Choose Your Course of Action Wisely

By: Salena Tiet

            

In class recently, we have discussed how racial profiling is used within law enforcement agencies. Although public law enforcement officers cannot legally rely on race or ethnicity as a major factor to stop, question, or arrest an individual, statistics show that aggressive stop rates in cities such as New York are still disproportionately centered on African American and Latino young men. In theory, many agree racialized policing is unconstitutional and unfair to those being overpoliced, yet these practices still occur.

            

In large part, these practices are induced by the market forces, fear, politics, and bureaucratic forces Professor Musheno discussed in class. For example, politicians exploit fear of crime and drugs to generate support for practices, such as pretextual traffic stops and stop and frisk, which constitute institutionalized racism. In Whren v. US, the Supreme Court held that an officer can execute a stop as long as he or she has reasonable cause to stop the car because of a traffic violation. However, nothing prevents the police officer from using traffic stops as a mere pretext to obtain other evidence without probable cause. Amidst all societal preconceptions and stereotypes such as the welfare queen, foreign terrorist, and illegal immigrant, minority groups inevitably fear disproportionate policing and marginalization.

            

Consider this example. On Monday, April 15^th, two bombs, planted near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, exploded, killing three bystanders and injuring one hundred and seventy six other runners and spectators according to Fox News. USA Today reports that President Barack Obama and Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel immediately labeled this attack terrorism. Many anti-Muslim social media posts surfaced holding Muslims responsible for the bombing. A New York Post article even reported that the police detained a Saudi national, who appeared at a hospital after the bombing, and searched his apartment. Failing to find any evidence, the police released him. The article has since been pulled off the internet. Such tragic and highly publicized events unavoidably create hysteria and panic. There is immense pressure on law enforcement agencies to identify and apprehend the culprits responsible for such heinous crimes. However, public law enforcement officials cannot rely on global assumptions that a particular race is more likely to commit a crime. They must only use particularized information to narrow down a field of suspects and target investigations to uphold their legitimacy. I personally find racialized policing extremely interesting and would like to hear other opinions and thoughts regarding these practices. Does anyone particularly agree or disagree with these racialized justifications?