Martin Luther King: Racial Profiling In The United States

Martin Luther King Jr. was a brilliant man who preached non-violence to his followers during the fight of equality in deeply

Matin Luther King once said.... "We must learn to live together as brothers or we will perish together as fools". He was a big influence in society to those without certain rights. At this time in history, colored people were looked upon as trash, dogs, and the lowest social rank a person could be. Many cases went on during this time period related to civil rights, and many changed society forever. Civil rights have been a big part of history including three major cases: Brown vs. Board of education, Plessy vs. Ferguson, and Dred Scott vs. Sanford.

Martin Luther King was a great historical figure in our society. However, there wasn't just one, as the fight for African American rights was an ongoing struggle in our society. Many people stood up for the injustice against African Americans since many were oppressed during this time period of the 1960s due to their skin color. That's when Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X stood up and became two important historical figures in our society as they fought against these issues. That being said, after examining the philosophies of both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X on the issues of segregation of American society, economic opportunities for black people, and the use of nonviolence as a method of making change, it’s clear that Martin

The public has labeled Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in many different ways over the years: a minister, a dreamer, and a leader. In Birmingham, April 1963, he could have been said to be a law-breaking extremist by many of the community’s members. Dr. King previously, before being thrown in jail, was the leader of the non-violent protests happening in the Birmingham area. A group of clergymen scorned his actions and those of his followers in a local newspaper. His rebuttal was not hateful, but rather insightful to the reasonings behind his actions and why they were necessary. Dr. King uses religious allusions and references which helps deliver this message and makes it so it is easily comprehensible. He has to put on a large aura of knowledge and

Throughout history Black men have been accustomed to being profiled, interrogated harassed by whites, and accused of accusations. Racial profiling has been a major component of America’s History. History has repeated itself and Black men are still facing the same limitations as they ancestors experienced. Lynching’s and accusations was a historic experience for blacks in the 1940’s. Today, we see Blacks arrested and incarcerated at higher rates then any other racial group. As Michelle Alexander research demonstrates incarcerating blacks is our “New Jim Crow”.

"Racial profiling” can hold a variety of meanings. As defined by the American Civil Liberties Union, however, racial profiling is "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”). Every day, blacks are stopped much more frequently for aimless searches and minor infractions than their white counterparts. Several African Americans share experiences like these, such as Roscoe Van Pelt, who was violently snatched off the street and crammed into a squad car after the ludicrous crime of jaywalking (Walsh). A more extreme example would be the case of Sandra Bland, who was brutally beaten following failure to signal a lane change (Schuppe). Incidents like these occur far too frequently in black communities, all for the color of their skin.

Martin Luther King's teachings stand at the core of the strong foundation of America. Today, terrorism, war and recession are seeping in, cracking that foundation and eroding civil rights and civil liberties. And while the teachings of Dr. King came many years ago, they are especially relevant to us today as we struggle with painful losses and difficult questions about the future of America.

As the Civil Rights Leader and former president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, 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. It has no place in our national discourse, and no place in our nation 's police departments.” Racial profiling is the use of ethnicity as a basis for suspecting someone of having committed a criminal offense, which is both illegal and immoral. Police officers unjustifiably use their power to stop, frisk, and harass minorities based on their identity and appearance. According to statistics, Whites have the most arrests for serious and non-serious crimes yet African Americans and Hispanics are stopped far more frequently than any other race or ethnicity. Police officers need to be restrained from racial profiling because it unfairly disadvantages innocent people due to their ethnicity. As stated by Law Enforcement officials, these stops are described as a “crime-fighting tool” however, are rather a racially oriented tool of harassment. It is essential for police officers to know the difference between racial profiling and criminal profiling to further prevent police brutality from occurring.

Recently, there has been an epidemic in which minorities are being racially profiled on a daily basis. Individuals are being arrested, pulled over, and gunned down, simply because of the color of their skin. People cannot even walk down the street without someone thinking that they look suspicious. Whether the person is African American, Hispanic, Indian, or Muslim, racial profiling is wrong. With all of the recent controversy surrounding the problem, one would think that it would occur much less but that is not the case. Racial profiling has caused a recent uproar in America, and it has become the reason why many people have turned their backs on law enforcement for good.

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 dates back to as earlier as the 1700s. It was during this time, that many African Americans were used as slaves, and those African Americans who were free were required to carry registry papers to claim they were indeed free. Though they were free, those African Americans were still racially profiled in Southern states. Some of the southern states even sent out special slave patrols that would hunt for what they believed to be escaped slaves. Members of these groups, if they found free African Americans accused them of being runaway slaves (Gale Opposing). After the Civil War, laws such as segregation laws, and Jim Crow laws were created to form more separation. These laws kept blacks and whites separate in public places such as restrooms, churches, public transportation, restaurants, and schools (Gale Opposing). Laws today for racial profiling may have changed, but attitudes toward it have not. We find that years later racial profiling continues, and many people are suspected of committing crimes for little more than the color of their skin. Police today use more racially driven practices to try and accuse many of crimes (Gale Opposing). Practices such as "Stop and Frisk" have proven to be more hurtful than useful, with data supporting that this practice has no proven practical use these actions are seen as a serious act of unfair racial scrutiny and are of no use in society today.

According to the National Institute of Justice, racial profiling refers to 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. Any definition of racial profiling must include, in addition to racially or ethnically discriminatory acts, discriminatory omissions on the part of law enforcement as well. For example, during the eras of lynching in the South in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the civil rights movement in the 1950 's and 1960 's, southern sheriffs sat idly by while racists like the Ku Klux Klan terrorized African Americans. A recent example would be the complaint by an African American man

Topic/Question: Have Black Lives Mattered? – Racial profiling in the justice system, increased incarceration of African Americans and the idea of “White Privilege” persists in the United States.

When thinking about racism, it feels like it is a thing of the past, but it’s not. There are numerous people who are racist in law enforcement and that is demonstrated through racial profiling. Racial profiling still exists today and unfortunately happens frequently. In 2013, an unarmed black male, Trayvon Martin, is shot and killed by an officer. In 2014, Michael Brown, who is also a black male is shot and killed by another officer. Also, many black and Hispanic people are racially profiled and stopped by the police for suspicion of drug possession. In Arizona officers stop people who look suspicious and ask to see if they have papers. Most people who are stopped have Hispanic features or are heard speaking Spanish. This results in Hispanic people being unreasonably stopped. Racial profiling has not significantly evolved since the civil rights movement and it is crucial that minorities take action.

While many people continue to say that race relations has increasingly improved after the civil rights movement, racism still occurs today. Discrimination and racism toward Blacks was considered normal after the Civil War and before the civil rights movement. Many white people could openly abuse black people in the streets and no one would care. Racism and discrimination only happens at a mid extent today, which is not as often as a when Richard lived. Richard Wright was born after the Civil War, but before the Civil Rights Movement. If he were to write an autobiography today, about a black boy growing up in the United States, he would write about the negative effects of racial profiling on blacks, the wealth gap between white and black families and how the Black Lives Matter Movement affects people.