How to stop Racial Profiling
| Subject: | 🧑🤝🧑 Sociology |
| Type: | Problem Solution Essay |
| Pages: | 3 |
| Word count: | 805 |
| Topics: | Racial Profiling, Police, 🚨 Police Brutality, 👎🏿 Racism |
essay ASAP?
The forefathers of America founded the nation on values of fairness, democracy, and justice to allow citizens to pursue their American dream. Nevertheless, racial profiling results from systemic racism and discrimination that have long been directed against people of color, especially African Americans. Racial profiling is a prevalent social scourge that has choked people of color in the United States, hindering them from pursuing the American dream (Harris, 2020). it is a common practice closely linked to racial bias as it posits targeting specific people because of their race or ethnic background. Racial profiling is a detrimental behavior that has increased discrimination and prejudices against people of color, denying the values of fairness, democracy, and justice.
The need to stop racial profiling
There is a need to address racial profiling to prevent police brutality, which has long affected African American members. Law enforcement in the United States hugely embraces racial profiling to combat crime. However, racial profiling has led to extreme discrimination and bias against African Americans, leading to several mortalities in different parts of the country. Due to racial profiling, police officers have beaten and killed innocent American citizens of African descent. It is saddening that most victims of police brutality were innocent teenagers whose lives have been cut short because of racial profiling in law enforcement (Teasley et al., 2018). Antwon Rose, aged 17, Tamir Rice, aged 12, and Michael Brown, aged 18, are some unfortunate cases of police brutality against innocent black teens related to racial profiling.
Racial profiling is a primary factor in police brutality against people of color that denies them fundamental rights like life, movement, and expression. African American teenagers have grown fear of police brutality hindering their freedom of movement. People of color are afraid to move freely in their neighborhoods because they fear being stopped, frisked, humiliated, and beaten by police officers for no apparent reason.
Unfortunately, African American students whose schools have a massive police presence are disproportionately referred to the juvenile justice system instead of discipline at school. There is a need to stop racial profiling of black students in schools because it causes fear that demotivates them from academics (González & Kaeser, 2021). black students may choose to abscond from school leading to high absenteeism because of their experience of discrimination through racial profiling. Shockingly, the black student population also receives harsh punishments for similar behavior to white students that amount to suspension, expulsion, or referral to the juvenile justice system.
There is a need to address racial profiling because it is a public health issue that leads to fear, depression, and anxiety. People of color fear being randomly stopped and frisked by the police. Some people develop anxiety whenever they are in public from the thought of meeting a law enforcement officer. These innocent people of color develop anxiety and stress because they fear they might be the next victims of police brutality, a rampant act in American society (Harris, 2020). Unfortunately, the fear of racial profiling among people of color has increased mental problems for an already marginalized social group.
How to stop racial profiling
To address racial profiling, American society must acknowledge the existence of systemic racism and white supremacy deep-rooted in the criminal justice system. the first solution to racial profiling is providing better training and development for police officers. Training police officers equip them with proper skills for handling suspects and members of the public without exhibiting bias or discriminative behaviors based on race, ethnicity, nationality, or religion (Walker, 2018). Trained law enforcers would treat public members equally and fairly since they would apply the proper management skills they are taught.
The government must establish strict law enforcement rules that prevent police officers from using excessive power on the public, especially people of color. These strict rules would guide law enforcement officers on the right procedure for handling the public failure to impose stringent legal measures on them (Hinton, Henderson & Reed, 2018). Police officers must be accountable for their actions, and those accused of racial profiling should be charged with discrimination. Promoting racial equality and equity in the criminal justice system and law enforcement helps combat racial profiling.
Community engagement is essential in strengthening minority communities’ relationships with law enforcement. Friendliness and trust would help develop confidence among African Americans toward law enforcement. Therefore, police departments should conduct regular community engagement forums where police officers interact physically with members of the black community to develop friendliness and trust (Walker, 2018). Police officers can boost friendliness, trust, and confidence in black communities by engaging in community-building programs to allow the community members to develop positive perceptions about them.
Racial profiling harms people of color, mainly African Americans, because it causes mental health issues, indignity, discrimination, and death. Various measures such as community engagement between law enforcement and the black community, stringent laws, and police training can help address this societal scourge.
- González, T., & Kaeser, E. (2021). School police reform: A public health imperative. SMU L. Rev. F., 74, 118.
- Harris, D. A. (2020). Racial profiling: Past, present, and future?. Criminal Justice, 34, 10.
- Hinton, E., Henderson, L., & Reed, C. (2018). An unjust burden: The disparate treatment of Black Americans in the criminal justice system. Vera Institute of Justice, 1-20.
- Teasley, M. L., Schiele, J. H., Adams, C., & Okilwa, N. S. (2018). Trayvon Martin: Racial profiling, Black male stigma, and social work practice. Social Work, 63(1), 37-46.
- Walker, S. (2018). Not dead yet: the national police crisis, a new conversation about policing, and the prospects for accountability-related police reform. U. Ill. L. Rev., 1777.
Offered for reference purposes only.