The Pros And Cons Of Racial Profiling

The people has made it clear that the concern on racial profiling is wrong with our core values and principles of fairness and justice. The use of race as the basis for law enforcement decision making clearly has a terrible cost, both to the individual who suffer invidious discrimination and to the nation, whose goal “liberty and justice for all” recedes with every act of such discrimination. For this reason many cases impose more

The topic racial profiling is an ongoing debate that is currently being argued in America. Before being able to help understand the faults of racial profiling, one must know what it is. According to the National Institute of Justice, racial profiling in law enforcement “is commonly defined as a practice that targets people for suspicion of crime based on their race, ethnicity, religion or national origin” (“Racial Profiling”). Racial brutality tends to be an outcome of most racial profiling cases. Racial profiling will usually be most casually seen in traffic stops. Not only does racial profiling make police officers hypocrites for not protecting, and causing distress to, the society they sworn to abide to, but it also makes them breach the constitution of the United States of America. Racial profiling is an unethical, biased, and unconstitutional practice in law enforcement.

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.

Limits should not be placed on a police officer’s observations simply because some critics claim that the content and substance of these observations may be racist in nature. Case law has supported racial profiling as long as it is not the only reason for police contact (Von Kaenel 2). Racial profiling critics think that strategies which focus on race will result in higher arrests for a minority group even though the particular minority group might be under in the general population (Von Kaenel 2). Critics also say it encourages unjustified detentions, “fishing expeditions” unlawful arrests, and will inevitably lead to an erosion of the people’s civil rights. But officials argue that disregarding racial profiling does nothing to protect the public and will delay the apprehension of a suspect (Von Kaenel 1). After reviewing this information, I believe racial profiling should be one of the strategies police use to narrow their suspect pool during criminal investigations.

Racial profiling in law enforcement is not merely wrong, but also ineffective. Race-based assumptions in law enforcement perpetuate negative racial stereotypes that are harmful to our rich and diverse democracy, and materially impair our efforts to maintain a fair and just society. Retrieved November 15 2015 www.usdoj.gov

Racial Profiling is wrong, and stereotyping certain races as having a greater propensity to commit crimes should be prohibited.

The existence of racial profiling is one of the most pressing issues facing the contemporary society of America. Historically, law enforcement has a heritage of racially motivated legislation - from slave codes, black codes, to other oppressive practices targeted at the populations of minorities. The present-day relationship between minorities and the police has been consequently influenced by such historical trends of discrimination. Recent events reflect the policing strategy of racial profiling where minorities have been mistreated and discriminated against, leading to a relapse towards social inequality once again.

Racial profiling is the most arrogant thing you can ever do as a man. Normally the individuals who are influenced by racial profiling are minorities, but any individual can be a victim of racial profiling. Some may feel that racial profiling is non-existent; however, it is still in presence and has been seen in the past and now in the present year. Although more than fifty percent of the time racial profiling is led against a man or a woman of color; an African-American to be specific. There are examples where a white individual can be a casualty also. Trying to say that there isn't any individual out there that is excluded from racial profiling, because there isn't an individual who is simply free from this cruel strategy for choice making.

Racial profiling is a controversial issue that still occurs in today’s society. For some time, policemen have used racial profiling to determine those at fault during criminal activity. However, racial profiling must be stopped because it shows ineffectiveness and is embarrassing for the victims. Law enforcement should not be allowed to be discriminative towards a race solely because of their appearance and instincts. Minorities must be protected at all costs in order to have all the American values be fulfilled. Therefore, we need to have more people realize that racial profiling is not an effective system and instead demoralizes people of color. While some believe racial profiling can help stop crime, criminal behavior cannot be determined through the process of racial profiling; therefore, we must gain awareness to help put the end to this major issue.

Racial Profiling is a government activity directed at a suspect or a group of suspects based solely on race. Racial profiling has become a major problem in the United States. According to an article written by the Editorial Board of St. Louis Post-Dispatch . “In 2014, blacks were 75 percent more likely to be pulled over in the state of Missouri than whites.” The point of the article was to show that finding better ways to detect criminals would make the United States a better country over all. Also stated in the article “More Training and Police Consolidation Would Improve Racial Profiling stats.” But it is deeper than just more training and police consolidation.  As stated in an article in the New York Times written by Manny Fernandez, in Texas the lawmakers created a law known as Senate Bill 4 that prohibits cities and counties from adopting policies to limit immigration enforcement. Immigration enforcement is an American federal law enforcement agency, it is responsible for enforcing federal laws governing border control. Racial profiling is an ineffective and degrading practice because it violates civil rights, it’s unconstitutional and it’s a road block for future growth.

Growing up as a white person, I have never had trouble with the police or any type of law enforcement. Nor have I been scared or afraid of them. Personally, I see them as the people who keep me safe, but that’s not the case for everyone. Racial profiling is a big issue here in America, and it needs to stop. How can we stop something that is considered to be the “norm” in today’s society? Let’s look at racial profiling, iron triangles, and how we could possibly put a stop to racial profiling.

While racial profiling is used to solve many crimes, using race as a description of the criminal being pursued does not constitute discrimination. “Racial profiling does not refer to the act of a law enforcement agent pursuing a suspect in which the specific description of the suspect includes race or ethnicity in combination with other identifying factors.”1 Identifying and defining racial profiling simply on the basis of race can raise several issues. Using this definition solely based on race fails to mention when police act on the basis of race along with a violation. For example an officer who targets African Americans who were jaywalking would not be considered to be racial profiling because the people that were stopped were jaywalking and happened to be African Americans.

Many People assume “Racial Profiling” started in the 1980s, when the news of Blacks being pulled over for “driving while black” was broadcast over television airways nationwide. Unfortunately, “racial profiling” is a new term based on very old forms of racialized actions against Black people, as racial profiling can be traced back some 300 years. “Racial Profiling” is not premised on recent but decades-old practices of discriminatory conduct by the government, common citizen’s, police and the criminal justice system that date back to the 1700s in the United States for African Americans.

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.