Return To Violent Times

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 still an ongoing issue that occurs and such an issue has led to many problems for the minority groups of this country. Whether it be African Americans, Indians, Asians, Mexicans, or Muslims, all have faced profiling at some point in time. The problems caused by this controversial subject include the impending distrust between black communities and law enforcement, unfair treatment towards all minorities by law enforcement, verbal and physical abuse of minorities by police officers which can sometimes lead to death, emotional unstableness of the victims whom have faced such a terrible judgement, and the negative impact it has on children of the minority groups.

Over the last twenty years the issue of racial profiling has become extremely combative with regards to law enforcement practices. A common misconception begins as some people are unaware of what racial profiling actually is. Racial profiling typically deals with incarceration, miss education, and to certain extent slavery. The topic of slavery is relevant in the conversation of racial profiling because like slavery, African Americans have suffered just due their own identity. Profiling is essentially the selection of an individual and categorizing them due to a specific racial group. The ever growing issue of racial profiling has become more evident to the public with the increasing number of instances that have been reported regarding

One of the most discussed about issues in our society today is profiling based on race or ethnicity. But what is racial profiling and why is it so important? Racial profiling occurs when law enforcement agents impermissibly use race, religion, ethnicity, or national origin in deciding who to investigate for different crimes and offenses. It is being used unjustifiably wrongly in our culture daily. Based on the status of racial profiling currently, it seems as if racial profiling will always be a part of our society and there is nothing people can do to change that. With people making assumptions based on unjust rules, it seems like there will be no end in sight for racial profiling. Law enforcement should be held accountable for their actions, mistakes, and unjustified assumptions. Many instances occur with police officers taking wrongful actions solely based on race or nationality. Police and their practices have been going on for many years with the same outcomes repeating consecutively. A real- life instance of this includes police subjecting people to police brutality just because they are a “person of color” or even a “person of interest.” This has sparked protests and movements such as “Black Lives Matter” or “Hands Up Don’t Shoot.” Many people who have fallen victim to racial profiling and were wrongly accused and lost their lives as a result. Some of these people include, Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown, Eric Garner, Oscar Grant, with the list continuing on. Trayvon Martin was shot and killed at seventeen years old for “looking suspicious.” Mike brown was shot six times for supposedly running away from a police officer. Eric Garner was put in a chokehold and subdued by a police officer for selling cigarettes illegally. Oscar Grant was already placed in handcuffs and lying flat on the floor when he was shot by a police officer that only served five years in prison. With countless others’ lives lost the list going on and on, it appears that racial profiling and bias have impacted affected a wide group of people and their families who have also suffered from this widespread issue. Overall, racial profiling is a big issue that might not be possible to correct

Racial profiling isn’t something new to today’s society. Most recently there were incidents in which the officers were accused of mistreating blacks such as Michael Brown and Freddie Gray. “Racism versus professionalism: claims and counter-claims about racial profiling” written by Vic Satzewich and William Shaffir discusses racism versus professionalism with officers. Their argument is more biased towards the police force and they argue that it’s part of their job. “

One of the many controversial topics is racial profiling. For centuries, America has looked down and discriminated minorities and it still continues today. It began when minorities started to immigrate to America in search of better lives. Most whites believed in white supremacy and thought minorities were aliens. The police use racial profiling mostly towards minority groups. Racial profiling is the use of race or a skin color to suspect someone of doing an offense. While some people think that racial profiling is beneficial because it lowers crime rates, racial profiling creates false accusations against minorities; therefore we should limit the use of racial profiling.

This is only one of many cases where racial profiling is presented by law enforcement. Another racial profiling case is Trayvon Martin who was shot and killed by George Zimmerman. The 17-year-old, Trayvon Martin, was profiled for being black and wearing a hoodie. Neighbors called in a report for a man looking suspicious. George Zimmerman was a neighborhood supervisor and patrolled the streets, therefore he had a permit to legally carry a gun. Unfortunately, Zimmerman shot and killed Martin in what he claimed as self-defense. This is false, though, since the 911 dispatcher instructed Zimmerman not to follow the man because it was not his job. Zimmerman was not found guilty because the police said they did not have any probable cause to believe that he had broken the law. One source noted, "The authors use the Trayvon Martin court case to exemplify how racial profiling and black male stigma help perpetuate social inequality and injustice for black men" (Teasley 2018: 40). The statement describes how the incident with Martin is an ideal example for racial profiling at an institutional level. Police officers are gifted privileges, and these privileges exemplify racial profiling and police brutality. A certain source made a comment such as, "The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights found evidence of widespread

Racial profiling is a wide spread term in the American justice system today, but what does it really mean? Is racial profiling just a term cooked up by criminals looking for a way to get out of trouble and have a scapegoat for their crimes? Is it really occurring in our justice system, and if so is it done intentionally? Most importantly, if racial profiling exists what steps do we take to correct it? The answer to these questions are almost impossible to find, racial profiling is one of many things within our justice system that can be disputed from any angle and has no clear cut answers. All that can be done is to study it from different views and sources and come up with one’s own conclusion on the issue.

Racial profiling is a tool used to pull over blacks and for reasons other than what the traffic stop should be. To the average person who does not experience this will view as a non-issue or not a big deal. But having an experience as a victim of racial profiling can leave a psychological scar for many years, depending on the severity of the traffic stop. The statistics show that these incidents are not random but shows a systematic pattern of law enforcement misconduct rather it’s coming from the individual officer or the police department, it’s clear that racial profiling has a disparate and degrading impact on blacks.

Have you ever walked into a fairly, busy gas station, felt one of the cashiers suddenly lift his eyes off of his newspaper and watched only your every move? He’s probably racial profiling. Have you ever saw someone walk into the gas station who looked as if they were ready to rob the place? You’re probably racial profiling. Racial profiling has been an issue for many years; since slavery till present day. Racial profiling is when someone, not just the law enforcement, judges an individual by their race or ethnicity for suspicion of crime. Some believe that racial profiling is an issue that needs to be solved immediately and some believe racial profiling can be an essential in life. Those who believe that racial profiling needs to be stopped, believe that racial profiling causes chaos and a division between people. Those who believe that racial profiling is a necessity, believe that racial profiling can be a useful tool to keep the streets safe.

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.

Leslie McFadden is the mother of the eighteen-year-old boy, Michael Brown who was killed by a police officer back in 2014. After her son’s death, Mrs. McFadden has traveled nationally to speak on behalf of her son and seek justice. This past October, Mrs. McFadden shared her testimony at the black studies conference in UT Austin, where she was described as a “wife, fighter, and believer in hope.” At the conference Mrs. McFadden discussed different themes such as the institutionalized racial segregation and violence she and many face in Ferguson. The nightmare of racial hatred is not a thing of the past but a present reality. Her strong will to move forward and to speak the truth makes Mrs. McFadden this generations Mamie Till. Through her personal experience Mrs. McFadden connect with the audience at a level a textbook can’t and encourages them to be vocal against injustice.

Racial profiling is a big deal today in our society; incase you didn’t know racial profiling is the act of suspecting or targeting a person of a certain race based on a stereotype about their race. Stereotyping is the leading cause of racial profiling. Yes, it’s true, the police racially profile and are beginning to get out of control but racial profiling goes far beyond just the police. Look at the cases where it wasn’t the police who were at fault; cases like The Trayvon Martin case, the airport, the Christopher Dorner situation when the police were on the other end of things or even now where black people are taking it upon themselves to go out of their way to kill white cops. I’m not saying that the police aren’t wrong sometimes or that they never take advantage of their power but I people sometimes forget that police are human too. People as well as police officers need to remember that the police's job is to serve and protect the people and that not all police are bad. It’s also up to the citizens to be responsible and work with the police. In order to fix the problem and stop the corruption, the citizens of America need to look at the problem as a whole.

Benjamin Todd Jealous once said, “Racial profiling punishes innocent individuals for the past actions of those who look and sound like them. It misdirects crucial resources and undercuts the trust needed between law enforcement and the communities they serve.”(Jealous, 2015). I couldn’t agree more with him. In today’s society more and more Black men and women suffer from police bias. Police is a powerful organization that was meant to serve and protect. Enforce laws and keeping communities safe. The problem is we fail to acknowledge that police are humans with real life bias. The problem with police is how much racial profiling is going up,

Over the years Racial Profiling in some aspects has evolved from minor prejudice acts to major consistent murders in the U.S. Many U.S citizens argue that racial profiling eliminates potential crimes, saves law enforcement a great portion of money and fits the demographics of usual crimes. Although, other citizens of the U.S may deeply disagree and rebuttal these claims by stating that racial profiling directly violates individual rights, can be detrimental and could potentially make an entire community feel unsafe.