Racial Profiling : The Black Or White

It took ten minutes to convict George Stinney Jr. at age fourteen. It took seventy years after his execution to exonerate him. (Bever) For years, blacks have had to deal with racism left and right. There are numbers that prove how the authorities have continued to use racial profiling against those of black or Hispanic descent. Police around the world have continued to use racial profiling, even when they know it’s not in the training that they have received. Families and friends have experienced losses from the deaths of innocent people who were wrongfully killed by the police. Some people argue that racial profiling is wrong, but others have stated that it would bring us more protection

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

Racial profiling in law enforcement is referenced when a law enforcement officer targets an individual for suspicion of a crime. A broader definition of racial profiling in law enforcements is when a law enforcement officer, uses an individual’s race or ethnicity, age , time of the day (usually later in the day), dress code and also location to accuse a person of a crime. In today’s world the term racial profiling can be viewed in various view points, because of people having different opinions on the term, many disagreements occur. Some people believe that specific incidents are not cases of racial profiling and others think otherwise, needless to say an argument occurs.

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.

Firstly, racial profiling will always exist in a diverse country, and it is ignorant to think that with the melting pot culture and races America has, that everyone will be treated the same way. From the beginning of mankind to the current times today, people have and will always keep being identified by their color. Stereotypes will always stay, since the old generation teaches their thoughts to the next, and when the next generation has their children, they too will teach what they learned. Stereotypes towards multiple races are known by everybody, so when meeting new people, past experiences and teachings already create

The definition of racial profiling is prejudging someone by their ethnicity or racial profile based on the stereotypes that an ethnic group may carry. Racial profiling acknowledgement in America has grown rapidly over time and has really been on the rise since the September 11, 2001 bombings of the Twin Towers in New York City and of the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.

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

We live in a society that has prospered generously over the years. America has opened its doors for so many different people by establishing itself as a free country. Not only have we progressed in technology and economically but we have created our own identity by becoming a free nation in which every individual has the same rights and eligibility as the other. This is the core of our countries success; we are not a nation unified distinctly by a specific race, religion or culture but by the compulsive efforts of our nation’s laws to uphold freedom in every aspect of a civilian’s life. People are not only allowed but encouraged to practice the religion of their choice, eat the food they desire, speak the language they prefer. There is even freedom in the most minute of things such as being able to listen to the music of your choice, these are the laws that promote diversity and strengthen our nation today. Our nation’s identity and prosperity is built upon multiculturalism and ethnic tolerance. However, this was not always the case it has taken many long and brutal years become the stable and versatile country that we are today. Specifically dating back to when this land was first founded and thereafter we see our nation has struggled with conflicts against politics, discrimination, and public affairs up till this very day.

In the Justice System there are a lot of flaws that affect many people of color, and from past history, it has shown how these practices can lead to very unfortunate events, one of these practices is racial profiling. Racial profiling is when law enforcement uses race and ethnicity as grounds to determine if someone, typically of color, is guilty of doing something illegal. Racial profiling is a major problem in this country, this as well affects many citizens that are mainly of color because law enforcement usually sees them as targets, and it is important to improve and fixed this issue because there are many tragic incidents that have been caused of racial profiling.

People love to categorize everything in the world. From organizing socks to classifying species. Therefore, racial profiling exists. Racial profiling is a growing problem in the United States of America. Minorities are being discriminated and put into racial categories by society. In addition, people of color are being looked down upon by privileged whites. Furthermore, whites are discriminating a diverse society by stereotyping and being racist to different cultures that makes the United States of America the freest country in the world. For example, in the article Jim Crow Policing by Bob Herbert it states, “These encounters with the police are degrading and often frightening, and the real number of people harassed is undoubtedly higher than

Racism exists in our American justice system… many years later. Many assume that racial profiling is a problem that just arose recently, due to multiple infamous incidents where “justice” was served to innocent victims. Most people have this assumption because the extremes of racial profiling has been making national headlines. When in fact racial profiling has been around and in use since the 1700s. By definition racial profiling is the use of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, or national origin by law enforcement agents as a factor in deciding whom to investigate, arrest or detain absent evidence of a specific crime or criminal behavior. In other terms it is using racism and stereotypes to assume the worst of people. Racial profiling is executed by law enforcements by multiple tactics, such as a stop and frisk , vehicle or bag search search, a pat down, etc based on the police having a reasonable suspicion that the individual is going to commit or has already committed a crime whether it is a felony or misdemeanor. Racial profiling has destroyed our trust in police officers due to the fact that the law enforcements can use this to their advantage by using discrimination to interrogate citizens or immigrants, whom are by a large percentage African American or a minority. According to the U.S Bureau of Justice Statistics, African American males have a one-in-three chance of going to jail in their lifetime, a rate more than six times higher than whites (Knafo,2013). This statistic however is not based on crime rates yet based on illegal drug offenses. Although most african americans are incarcerated due to drug crimes it is a proven statistic that African Americans are ten times more likely to be arrested for drug crimes than the rate of white men.

Racial discrimination as gone on for decades in many diverse ways. One sole practice is through racial profiling. Racial profiling is the use of race or ethnicity as grounds for suspecting someone of having committed an offense. And law enforcement has been using it consciously and unconsciously for several years. Racial profiling is untrustworthy because it discriminates people of the minority, especially African Americans.

It is no surprise that most of America’s black, hispanic and other minority populations do not trust the criminal justice system. There is little debate on the fact that the system is racially biased. The facts are undeniable.

What is racial profiling? The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) 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” (2005). Do not confuse racial profiling with criminal profiling; criminal profiling is usually practiced by police in which they use a group of characteristics that are associated with crime to target individuals (ACLU, 2005). Examples of racial profiling include using ones race to target specific drivers for traffic violations and pedestrians for illegal contraband; another prime example is the targeting of Muslims, Arabs, and South Asians since 9/11 in

Racial grouping and categories can be effective and not effective. In the article “Racial Formation in the United States” by Michael Omi and Howard Winant they discuss their views of racial groups in the U.S and their effectiveness on people. In the article “How Jews Became White Folks and What That Says about Race in America” by Karen Brodkin she discusses how in the past time Jews were considered something other than white, but now they are considered as very much white. Brodkin’s article supports Omi and Winant by addressing the same issues in a more detailed and specific way, they both talk about these racial categories and how it affects