Arguments Against Racial Policing

What is racism? Racism is defined as discrimination toward someone’s race or religion etc. As we know today, this is a big issue, especially in United State. This is important to me because it does not matter what skin color you have or what religion you believe in. All that matters are that a person follows the law. Police officers, for example, they are supposed to use the power that they have for the bad people, people that do crimes and our threat to our society. Using violence against people that haven't done any threat to our society is wrong. In Sweden there is some racism, but not to the extent that black people will get harassed because of their skin color. In Sweden, the law is for everyone and whoever breaks the law will get the punishment they deserve. We all know that it is always two side of a story for example what happened to Michael Brown on August 9, 2014. Michael Brown was robbing a grocery store. The police officer stated that “He shot Brown after the teen attacked him”, While brown’s family said, “Brown was surrendering when he was shot dead.” You are always going to hear two different sides but the justice will find out who is the guilty one and who is the victim.

Immigration policies have been under fire for their racist under- or overtones. As Rees states, "Canadian immigration policy has historically always been determined by racial preferences." Institutionalized racism is a problem in Canada, in spite of the many official policies and programs designed to manufacture an equitable society. For example, Canada's Human Rights Commission and Employment Equity Act are both admirable but "Canada fails to fully implement" their guidelines (Song). Racial profiling is also a problem in the Canadian law enforcement and immigration sector. One study shows that Canadian residents who are African or black receive "harsher treatment" than white residents, and are also "overrepresented in police statistics of charges and arrests," (Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants).

. Racial profiling has always led to heated debates, but in general, there is a consensus that it is an offensive tactic that must be stopped, nevertheless if the argument is about profiling in airports, the public opinion is divided. It seems that many are willing to sacrifice their convictions and civil rights for a sense of safety in this war against terrorism.

Former President Clinton called for a national crackdown on racial profiling and ordered federal law enforcement authorities to begin an investigation. (1) Vice President Al Gore promised the NAACP that should he become president eliminating the practice of racial profiling by the nation's police departments would be a top priority. (2) New Jersey Governor Christy Whitman fired Police Superintendent Carl Williams after the 35-year veteran trooper said in an interview that minorities are more likely to be involved in drug trafficking. (3)

Policing of persons belonging to First Nations communities is not fair and equal under law, and should be changed in specific ways. Under-policing and over-policing both play significant roles in the unjust treatment of the Indigenous population, which have resulted in their marginalization and oppression in society. Despite the looming contradiction of being fearful of the police, there is still a desire for more police accountability and protection.

Racial profiling is used by many Americans in the united states. Blacks, whites and mexicans all use racial profiling. Their profiling is much different then you could say is used by police enforcement today. Minorities are high on the list of racial profiling by police in today 's society. This has caused many issues with minorities and police enforcement relations since police use this as a way of controlling crime rates in many cities. With this paper it will be to show and scrutinize every aspect of consequences of racial profiling with police and individuals such as minorities. To be able to explain and probe racial profiling and the issues that coincide with this issue. I will then provide an explanation with background of what racial profiling means. Then providing research that will show the issue of racial profiling with how it will affect the relations between individuals and law enforcement departments.

Racial profiling in the dictionary is “the assumption of criminality among ethnic groups: the alleged policy of some police to attribute criminal intentions to members of some ethnic groups and to stop and question them in disproportionate numbers without probable cause (“Racial Profiling”).” In other words racial profiling is making assumptions that certain individuals are more likely to be involved in misconduct or criminal activity based on that individual’s race or ethnicity. Racial profiling propels a brutalizing message to citizens of the United States that they are pre-judged by the color of their skin rather than who they are and this then leads to assumptions of ruthlessness inside the American criminal justice system. With

Racial profiling is simply, “the unlawful police practice of using race, color, or ethnic background, as the reason for conducting a traffic stop on an individual.” (Michigan Civil Rights Commission) This definition can be extended to any kind of discrimination mainly based on myths and stereotypes towards a certain race or ethnicity. However, the term racial profiling is commonly used when a police officer or any other law enforcer stops, questions, searches or arrests an individual purely on the basis of their race. African Americans or simply blacks have been the major racial group that has suffered much of racial profiling. Much of this is based on the stereotypes against the blacks are perceived as more likely to engage in criminal activities. For instance, in a 2013 Racial Profiling Data from Ferguson Police Department, out of 5384 police stops, 4632 were against blacks. (Ferguson Police Dept. 1) Despite the low population of blacks in U.S. compared to other races, the former continues being subjected to more racial profiling. Racial profiling against African Americans continues to expose the blacks to humiliation and racial injustices, as this paper will expose, thereby calling for the responsible authorities to address and find solutions for the problem.

Discrimination towards ethnic minority continues to find its way in our country. Unfortunately, the subject of racial profiling remains a part of Canada, as officers ignore individual behavior and instead, rely on race in police investigations. According to Katheryn Russell (as cited by Amy Hackney & Jack Glaser, 2013) racial profiling is defined as “The use of race or ethnicity by law enforcement officials as a basis for judgement of criminal suspicion” (Russell, 1998). Racial profiling within our country can be exposed through Canadian history, surveys and interviews from those treated unjustly. All of which stakeholders attempt to remedy for the victimization of the innocent.

In today’s world we deal with multiple cases of racial profiling seemingly on a daily basis. Turn on the television, check the internet, or simply have a discussion with someone and you’ll hear about it. "Racial Profiling" describes discriminatory practices by law enforcement officials who target people for suspicion of crime based on their ethnicity, race, origin, or religion. The term first came about during the War on Drugs in the 1970’s and 1980’s when law enforcement were accused of pulling over motorists simply because of their race, then unlawfully searching their vehicles for illegal substances. There are varying opinions about this topic and as the year’s progress, it seems acts of racism, labeling, and profiling increase. Many of the instances of racial profiling that occur today involve criminal justice.

Racial profiling is the act of selecting targets for criminal investigation not on behavioural merit, but exclusively on markers of personal identity such as race, ethnicity, and religious orientation (Perry, 2011, p.9). In other words, racial profiling is the by-product of subjecting individuals who are from a particular racial community to a higher degree of scrutiny and surveillance by criminal justice system agents when compared to other racial communities (Wortley and Owusu-Bempah, 2011, p.135). One Canadian community in particular has been impacted by racial profiling: black Canadians.

No community in Canada comes into conflict with criminal justice system officials more disproportionately than Aboriginals (Dickson-Gilmore, 2011, p.77). Indeed, Aboriginal Canadians are often subject to both overt and unintended discrimination from Canadian law enforcement due in large part to institutionalized reputations as chronic substance abusers who are incapable of reform (Dickson-Gilmore, 2011, p.77-78). One of the more startling contemporary examples of this is the case of Frank Paul; a Mi’kmaq Canadian who was left to die in a Vancouver alley by officers of the Vancouver Police Department after being denied refuge in a police “drunk tank”. Not surprisingly, this event garnered significant controversy and public outcry amongst

When people act on their stereotypical views, that is when stereotyping becomes a big concern and can affect others.Stereotyping is the main cause that leads to profiling. Anyone of any race can experience profiling, and racial profiling discriminates and victimizes people who may not necessarily be committing a crime.

Subsequently, it leads to their over-policing. This concept revolves around the notion that police do their jobs ‘too well’ and uses excessive force in confrontations with certain groups (Porat, 2008:416). It is ultimately the personification of racial profiling. Wortley and Bempah’s study (2011:397) shows that racial profiling is a grave problem that black Torontonians face, as 57% respondents believed that it is a major problem. This statistic is reinforced in the same study as 47% of blacks perceived their encounters with police as unfair, in contrast to just 12% of Whites (Wortley & Bempah, 2011:400). They were not given a thorough or specific reason for their stops, as they reported that they faced hostility and disrespect in their encounters.

A major issue that has been at the forefront of the topic of race in America is racial profiling. This practice of targeting individuals based on the individual’s race is not new and has been in use for many many years. However it has recently come to national attention with the killing of unarmed black teenagers by police officers. The issue of racial profiling not only highlights the lack of equality in America but the issue of policemen using excessive force when dealing with criminal activity.