Research shows that there is still a problem of racism and segregation toward African-Americans along with cultural and racial contrasts in the attitudes of blacks towards law enforcement (Huggins, 2012). Seventy-five percent of blacks believe that law enforcement treats them unfairly compared to whites (Weitzer & Tuch, 2005). The majority of whites (77%) thinks that law enforcement treats everyone fairly (Weitzer & Tuch, 2005). Moreover, race is still viewed as a factor that causes minorities injustice in the criminal justice system (Huggins, 2012). Therefore, blacks’ perception of law enforcement can be created when interacting or observing police conduct. Blacks compared to Whites are cautious and do not trust law enforcement. Furthermore, …show more content…
Law enforcement is entrusted authority figures by individuals in the community. Therefore, when that trust is jeopardized due to misconduct by police there is a disconnection. The misrepresentation of the department by the officer demoralizes the establishment of the organization. Furthermore, it brings down the trust of the community for the police; and hinder opposing relations between the police and the community; and escalation of dislike toward police, which can lead to an aggressive community (Wu, Smith & Sun, 2013). Blacks tend to have a dislike for law enforcement while Whites tend to be in for the police (Wu, Smith & Sun, 2013). The research will look at factors that influence the attitudes of the African-American community. The factors that will be the focus of this study will be mass media coverage of police conduct, neighborhood conduction (the level of crime in the neighborhood), and perception of officer behavior rather informal or formal when dealing with individuals in the community. Therefore, to close the gap between law enforcement and African-Americans relationship the factors that form police perception needs to be understood to handle challenges and opportunities to improve the issues in the black communities in which they serve (Vogel,
When police officers are perceived as being racially motivated, where certain groups of people are being targeted, it undermines the social goals of policing, weakens residents’ cooperation with police and raises questions about the legitimacy of law (Fagan & Davies, 2000). Supporters also back up this claim with statistics that show an association between racial/ethnic groups and crime (Harris, 2003). The arg...
In the early 1990’s in Los Angeles, California, police brutally was considered a norm in African Americans neighborhoods. News coverage ignores the facts of how African ...
According to Dr. Carl S. Taylor, the relationship between minority groups and police in the United States has historically been strained. Some cities have a deep and bitter history of bias and prejudice interwoven in their past relationships. The feeling in many communities today is that the system pits law enforcement as an occupying army versus the neighborhood. Dr. Taylor wrote about easing tensions between police and minorities, but stated “If there is any good news in the current situation, it is that the history of this strain has found the 1990’s ripe for change.
In 2014, the death of Eric Garner in New York City raised controversial conversations and highlighted the issues of race, crime, and policing in neighborhoods that tend to be poor and racially isolated. Garner, an unarmed black man, was killed after being tackled and held in a “chokehold.” According to the AP Polls in December 2014, “Police killings of unarmed blacks were the most important news stories of 2014.” The problem is that young black men are targeted by police officers in which they have responded with the misuse of force and policy brutality. It is evident that this issue affects many people nationwide. The civilians do not trust the police department and the justice system because they hold the perceptions that police officers are immune from prosecution despite their actions. In particular, black individuals, specifically black males, do not feel safe in the presence of police officers because they are not held accountable for their mistakes.
These authors’ arguments are both well-articulated and comprehensive, addressing virtually every pertinent concept in the issue of explaining racially disparate arrest rates. In The Myth of a Racist Criminal Justice System, Wilbanks insists that racial discrimination in the criminal justice system is a fabrication, explaining the over-representation of African Americans in arrest numbers simply through higher incidence of crime. Walker, Spohn and DeLone’s The Color of Justice dissents that not only are African Americans not anywhere near the disproportionate level of crime that police statistics would indicate, they are also arrested more because they are policed discriminately. Walker, Spohn and DeLone addi...
The criminal justice system is united under one basic law body, in which no racism is present. Personal beliefs and anecdotes prove nothing, the criminal justice system isn’t racist. Although it may seem African Americans are highly discriminated upon in the justice system, there is ample amounts of data to prove otherwise. The criminal justice system is united under one basic law body, in which no racism is present. The system is not to blame for the racial differences found in the United States criminal justice system. The racial issues found in the system are due to inner city isolation and common crime patterns involving drugs even if it may seem as if the system is racist.
The police officer may not have explicitly racist beliefs, nevertheless, may enact racist attitudes in an unconscious evaluation and responses. The police officer perceives the male black as a threat because of the implicit bias subconscious. Police officers have the cognitive to use negative stereotypes and unconsciously act on them, even when conflicts explicitly avow. Racial profiling by police officers is one of the primary concern and commonly used, implicit and explicit. Racial profiling has recently become decorous among law enforcement officers. “Some Americans believed that police engaged in racial profiling, and 69 percent disagreed with the practice” (Dempsey & Forst, 2015, p.243). Police officers have a lot of discretion in their jobs, and this particularly evident in traffic stops. If people don’t feel they can trust police officers, the relationship will deteriorate. All people, no matter what race have biases that lead to automatic behavior responses, we are more or less aware
The mass killings, theft, and overall violence has given a stressful tone to the police. The Los Angeles Police Department, explains how preventing gang violence within the inner-city communities is comparable to uncontrollable fires. This shows how murders and thefts are occurring often throughout gang involved cities is hard to prevent and do not have enough resources to resolve the crimes. Law enforcement agencies have been trying to employ a variety of ethnicities to provide a variety of officers. Julia Llewellyn, Telegraph UK, interviewed a African police officer and explains the struggles of being a minority police officer in London. Officer Pc Charles Kayode, admits that the black public is hostile which shows how the Africans are racist to the whites, as well. Kayode gets racist comments on duty, but does receive positive feedbacks. Besides protecting the community, the main priority is to rebuild relationships within the black communities. Gang members and many people see the police, as a threat. Therefore, the relationship between the police and minority groups are tough. However, to upscale the relationship, racial profiling has to be stopped. The media plays a role into the discrimination. Corliss L. Green, Ethnic Evaluation of Advertising: Interaction Effects of Strength of Ethnic I dentification, Media Placement, and Degree of Racial Composition explains
Racism within the Justice System. Living in the twenty first century, Americans would like to believe that they are living in the land of the free, where anyone and everyone can live an ordinary life without worrying that they will be arrested on the spot for doing absolutely nothing. The sad truth, with the evidence to prove it, is that this American Dream is not all that it appears to be. It has been corrupted and continues to be, everyday, by the racism that is in the criminal justice system of America. Racism has perpetuated the corruption of the criminal justice system from the initial stop, the sentencing in court, all the way to the life of an inmate in the prison.
Weitzer, Ronald, and Steven A. Tuch. "Race and Perceptions of Police Misconduct." JSTOR. Aug. 2004. Web. 19 Mar. 2015.
Race and crime is a major topic in today’s world because it is a highly debated subject and has a major impact on how society is today. Race and crime go hand in hand. No matter who commits a crime, there is always a race involved. With race and crime there are many stereotypes that come with the subject. Race and crime are both active matters in everyday life. It is everywhere. Social Media involves race and crime in practically anything. If one is active on say for example twitter, the point of twitter is to keep your followers interested by what you are showing them. There is a reason why the news opens up with the most violent crimes and twitter is no different. As a matter of fact any form of media grasps onto it. Another example would
People in their communities are having a tougher and tougher time putting faith into their law enforcement agencies. The cause of this largely due to the recent negative media portrayal of policemen. However, it is true that officers are not required to be trained in public relations to be qualified for the job. An example of this issue is the stereotype that police officers are racist and will write up anyone that is not from their ethnic background. And while this may be true for a few bad apples, the large majority of policemen are good, hardworking people. Philip Swarts writes about a meeting for the presidential task force in Washington where the concept of a better relationship between police officers and their community was highlighted. The mayor of Baltimore says in this meeting “Police ‘“need to learn more than logistics of policing but also the broader significance of their role in society,”’ (Swarts). Their role includes being more approachable and friendly in their environment. And this behavior is need now more than ever as the nation has become less trusting of our law enforcement in the recent years. “Police need better training to improve community relations and defuse the sorts of deadly, racially charged confrontations that have divided the nation for months.” (Swarts). The issue is not completely the officers fault either. Civic engagement in America has been in decline for several years now, so even with more training in public relations, officers might still run into a brick wall due to negative media. However, it does not matter how the media degrades our law enforcement as it is still their highest priority to protect and serve the people of this
Today, there are a lack of a sufficient amount of blacks in law enforcement. “Blacks are among the minority groups that is under-represented in policing” (Kringen 16). This evidence proves that there is a need for more blacks in the law enforcement ranks. “According the US Census Bureau, nationally blacks make up 13.6% of the population” (Kringen 16). “However, Reaves says that, Black
Protests around the world have taken place to fight for justice in the black community. The immense number of deaths of unarmed black men and women is a clear sign that they are more likely to be killed by police than white people. Physical violence and excessive use of force by the U.S. police towards African Americans are seen in the news regularly. “People, including police officers, hold strong implicit associations between blacks, and probably Hispanics, and weapons, crime and aggression," said Jack Glaser. Police brutality statistics show that African Americans are three times more likely to be murdered by cops than any other race. Racial disparity in the United States is a coherent reason for the increase of criminal injustice in the United
When it comes to the public opinion of police officers, different ethnics groups have a different perspective on police. Being an African American, police are just people who abuse their authority and feel they are above the law. Most police officers do not have a citizen’s best interest and always play to be the victim. They lie on events that have