What Pit Bulls Can Teach Us About Profiling

Brent Staples’ article “Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space” (1986) discusses his point of view on racial profiling. He talks about how race and gender effect how people view each other consciously and unconsciously. Throughout his article, Staples uses the arrangement of his debate, structure of his paragraphs, and figurative language to help in his persuasive argument against racial profiling.

Racial profiling had existed since biblical times, and is still present in today’s society. Recently in history we had the tragic terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. It did not take long for the fear of anyone from the Middle East to ripple through America. Wearing a turban in public would get people falsely accused of being a violent terrorist. Over and over again people foolishly stereotype and judge individuals based on their race or appearance. One of the most recent victims of profiling is the pit bull. Simply looking like or being a pit bull gets many loving creatures falsely accused of being violent, uncontrollable monsters. Pit bulls are the major target of legislation that bans or restricts certain types of dogs based solely

He also backs his theory by giving examples of "some typical lifestyles and some not so typical lifestyles", which means he shows you a complete profile of a persons life including: "Mother and fathers name and occupation, Principal child-rearer,

2. They were also the preferred “guard dog” for big time drug dealers and gangs.

Over the years, our generations’ stereotypical views over the issue on young black males being viewed as dangerous has grown significantly. There are different reasons why these stereotypes occur in our society. People feel on edge when running into them in dark passageways, whenever it’s late at night. Also, while they’re sitting at red lights and notice someone walking towards their cars, they instantly initiate down the door locks. People think stereotyping black men this way keeps them safer because they assume the worst. However; other people disagree with instantly judging who they see around them, it hurts more people as well as themselves by viewing black men this way. Brent Staples, the author of “Black Men and Public Spaces,” claims that he’s considered a stereotypical black criminal. In his essay, Staples succeeds because he successfully appeals to people’s emotions, is an expert on human behavior, creates common ground and offers a logical solution.

Gladwell’s use of ethos through word choice and tone throughout the five-page case in Outliers is concerned and disappointed as if in this example he is upset that his thesis is holding true. He is displaying himself as an equal to the audience, just as sad and frustrated throughout the disappointing Langan case, “That was the lesson Langan learned from his childhood: distrust authority and be independent,” (110). The pathos employed by emotional influence is strong throughout the entire discouraging case because the audience views the great potential of Langan, lost due to a lacking background. Gladwell uses short phrases to be direct with the issue which forces his audience to ponder on the information, “He’d had to make his way alone, and no one - not rock stars, not professional athletes, not software billionaires, and not even geniuses - ever makes it alone,” (115). The mental image of Langan having to persevere in harsh conditions with Gladwell’s thesis of success against him, makes the audience feel for him. Furthermore, it u9nfortunately persuades the reader that if the super genius, Chris Langan, cannot succeed because of his lacking background, then Gladwell’s thesis that success is based on factors

In his essay “ In Defense of Prejudice”, Jonathan Rauch explores a much talked about topic in the United States today, prejudice. As his title implies, he is in defense of prejudice, he makes it clear that he is not a supporter of hate or racism, rather a supporter of “intellectual pluralism” “which permits the expression of various forms of bigotry and always will.” (pg 1). Rauch defends the right to express all forms of bigotry. By utilizing specific examples where prejudice is at center stage, Rauch tries to convince his readers that the solution to prevent prejudice is not attempting to eradicate it, rather he believes if we, as a society channel prejudice more effectively we can make it “socially productive.” Ranch defends his

One of the most imminent threats looming within American society is race relations. America is a melting pot of different races, cultures, and religions, yet the matter of racial profiling still remains prominent today. By definition it is considered “an activity carried out by enforcers of the law wherein they investigate or stop any individual in traffic or round up people of the same race or ethnicity for crime suspicion” (NYLN.org ). This profiling has become a significant catalyst in the tension that has been ensuing between minorities and the government. Hostility has grown due to the apparent and intentional targeting of “brown people”, and

Elephants are gray, but not all gray things are elephants. Racial profiling would say that all Muslims are Al-Qaeda, because Al-Qaeda members are Muslim. This is a clear example of stereotyping. When assumptions are based upon stereotypes they run a large risk of being entirely wrong, and racial profiling relies on stereotypes.

Essentially, the topics Gladwell covered in this book include are, being at the right place at the right time, the 10,000-hour rule, timing, upbringing, and pursuing a meaningful career. Although all of these have been proven by Gladwell to be a major component of success, I do not agree with the idea of a particular upbringing will determine success. With this idea, Malcolm also includes that

There are many different qualities to consider when choosing a dog. Pit Bulls have all the qualities needed to become a great companion. Although, if you treat them wrong when they're growing up there is a good chance they will get out of control. If you raise them right you will have one of the best dogs ever. For example my friend had a Pit Bull that he would hit for no reason and one-day the dog attacked him and hurt him pretty bad. This is a good example of why you should treat your dog right. From my experience raising a Pit Bull I have come to believe they are the best bread of dog. As with any dog you need to raise and treat them right. Naturally they are loyal, smart,

An intelligent Black boy, who dumbs himself down to avoid criticism. The Hispanic girl who stays at home to take care of her family, instead of going to school. The Asian who pursues a career in medicine, despite wanting to be an actor. All of these strange actions can be explained by the Critical Race Theory. In short, the Critical Race Theory examines how victims of racism and stereotypes counter prejudice. Under the Critical Race Theory falls stereotype threat in which victims assume the roles that they think are prescribed for them based on popular stereotypes. The aim of stereotype threat and the Critical Race Theory is to explain both negative and positive ways minorities are effected by their race and how this reflected in our society as a whole.

Owning a pit bull in today’s day and age has one of two reactions: Either the person loves them or is terrified of them. There are so many myths about Pit Bulls and they are just that. Myths. Some of the myths that surround pit bulls are that they have “lock jaw” and they have a killer instinct that does not stop at just killing other animals. Pit bull advocates, such as myself, know that Pit Bulls have always been known as the “nanny dog” throughout history because of how much they love children and their loyalty to their families. Mean or vicious dogs come from ignorant, irresponsible owners. The bottom line is that not all pit bulls are bad.

Profiling is “the act or process of extrapolation information about a person based on known traits or tendencies”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. The practice of racial profiling is coming up with these “known traits or tendencies” and using them when interacting with people of a particular race, without considering the individual. The issue with these generalizations are that they become engrained in society and have subsequent consequences on those they are imposed upon. In the case of black men in America, the repercussions of this idea are seen in most facets of life. Predominately, the wage gap between white men and black men is an ongoing issue that is linked to preconceptions. Additionally, the achievement gap in the classroom has seen disparities that have prevented black men from having the necessary foundation to be successful. Ultimately, racial profiling has most notably been exposed by the actions of law enforcement and the criminalization of black men. In Dominique Morisseau’s “Night Vision”, the character Ayana reveals how racial profiling black men has integrated itself into the subconscious, which has surfaced in negative impacts on economic, education, and legal outcomes in America.

Profiling people can cause a brick wall to be built between one another; a wall that cannot easily be knocked down. The person that is doing the profiling has to take the bricks down one-by-one as if each brick reveals information, beyond physical appearance. Once the wall is down a transparent window forms with a beautiful view. There is more to a person than their exterior and class, just like there is more to room then walls. When profiling someone, people do not look past the brick wall; they build it higher and higher. When someone takes the time to get to know someone else the wall comes downs; at that time, people get a clear view of who people are, which could be beautiful. Profiling causes people to become engulfed by other people 's perceptions of who they are and becomes a conflict between racial heritage and human nature. Through the characters, setting, and tone of “Flight Patterns,” Sherman Alexie shows that profiling can lead to the misinterpretation of who someone is.