Police Relations with Minority Ethnic Communities

Police Relations with Minority Ethnic Communities

The Macpherson report was published in 1999 amidst problems of racial

inequality and a lack of faith in the police amongst minority ethnic

communities. There is an ongoing debate on whether Macpherson’s report

was a help or a hindrance with regards to minority ethnic relations

and the police; it is this dispute that the essay shall examine. To

begin with the paper will look at the problems, which existed prior to

Sir William Macpherson’s publication and which led to the publication

of his report. It will then proceed to examine the failures of the

Scarman report, in order to look at both the prior problems and

failures regarding the 1981 Scarman publication and see how these two

sets of factors affected the way in, which minority ethnic communities

responded to Macpherson’s report. The essay will then continue on to

highlight two main areas of recommendation made by Sir William

Macpherson and judge whether or not these were successfully carried

out and what effect, if any they had on the minority ethnic community

relations. Finishing with the introduction of the acts, which were

inspired by and followed the Macpherson report, and discuss the

results, which they had on police, minority ethnic relations.

The problems in Britain regarding racism prior to the Macpherson

report and the failure of the Scarman report to remedy these, could

have been said to have meant that police and minority ethnic

communities were instantly bettered just by the mere publication of

Macpherson’s article. Racism was not actually registered in the eyes

of the government and police as a crime until the early...

... middle of paper ...

...andbook of Policing, Cullompton: Willan

Publishing.

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Incidents’, Modern Criminal Investigation, Organised Crime and

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* Reiner, R. (2000) The Politics of the Police, Oxford: Oxford

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* Rowe, M. (2004) Policing, Race and Racism, Collumpton: Willan

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* Smith, G. (2000) ‘Managing Police Misconduct: Reform of the

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presented to European Group for the Study of Deviance and Social

Control Conference, University of Wales, Bangor, 25-27 April.

* Weeks, J. (1999). What Do You Call a Black Man in a BMW? ‘Sir’;

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