“Skittles for Trayvon: A Diminishing Suite in Verse” According to Alternet.org, “If racism isn’t a factor in opportunity and economic security, then why the overwhelming evidence to the contrary?” Lillian Bertram received the NEA creative writing poetry in 2014. She has also had a grant from the U.S. Embassy for writing a residency. This poem that she displays, describes the killing of Trayvon Martin in a mythical way. She uses examples of how the Volcano people or Separated from the Water people. The Volcano people are considered the African-Americans and Water people are Caucasians. Lillian gives examples in a mythical way how this country is segregated by the color of your skin. In this time period when the murder of Trayvon Martin …show more content…
This piece of evidence relates back to the thesis were it talks about Trayvon Martin wearing a hoodie and being stereotyped since he was a different ethnicity. If the singing boy was not one of the volcano people wearing a hoodie and was a part of the water people, he would not have choked out because he was perceived as a ghost. “Racial Profiling is a longstanding and deeply troubling national problem despite claims that the United States has entered a “post-racial era” according to aclu.org. Although U.S. has moved past the civil rights era there are still improvements to be done about stereotypes of black people. As provided in the quote, progress has not made its way because of the bigotry of some people in this society. As seen in the mythical poem like “Signing Boy”, white people are always making preconceptions of what black people are like before they even say anything or do anything. This issue has haunted America for the longest but it seems like it creeps back up steadily dividing people apart. There is only so much black people can take from being stereotyped everywhere they live in this country.
In Lines 12-13 “The water people were harvesters and the volcano people sowed in ash.” Segregation has always been a big part of how people in America separate themselves by social
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 has been and will continue to be a problem in the United States. Many believe that racial profiling is more prevalent in today’s society; however, this issue has been a part of our society since slavery. Moreover, African American males are mostly the targets of racial profiling, especially in larger cities like New York City and Los Angeles. Racial profiling is becoming a huge problem within the police departments. Police officers are conducting more traffic stops on African Americans males than on any other racial group, for the reason that many police officers believe African Americans males are most likely to be engaged in some sort of criminal activity. Thus, racial
Since the birth of our nation, racial profiling has been an issue longstanding and troubling among minority groups and still continues to exhibit severe consequences in communities.
According to the 11 Facts about Racial Discrimination, “The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics concluded that an African American male born in 2001 has a 32% chance of going to jail in his lifetime, while a Latino male has a 17% chance, and a white male only has a 6% chance” (11 Facts about Racial Discrimination 1). Racial profiling, or discriminating against a whole group of people based on their race, is an unjust act and a big problem in our society today. Arresting people because of how they look like, or what they believe in is absurd. According to ACLU, “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” (ACLU 1). Although law enforcement assumes they are doing their job, they need to remain objective and fair in all situations, because they are violating rights, lacking protection and risking lives.
Racial profiling is a controversial issue because although police use it to prevent crime, the opposing view claims that innocent people are stopped for no logical reason making them feel unequal. In fact, in the article “I was Racially Profiled in My Own Driveway” by Doug Glanville, is an example of why people oppose this, it shows how a police officer stopped and questioned a black man (himself) shoveling his own driveway even when it was out of his own jurisdiction. Little did the police know but the man was Doug Glanville, a retired MLB player, trying to clear out snow. However, not knowing who Glanville was, the police was under the impression that Glanville was out in the neighborhood trying to make money. Nonetheless, as soon as the police officer found out that Glanville was shoveling his own driveway of his household, he paces away. As Glanville clarifies, “After a few minutes, he headed back to his vehicle. He offered no apology, just an empty encouragement to enjoy my shoveling. And he was gone” (Glanville 8). What Glanville is really saying here is that a cop went out of his jurisdiction just to confront Glanville because he is black and was in a wealthy neighborhood. This ultimately ruined Glanville’s day by wiping off his smile since he had been racially profiled as a suspicious suspect to the police. This is a clear example on why people are against the use of
Racial profiling is simply, “the unlawful police practice of using race, color, or ethnic background, as the reason for conducting a traffic stop on an individual.” (Michigan Civil Rights Commission) This definition can be extended to any kind of discrimination mainly based on myths and stereotypes towards a certain race or ethnicity. However, the term racial profiling is commonly used when a police officer or any other law enforcer stops, questions, searches or arrests an individual purely on the basis of their race. African Americans or simply blacks have been the major racial group that has suffered much of racial profiling. Much of this is based on the stereotypes against the blacks are perceived as more likely to engage in criminal activities. For instance, in a 2013 Racial Profiling Data from Ferguson Police Department, out of 5384 police stops, 4632 were against blacks. (Ferguson Police Dept. 1) Despite the low population of blacks in U.S. compared to other races, the former continues being subjected to more racial profiling. Racial profiling against African Americans continues to expose the blacks to humiliation and racial injustices, as this paper will expose, thereby calling for the responsible authorities to address and find solutions for the problem.
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
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
In today’s world we deal with multiple cases of racial profiling seemingly on a daily basis. Turn on the television, check the internet, or simply have a discussion with someone and you’ll hear about it. "Racial Profiling" describes discriminatory practices by law enforcement officials who target people for suspicion of crime based on their ethnicity, race, origin, or religion. The term first came about during the War on Drugs in the 1970’s and 1980’s when law enforcement were accused of pulling over motorists simply because of their race, then unlawfully searching their vehicles for illegal substances. There are varying opinions about this topic and as the year’s progress, it seems acts of racism, labeling, and profiling increase. Many of the instances of racial profiling that occur today involve criminal justice.
Even the United States struggles with issues of racial discrimination despite being a society highly based on immigrants and multicultural diversity. On one hand, people frown on treatment based on race, whether that is on an individual or group level. On the other, people are tired and annoyed by the seemingly constant call of discrimination. All of these feelings culminate into the debate pertaining to the use of racial profiling. Likewise, there are some individuals that hold a certain level of acceptance in regard to racial profiling. However, what is lost in the process because of that acceptance? There are many components that need to be thought about in reference to the use of racial profiling. In addition, it can be viewed
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.
Racial profiling has been a recurring issue for quite a while in the history of America and it appears as if it will proceed the same. Many individuals do not know what racial profiling stands for and sometimes victims of racial profiling aren’t even aware of the meaning. Racial profiling is often identified as the use of race by any law pursuing organization to any extent, as a reason for unlawful conjecture in non-specific inspections. Every person is entitled to basic human freedoms and rights, which are undermined when discrimination based on religion, nationality, ethnicity, race, or other particular status occurs. It is unlawful to discriminate against citizens regardless of their race according to the United States Constitution, Civil Rights Act of 1964.
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. “
Almost every member of the black community in Maycomb County is admirable in their personalities and innocent in their nature, and this generalisation makes the crimes against the black community all the worse. Tom Robinson, a man discriminated and accused of a crime that he didn’t commit has come forth to the justice system. The color of his skin determines everything from his background too if he’s guilty or not. A black man’s life is unable to prove innocence because of his race. Poverty has affected many people back in the 1960’s but, if a black man or women were to experience this they would be put on the white
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,