of Eric Garner, who was killed by a police officer, a poll was conducted to examine the citizens views concerning law enforcement agencies treatment of people of color. During this period, only 33% of the participants felt that police were likely to use excessive force against African Americans (Brooks, 2020). After the death of George Floyd in 2020, approximately 57% of American citizens thought police are likely to mistreat Blacks. The supporters for black lives matter continue to increase over the years following institutional racism, which leads to mistreatment of the minority groups in the justice system, indicating unchanged structural frameworks despite the change in social norms.

While this shift in support for Blacks against police brutality does not in entirety demonstrates the extent of systemic racism, it is crucial in showcasing the public opinion transformation but unhanged inhuman institutional conduct. The shift in public opinion, especially with regard to support of Black Lives Matter, is an indication of the notable paradigm shift in the majority of the citizens beliefs. On the other hand, it shows incongruence between public opinion and institutional conduct. It, therefore, depicts a lack of commitment of the institutions in the United States of America to initiate structural transformations to ensure the protection of minorities human rights. This imbalance between the shift in public opinion and institutional measures also reflects how systemic racism is implied but undocumented in the American justice system.

Systemic Racism and Racial Disparities Prevalence

Racial disparities prevalence is an essential basis for analyzing the hand of the justice system in racism. The treatment of the minority groups differently reveals the ideologies that are founded on racism. The variations in terms of treatment either in the court of law by the enforcement agencies, given the case severity, can reveal the extent to which stereotypical perceptions affect equality and justice (Kovera 2019). Hence, analysis in terms of treatment is examined based on available data, outcomes, as well as perceptions leading to discrepancies.

According to Kovera (2019), based on the Bureau of Justice statistics, traffic police target Blacks than Whites. On the same note, people of color are stopped by traffic officers than their Hispanic counterparts. However, White drivers were more likely to face speeding violations than their black counterparts. Despite this objective standard for traffic law violations, the police check corresponding records associated with Blacks than Whites. Additionally, the officers are likely to stop drivers without candid reason among African Americans than Whites. While these datas inferences can be subject to biases due to the selective need to respond, they represent prejudice based on race. Considering the violation of traffic laws rates, is it unwarranted for the police to stop the Black drivers more than their White counterparts?

Surprisingly, Black drivers are subject to between 60% and 70% appearing to the N.C. traffic stop data. Similarly, research revealed the high probability of both Hispanic and Black drivers being disproportionately stopped during the day (Kovera 2019). Such actions are likely to affect the actions of the drivers, which could cause unlawful behavior. If racial biases do not exist in these institutions, such negative implications could be avoided. Importantly, these disparities are nationwide, reflecting unjustified perceptive judgment among the traffic officers, but racially instigated behavior, which, in most circumstances, result in adverse legal outcomes.

One of the major differences in terms of the overrepresentation of the minority groups in the justice system is institutionally instigated targeting. According to Brayne (2020), modern surveillance systems are misused to target particular groups, which is the basis for discriminatory processes entrenched in legal policies. On the other hand, Piquero (2015) supports this assertion stating that the overrepresentation of particular communities in correctional facilitates does not represent their behavior but rather outcomes of suspicious law enforcement agents who disproportionately target distinct groups than others.

Conclusion

Evidently, systemic racism contributes to negative outcomes in terms of representation and punitive actions against minority groups. African Americans are mainly one of the victim racial groups as a result of targeted police actions. While the government claims reduced disproportionately in the racial-instigated biases, incarceration rates among Blacks continue to increase. Therefore, following the recent police brutality against African Americans and recent Black Lives Matter demonstrations, it is evident that the current racial discrimination in the United States is propagated by the justice system agencies, as well as public policies meant to suppress and oppress some minority groups.

References

Beck, A., & Blumstein, A. (2017). Racial disproportionality in U.S. state prisons: Accounting for the effects of racial and ethnic differences in criminal involvement, arrests, sentencing, and time served. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 34(3), 853-883.

Brayne, S. (2020). Predict and Surveil: Data, discretion, and the future of policing. Oxford University Press.

Brooks, D. (2020). The culture of policing is broken. The Atlantic.

Kovera, M. (2019). Racial disparities in the criminal justice system: Prevalence, causes, and a search for solutions. Journal of Social Issues, 75(4), 1139-1164.

Piquero, A. (2015). Understanding race/ethnicity differences in offending across the life course: Gaps and opportunities. Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology, 1(1), 21-32.

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