Racial profiling

Racial profiling is the act of associating an individual with a given crime because most of the criminals or wrongdoers come from that particular race without assessing the individual behavior of a person. A black man may be profiled as a thief because there was a black man who engaged in theft. Racial profiling is rampant in the United States of America especially among the security enforcement agencies at the local, state as well as the federal level (Warren & Farrell, 2009. It has led to the discrimination of the African Americans, Latino, Arab, Muslim, Asian and the Native Americans communities that are found in the United States of America. The other term that is used in the place of racial profiling is “Ethnic Profiling.” One common example of racial profiling using race as a basis for the drivers who will be stopped for minor traffic offenses as opposed to looking at the offenders. The other common case of racial profiling is targeting the Latino and the Hispanic Americans as culprits of illegal immigration. The major disadvantage with regards to racial profiling is that it creates injustice in the country because real criminals may be protected because they belong to the elite race and the innocent people may be prosecuted for the mere fact of belonging to the minority race. It is important for the local, state and federal security forces to stem out the incidences of racial profiling as a way of ensuring that that justice and equality prevails in the country for the benefit of all the people in the society. This paper addresses racial profiling and the effects that it has in the society. It also addresses the efforts that have been put in place to deal with the issue in the United States of America as well as well as the other countries.

Purpose of the study

Racial profiling has been rampant in the United States of America despite the claims that the country has reached the post-racial area, making the topic to be important in the society. The problem occurs daily in towns and cities in the US and the law enforcement agencies as well as the personal security details are on the forefront in perpetrating the crimes in the society. They target the blacks when conducting the humiliating searches, detentions as well as interrogations in the absence of the criminal activity. The detention, searches and interrogations focusing on the national origin, ethnicity, religion, and the perceived race are have been there for some time now. Racial profiling is illegal in the United States of America according to the constitution. It is, therefore, a deeply troubling problem in the country. Many efforts have been put in place to fight the vice, but the authorities have not been successful in their endeavors. The people who are supposed to protect the minorities from the cases of racial profiling are the ones who are taking part in the vice. There is, therefore, an urgent need to sensitize the members of security forces on the benefits of dealing with the racial profiling menace in the United States of America as well as the whole world and ensure equity in all the races that live in various places within the world (“Racial Profiling,” 2018). There was a case where the chief of police allegedly told the other police officers to arrest the blacks at random as a way of boosting the crime statistics, which is a very unfortunate incident in the modern world. The good thing is that the government of the United States of America took the initiative and fired him from the job (“The police chief told cops to randomly arrest black people to boost crime stats: probe,” 2018). The vice is rampant in the United States of America in such a way that the black police officers cannot carry out their mandate in peace. One unfortunate incident is when the residents called the emergency police number to report a black firefighter who was doing routine checks (“People Filmed and Called the Police on Black Oakland Firefighter,” 2018). Racial profiling has made the police in the United States of America to lose public confidence.  The black people can no longer trust the police for fear of being profiled and treated badly by the white police. The other sorry state is the fact that even the black police officers and black public officials that are supposed to protect their fellow black men are becoming racists in the country Most of the black is therefore not defended in the country as a result of the racial profiling (“Racial profiling has destroyed public trust in police. Cops are exploiting our weak laws against it,” 2014). The police, therefore, have a role of fighting the cases of racial profiling to ensure that they regain the long-lost public confidence among the people especially the black people. Racial profiling is also rampant in developing countries. There some countries in Africa that detest the white people because they perceive them to be land grabbers and racists. It is a case of racial profiling being replied by racial profiling of the same magnitude in the society.

Various institutions in the US have stepped up in the fight against the instances of racial profiling. Even though there are some racist police officers in the country, there are others that are leading the fight against racism and racial profiling from the front. However, more effort has to be done to ensure that the vice is stemmed out of the United States of America. This paper will, therefore, address the contentious issues that are related to racism and racial profiling and ways in which the vices can be eliminated in the society to ensure that all the people in the country enjoy their lives in peace and harmony. As it is, racial profiling is making it hard for the black government officials to discharge their duties because their white counterparts do not trust them and vice-versa. Racial profiling is one of how people make enemies in the United States of America. Searches and detentions, as well as seizures, should not be exclusively reserved for the blacks in the country if the security personnel are serious with seeking justice of the people in the county. White criminals may commit an offense and then blame it on the black people which lead to inequality in the country and can disrupt the peace that the people are already enjoying in the United States of America. The judicial process is very sensitive hence the issues such as racism and motivated racial accusations to impede the finding the true justice in the country. The use of race as a tool for interrogation is a contravention of the rights of the people in the country, and it serves to shift the attention of the security personnel from the real criminals in the society. Racial profiling may also occur even when the officers who may be inclined to discrimination or prejudice among the minorities in the organization are not present.

Literature Review

Racial profiling has been a common factor in the United States of America according to Welch, (2007). It is an unfortunate feature that has endured in the country since time in memorial. Hong, (2017) notes the fact that racial profiling impedes fairness as far as representation is concerned in several departments in the society. Alpert, Dunham, & Smith,( 2007) refer to the vice as a difficult issue that the contemporary society of the United States of America has to contend with as they try their best to improve the lives of the people in the society.  According to Welch, (2007), note that the linkage between blacks and crime is galvanized and the civil rights movements are doing their best to ensure the equality of all the people the organization.

The common stereotype that comes from racial profiling has been erroneously used as a rationale for an unofficial policy which is unfair to some individuals in the society. Welch, (2007) addressed the theoretical elements that played a big role in the development of the black criminal typification and understanding how it has been used in the justification of racial profiling.  Some of the security personnel will try hard as a way of convincing the black people are a security threat to the country according to Welch, (2007). According to Alpert, Dunham, & Smith, (2007), the people coming from the minority communities have switched their focus on how the police treat then in the country. The authors also addressed the patterns of discrimination that have been shown by the police officers in the US. Some of the notable incidences of racial profiling include the focus of the security personnel on when they make the traffic stop.  According to the research, the pre-activities at the traffic stop did show cases of racial profiling but the results of the post stop assessment showed an unfortunate treatment of the minorities in the country.

Alpert, Dunham, & Smith, (2007)   also addressed the five recommendation that addresses the policy change that will help in the reduction of the reality or perception of the racial profiling among the police forces in the country.  The first recommendation is that the police should have recommendation that is comprehensive enough to show the good use of race as far as decision making in the concerned.  The second decision is the act that the police should undergo training that will show the m the impact of race as far as decision making is concerned.   The third recommendation according to the paper is the fact that the police department should maintain a data collection and an analytic system that will enable them to respond to monitor the activities of their officers as far as race is concerned.  The fourth recommendation is setting in motion a process that will lead to the arrest and prosecution of the suspects. The fifth and final recommendation is to compile a record for a future compilation that has implications for the citizens.  Alpert, Dunham, & Smith, (2007) add that the interrogation tool should focus on suspicion as opposed to the race of the individual. The use of race as a tool for interrogation is a contravention of the rights of the people in the country, and it serves to shift the attention of the security personnel from the real criminals in the society.

Wilkins & Williams, (2008) address the active representation of the minority bureaucracies. The authors addressed the issues by testing the link that exists between the passive and active representation as far as race is concerned in the police departments as well as the particular instances of racial profiling in the society. The authors used literature from three areas namely representative bureaucracy, police socializing and most importantly racial profiling. The findings of the study showed that organizational socialization was a hindrance in the link between passive and active representation. Furthermore, the study established that the presence of the black police officers in the force served to increase the incidences of racial profiling in the division. According to Wilkins & Williams, (2008), the findings of the research raise very fundamental questions with regards to active representation and race in a given country.

Theobald & Haider-Markel, (2008) note an increase in their understanding of representation in the government throughout 30 years. The authors also note the fact that the represented individuals benefit from the representation bureaucracies which is beneficial to their welfare and life in general. Theobald & Haider-Markel, (2008) hypothesize that the perception that the public has with regards to the actions of the police is dependent on the racial representation in the police departments. The public are likely to have confidence in the police force where they feel that their race has been represented. The racial representation is therefore postulated to improve the equality in the treatment of the people in the society. However, the research by Wilkins & Williams, (2008) recorded the cases of racial profiling in even in the cases where all the races are represented in the police force meaning that there is need to look for a better solution that will be used in dealing with racial profiling in the society. According to Theobald & Haider-Markel, (2008), the blacks in the United States of America are likely to perceive the actions of the police as being genuine when they are conducted by the black police officers.

On the other hand, the whites are likely to consider the police actions as being legitimate when the white police officers conduct them. The dichotomy is worrying hence there is a need to ensure that there is cohesion between the races. Cohesion will ensure coexistence which will, in turn, ensure that all the people in the society live in harmony and value each other.

One way of finding information about racial profiling according to Antonovics & Knight, (2009) is getting information on race from both the police officers in the United States of America and the Citizens. The researchers developed a method that they could use in providing a distinction between statistical and preference-based discrimination. The test was based on the notion that if the search decisions are based on purely statistical discrimination, then they are supposed to be independent of the race which the police officer belongs.

An understanding of the concept of racial discrimination is important in the fight against the cases of racial profiling in the society. The police officers in the United States and the rest of the world are likely to fight the incidences of racial profiling if they understand what it is. In a study that was conducted in the Hamilton Police Service by Satzewich & Shaffir, (2009), the authors sought to find out the cases of police denial of racial profiling. They based their research on the interviews that were conducted among the members of Hamilton Police Service. The interviews and the research played a big role in creating an understanding of what the police term as racial profiling. Satzewich & Shaffir, (2009) discovered the fact that the police view racial profiling as one of the defining factors in their careers as they do their best to do their work of maintaining law and order in the society. According to the research that involved the police subcultures, the racial profiling may also occur even in the absence of the officers who may be inclined to discrimination or prejudice among the minorities in the organization.

Racial profiling has become an important area in policing according to Higgins, Vito, & Walsh, (2008). The authors note the fact that racial profiling involves two things which include conducting an examination of the traffic stop data and using a benchmark or baseline in the discovery of racial profiling. The research notes the race as one of the considerations that the police use to search.

The book by Glover, (2009) gives comprehensive information about the problem of racism in society. The author addresses research, racism, and resistance. The book expands the information on racial profiling by addressing the critical race criminology that provides important information that will help the people to understand racial profiling the law enforcement in the society. Sometimes it is good to understand the history of a given concept to understand the progress that has been made with regards to the issue in society. Glover, (2009) gives information on the history, entrée and the rise in the research on racial profiling. It also gives the criminological perspective of racial profiling and the concept of citizenship. The information about the critical race methodology and the critical race theory is essential in understanding various concepts on racial profiling in the society. The third part of the book contains an ethnographic view of racial profiling that also provides useful information with regards to the research at hand.

In conclusion, racial profiling impedes the holistic development of a given society, and it is one of the injustices that they racial minorities go through in the society. The government has the role of ensuring that all the people in the society are well taken care of and that equality prevails in the country.

Methods

The research will involve an assessment of the extent to which racial profiling is spread in the United States of America. The research will include a literature search on the recent papers that have been written on the racial profiling. The journals will be extracted from Google Scholar using the “racial profiling in the security sector” as the keywords. The inclusion criteria include the fact that the papers should have been published in the past ten years. The papers must contain the information that pertains to racial profiling in the security sector especially the enforcement of law and order. The papers have to address the racial profiling in the United States of America. The results that have been extracted from the studies will then be analyzed and presented then used in answering the research questions that have been identified in the research. The papers that do not meet the requirements will then be excluded from the research since they will not be useful in the context.

Conclusions

Racial profiling impedes having a completely fair society that believes in the rule of law. It leads to the arrest and persecution of the innocent people who belong to the minority races and leaving behind the real criminals who should be put behind bars for a host of criminal activities. The law enforcement is the greatest culprits as far as the racial profiling is concerned. Most of the blacks in the United States are associated with the perpetration of the criminal activities within the country. The police are therefore most likely to arrest the blacks about the crime committed more than they are likely to arrest the whites with regards to the same. Whites may commit a felony, but the blacks will end up paying for it which is very unfair to the black people and the justice system in the country. The traffic stops on the road are influenced by the race of the occupants of a given car in such a way that the blacks are more likely to be searched when compared to the whites because the former is associated with most of the traffic offenses compared to the latter. The whites are therefore likely to go scot-free even when they are on the wrong, which is one way in which the justice in a given country is affected by racial profiling in a given country. It is therefore important for all the people in the society to ensure that all the races are protected and respected in the society. In case an individual commits a crime, the police should focus on the person as opposed to focusing on the race where he or she belongs as a way of ensuring fairness in the society. All the people in the society, therefore, need to do their best to ensure that they deal with racial profiling in the society to ensure that all the people are comfortable in the society. All the factors that promote racial profiling in the society have to be eliminated to ensure that all the races are treated equally in the country.

References

ALPERT, G. P., DUNHAM, R. G., & SMITH, M. R. (2007). INVESTIGATING RACIAL PROFILING BY THE MIAMI-DADE POLICE DEPARTMENT: A MULTIMETHOD APPROACH. Criminology & Public Policy, 6(1), 25-55. doi:10.1111/j.1745-9133.2007.00420.x

Antonovics, K., & Knight, B. G. (2009). A New Look at Racial Profiling: Evidence from the Boston Police Department. Review of Economics and Statistics, 91(1), 163-177. doi:10.1162/rest.91.1.163

Glover, K. S. (2009). Racial profiling: Research, racism, and resistance. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publisers, Inc.

Higgins, G. E., Vito, G. F., & Walsh, W. F. (2008). Searches. Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice, 6(1), 23-39. doi:10.1300/j222v06n01_03

Hong, S. (2017). Black in Blue: Racial Profiling and Representative Bureaucracy in Policing Revisited. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 27(4), 547-561. doi:10.1093/jopart/mux012

People Filmed And Called The Police On Black Oakland Firefighter. (2018, June 26). Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/black-firefighter-oakland-police_us_5b316e53e4b0cb56051b7804

The police chief told cops to randomly arrest black people to boost crime stats: probe. (2018, July 13). Retrieved from https://nypost.com/2018/07/13/police-chief-told-cops-to-randomly-arrest-black-people-to-boost-crime-stats-probe/

Racial profiling has destroyed public trust in police. Cops are exploiting our weak laws against it. (2014, December 15). Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/12/15/racial-profiling-has-destroyed-public-trust-in-police-cops-are-exploiting-our-weak-laws-against-it/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.2a21dbbd6487