Police Approach of Security Depends on Skin Color and the Accent of the Tongue

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Table of Contents

Abstract
Introduction
Historical background
Definitional issues
Instances of biased treatment in the provision of security
Effect of neighborhoods on the security segregation
Consequences of police profiling
Statistics of police profiling
Conclusion
References

Abstract

It has been noted with great concern that police duties are not carried out with the professionalism that is called for. A major area where professionalism in the police force has been lacking has been attributed to discrimination along ethnic and racial lines. Neighborhoods and their nature have been one of the reasons attributed to profiling. This paper investigates these claims, the historical background of the issue looks at more examples where profiling has been noted, and offers solutions to the problems. The consequences of this trend by the police are highlighted by the paper just as much as statistics that indicate the presence of discrimination by the police.

Introduction

The relationships that exist between the police and ethnic and racial minorities are very complex (Walker & et al. 2004). In as much as sometimes these relationships are harmonious, they happen at times to be problematic. Over the past two decades, the relationships between these two parties can only get the description as being very highly tense even to unimaginable heights. The number and frequency of cases on profiling reported have kept growing by the day. From data and records, as will be seen a bit later on, the evidence is clear; profiling by police is real and discriminatory treatment is proven (Roth,1994). Police in America treats racial and ethnic minorities in a way that is not fair when compared to how the police treat whites.

Historical background

Slave trade that was very prominent before the industrial revolution led to the sale of very many black people from Africa to America. However, at the end of slavery, racism cropped up as a very critical issue which also led to the police profiling that forms our focus today. There was an investigation by the Department of justice in the US in 1998 which ended upraising awareness of the presence of police profiling in the State of New Jersey (Bumgarner, 2006). This department came up with a definition for profiling stating that it involved singling out given members of certain ethnic or racial minorities for petty offences investigation. It involved them being searched for guns and determination of whether they held any contrabands. In this period, the media in America went ravaging the public with the problem of profiling forming frontpage news consistently. According to Bumgarner (2006), gross were the investigations and inspections of the people of color that the phenomenon became famously known as “driving while black or brown.”

Racism can be stated as the most prominent cause of police profiling. However, police have on the other hand given their reasons as to why the position is currently. Houston (2000) insinuates that the psychology of the white police is that they generally view black people to be violent. This perception has led the police to lower the assistance they accord to black people.

Definitional issues

If an act of crime is to be reported by a black person, the police would ordinarily take that to be the nature of black people and hence not do anything about it. Most of the inspections along the highway will involve black and Hispanic people. At the same time, whenever a crime is committed, the first suspects will always be blacks or Hispanics (Jaynes & Williams, 1990). A surprising thing is that in most cases, black people are not necessarily guilty. According to American Civil Liberties Union, most of the arrests made by police are not based on evidence received but rather on the color or ethnic nature of the suspects. A 48-year-old maintenance technician known as Juan reports having been stopped on two occasions without any legal basis but basically for black skin color. Juan insisted on knowing the reason for being pulled aside which he was not given by the police.

Several are the circumstances when distress calls by blacks and other ethnic minorities are reported to have been ignored by police (Scott, 1976). This has been attributed by police to the suspect nature of the black and Hispanic neighborhoods and the resultant perception that blacks and Hispanics are generally violent. The humiliation of ethnic minorities at the hands of the police is widespread. The harassment ranges from them being provoked, beaten and other forms of abuses hurled at them (Muffler, 2006).

Discrimination by police has been observed to follow through the whole procedure in the judicial system where the police are involved. As Walker, Spohn & et al., (2004) opine, police are reported to be very scanty in the evidence that they collect against black people and other racial minorities. The police are reported not to accord the ethnic minorities an opportunity to access justice just as much as their white counterparts’ access justice.

Instances of biased treatment in the provision of security

By far, the most pronounced cases where police are reported to be discriminatory include traffic offences. New Jersey is one such area. As a follow-up, racial profiling was spoken against by then-president Bill Clinton and other 20 states have followed suit in abolishing profiling. Searches however cannot be said to be totally overwhelmed. There still are circumstances when race plays a role in traffic police inspections.

According to Cole and Smith (2007), criminal offences have also got the ethnic and racial minorities in the wrong standing with the police. The minorities have lodged complaints that minorities will always be seen to be the first suspects in any criminal case while the white counterparts walk into freedom with blood-stained hands. Very little or no evidence is collected against the people of color but rather the irrational prosecutions are always conducted against them.

Effect of neighborhoods on the security segregation

Police have heard a say on why they think the position is the way it is. This especially relates to why very little help is accorded to the black neighborhoods. Alcoholism and drugs are highly reported in black neighborhoods. This has contributed to the black people being violent not only to civilians but also to the police. Siegel (2008) is of the opinion that police in several instances are reported to have stamped self-defense measures from the violent minorities and thereby attaining the discriminatory badge. As if this is not completed, the music listened to by the black people is often viewed by the police to be rough and violent to the extent they hurl insults at police (Rose, 1994). This is a factor contributing to the discrimination.

Neighborhoods hosting ethnic and racial minorities are said to be very highly concentrated in crime terms. This insecurity has made the police to be very adamant to carry out genuine security operations. The fear is mostly about police’s own security and hence they at times injure these groups in the name of self-defense..

Consequences of police profiling

Police discrimination cannot be said to be so beneficial anyway. This is because; the levels of insecurity have kept soaring in the black neighborhoods since they understand that few police officers will be willing to carry out arrests in these regions. The arrest of innocent minorities has left the real criminals on the loose and allowed them to proceed with criminal activities when the minorities rot in the police cells. Tension is seen to be on the rise between the police and the ethnic and racial minorities. There is a high level of suspicion and therefore security goals and objectives are very scantily met with this type of strained relationship. The mistreatment of the racial and ethnic minorities has led to not only unbearable levels of humiliation but also a very high loss of privacy (Bumgarner, 2006). Further, health consequences have been noted to arise with these minorities spending a large chunk of their time in police custody.

Statistics of police profiling

There have been insurmountable evidence pointing towards the fact that discrimination and profiling by the police is a reality. According to Muffler (2006), in Indianapolis for example, 1013 police officers were in charge of about 378,000 of which only 39% were a minority. Muffler (2006) goes ahead to state that in St. Petersburg, although the minorities form less than 24%, 57% of persons stopped were black. This is the case in other states also like Indianapolis where 70% of those stopped were black (Muffler, 2006). Initially, there had been some gains made in terms of the narrowing of the racial gaps and differences. However, police profiling has led to not only backtracking on these gains but also threatens to scuttle future plans to improve the harmonious coexistence between various ethnic are racial groups (Roth, 1994).

Conclusion

Equality and fairness are crucial. Police however seem to be acting in a paradoxical way. They are meant to maintain law and order but ironically their discriminatory actions just seem to be heightening the already vile relations that are prevalent between various races (Scott, 1976). Ranging from the unfair inspections to the mistreatment of the racial and ethnic minorities, police are noted to be behaving unprofessionally. Further, the role played by the neighborhoods cannot be negated. The neighborhoods are noted to spark off more crime in the surrounding. The relationship between the minority groups and the police seems to be straining by day and so there need to be measures put in place to heal this relationship. Research needs to be done and proper policies incorporated in the security plans so as to have an effective security service.

References

Bumgarner, J. (2006). Profiling and criminal justice in America: a reference handbook. New York: ABC-CLIO.

Cole, G. & Smith, C. (2007). The American System of Criminal Justice. Belmont: Thomson Wadsworth Learning.

Houston, L. (2000). Psychological principles and the Black experience. New York: University Press of America.

Jaynes, G & Williams, R. (1990). A Common destiny: Blacks and American society. New York: National academic press.

Muffler, S. (2006). Racial profiling: issues, data, and analyses. New York: nova science publishers.

Roth, B. (1994). Prescription for failure: race relations in the age of social science. New York: Social Philosophy and Policy Center.

Rose, T. (1994). Black noise: rap music and black culture in contemporary America. Middle town: Wesleyan University press.

Scott, J. (1976). The black revolts: racial stratification in the U.S.A. Massachusetts: Cambridge University Press.

Siegel, L. (2008). Introduction to Criminal Justice. Belmont: cengage learning.

Walker, S. Spohn, C. & et al. (2004). The Color of Justice: Race, Ethnicity, and Crime in America. New York: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

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