Racial Profiling by Police Essay - 1502 Words

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. -- Martin Luther King, Jr. In a perfect world, everyone WOULD be judged based on the content of their character. But we do not live in a perfect world and humans have always pre-judged others based on physical and cultural differences. These are the first things we notice about a stranger, and first impressions are hard to forget. Racism and prejudice have caused us to make dire mistakes in the past, but we have learned from these mistakes and have bettered our society. However, society today is filled with stereotypes and prejudices about people of certain races. It†¦show more content†¦A warrant is issued when there is enough evidence to reasonably doubt an individual’s innocence. By not getting a warrant, a law enforcement officer is going off of his own personal assumption that someone may be guilty. With racial profiling, police are using skin color to not only justify their suspicion, but to define it. They have no logical reason to pull over African-Americans more often than whites other than the fact that they are black. Profiling distracts law enforcement from real threats. In 2002, profilers for the DC sniper case described the suspect as being an â€Å"angry white male† when in fact the killers were two African-American men that were actually pulled over but let go because they did not fit the profile (Buchanan). Assuming that serial killers are white males is one of the many stereotypes that blind law enforcement in catching a criminal. A vague description such as a â€Å"white male† limits the search to only people of that profile, and the police would only focus on that one characteristic. It is a shame that the real killers were actually pulled over at one time, but just because they weren’t the right â€Å"color† meant that they were automatically ruled out. If the police focused on facial expressions and suspicious behaviors, maybe these killers would have beenShow MoreRelatedRacial Profiling by Police Essay1259 Words   |  6 Pages    There are many types of racism in America that cause people to make accusations against law enforcement for discrimination. One type of racism is racial profiling. It is a strategy that encourages police officers to stop and question minorities only because of their race. It takes place in a variety of routine police encounters. Unmotivated searches occur everyday among the minority groups. Could you imagine waking up and being scared to walk outside your house because of the color ofRead MorePolice Brutality And Racial Profiling1343 Words   |  6 PagesThe use of police brutality and racial profiling is an unfortunate part of today’s society that needs to be addressed. 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