Essay on Racial Profiling by Police

The term “racial profiling” is used by agencies of law enforcement to describe an individual’s race or ethnicity as a factor in articulating reasonable suspicion to stop, question, or arrest an individual (Racial Profiling 2001: 1). Police officers have the discretion to make decisions regarding whom they stop. However, if any law enforcement employee profiles potential suspects based on their race or ethnicity they violate the civil rights of the individual. If you suspect someone of a crime based on their race and ethnicity you are violating the civil rights of these minority groups. If any officer suspects another officer of racial profiling they must notify their supervisor. When a situation like this comes up an

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, categories all human beings as free. Article one identify all human beings as born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Article two states, Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust,

Racial Profiling, it’s been the buzzword of the decade, its being talked about every time the news is on, it’s thrown around high-schools more often than test answers, it’s what George Zimmerman was accused of doing to Trayvon Martin, and it’s what Darren Wilson was accused of doing to Michael Brown. Everyone seems to have an opinion on Racial Profiling these days, some arguing that its morally right or wrong, others that its statistically supported or disproved, and many people argue over both. In a room of fifty people if you ask what they think about it you’ll get fifty different answers. After the recent incidents in New York and Ferguson that have made Racial Profiling the new poster child of every single media outlet, and after hearing so much about it I decided it was time for me to figure out what exactly Racial Profiling is and come up with my own answer to the million dollar question; should Racial Profiling be allowed as a tool of the police in their investigations?

Racial profiling is the tactic of stopping someone because of the color of his or her skin and a fleeting suspicion that the person is engaging in criminal behavior (Meeks, p. 4-5). This practice can be conducted with routine traffic stops, or can be completely random based on the car that is driven, the number of people in the car and the race of the driver and passengers. The practice of racial profiling may seem more prevalent in today’s society, but in reality has been a part of American culture since the days of slavery. According to Tracey Maclin, a professor at the Boston University School of Law, racial profiling is an old concept. The historical roots “can be traced to a time in early

Before any argument can be made against racial profiling, it is important to understand what racial profiling is. The American Civil Liberties Union, defines racial profiling as "the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual's race, ethnicity, religion or national origin"(Racial Profiling: Definition). Using this definition we can determine that racial profiling excludes any evidence of wrong-doing and relies solely on the characteristics listed above. We can also see

Some level of racial profiling has probably always existed in the United States. The article Mac Donald says that there is something that the vehicles are stopping it belongs to drivers and the kind of vehicles. and also about the number and type of occupants fit the profile of a drug courier. But of course they do once the traffics are stopped and they want to research the vehicle. These are just for race or ethnicity (par.7-8)., found on the Article racial profiling website, speaks to the audience of the united state by providing the idea of how someone from the different race can drive differently, that make the police to stop them. The purpose of this article is to give reasons why some races are being pulled over most of the time. Finally, the author says that if police control this indictment, police safety will suffer especially the safety of minorities in the area of violence and drugs in the neighborhoods. The neighborhoods are sometimes good to compliment from them for police to achieve them (par.11). The article “What is racial profiling?”, found on the wise Geek website, speaks to the audience of a general public of information searcher and educate by providing they say that people get research or suspected of being criminal because of their

Racial profiling has been used all throughout history, but with the use of media it has become a more open controversial topic to the public's eye. The big question that remains unanswered is, is racial profiling good or bad? There are people who believe racial profiling is wrong, claiming there is no indication that the people being racially profiled. And other people who justify their reasons to believe racial profiling is okay, but in what sense is it okay? Therefore, racial profiling is an enormous problem, specifically in the United States, that should be stopped.

Racial profiling involves using a person’s race in order to suspect them of doing something wrong or committing a crime. Racial profiling has been around for decades and has not went away. Law enforcement or people of authority use it in order to decide whether or not a person is suspicious. Racial profiling clearly goes against the fourth amendment right of no unreasonable search and seizure but has yet to be put to an end.

The topic of racial profiling is very prominent in our American society. I witness accounts of it every day, whether it is while going through an airport, reading about crime, and it’s heavily influenced within the world of politics. Racial profiling is a way for law enforcement to target certain individuals that are suspected of committing a crime. This involves race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, etc. The act of racial profiling allows law enforcement to alienate certain communities, which, in turn creates racial divides and demonstrates a “militarization” of the police. Not only that, racial profiling is heavily influenced within American society through politics and the use of media.

In the 1990’s, there was increase in lawsuits against law enforcement, especially at the state level, based on race based traffic stops that the courts started ruling that there was racial profiling going on across the country. The lawsuits were becoming so wide spread police executives sought steps to stop the racial profiling and try to restore some of the public confidence in law enforcement in the United States. The goal was to be able to provide evidence in court that there was in fact no racial profiling happening on traffic stop across the country. The dash board systems were able to provide an unbiased view of all events as the officer’s made contact with anyone. With this new technology, it started to rebuild the trust that was lost

Racial profiling is a serious issue of social importance in the United States. This topic has become a significant issue due to the fact that it discriminates against one of the most basic human rights--the freedom to be whoever they want and believe in whatever they want. It also makes many people feel uncomfortable when being searched, pulled over, and looked at as if they were criminals when all they are guilty of is having a different skin color or a different religion. Even if in some cases racial profiling assists police to arrest people for committing real crimes, it makes a larger amount of innocent individuals feel as if they were criminals; therefore, I am against it. Racial profiling is any police action taken based on race rather than on behavior, evidence, or information provided about an individual and law enforcement should start taking action against it because it is not humane in any shape or form.

Racial profiling is a severe discrimination in contradiction of certain ethnic groups, that police officers tend to use on persons of their interest. Opposing to general belief, racial profiling by police officers can occur anytime and anywhere. It is important for people to recognize that racial profiling is discourteous to the individuals who are profiled and it is a crime. People should not be profiled just because of the color of their skin or race. Racial profiling by police officers has developed into one of the greatest controversial practices commonly used suspecting or unsuspectingly in police departments. Police officers are supposed to protect and serve the people, not profile the people. Racial profiling by police officers is wrong and it does exist in all states, but however others may believe racial profiling by police officers does not exist.

Racial Profiling has been in the practice of Law Enforcement since the 1940’s. The use of Racial Profiling should be eradicated because of the effect it has in the court system, discrimination, excessive brutality, and the change in lifestyle. Racial Profiling is an unnecessary practice, there are alternatives to the practice.

Throughout history, there has always been a separation between races, and as our nation progresses, racism has taken the form of racial profiling. Often used as a technique to prevent crime, racial profiling only serves to unreasonably accuse individuals of color of heinous crimes, perpetuating societies longstanding fears. There are many arguments that racial profiling doesn’t exist, and people of color are only perpetuating the idea that they are constantly victimized, but based on past and current events, it is foolish to think racial profiling comes down to just that. By comparing the treatment of those of color, to those who are not, the blatant fact that racial profiling exists is clear to see.

Racial Profiling is any action undertaken for reasons of safety, security or public protection that relies on stereotypes about race, colour, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, or place of origin rather than on reasonable suspicion, to single out an individual for greater scrutiny or different treatment. Racial profiling has become a major problem in the United States. According to an article written by the Editorial Board of St. Louis Post-Dispatch . “In 2014, blacks were 75 percent more likely to be pulled over in the state of Missouri than whites.” The point of the article was to show that finding better ways to detect criminals would make the United States a better country over all. Also stated in the article “More Training and Police Consolidation Would Improve Racial Profiling stats.” But it is deeper than just more training and police consolidation, racial profiling shouldn’t be happening all together. As stated in an article in the New York Times written by Manny Fernandez, in Texas the lawmakers created a law known as Senate Bill 4 that prohibits cities and counties from adopting policies to limit immigration enforcement. Immigration enforcement is an American federal law enforcement agency, it is responsible for enforcing federal laws governing border control. Racial profiling is an ineffective and degrading practice because it violates civil rights, it’s unconstitutional and it’s a road block for future growth.