Racism And The Criminal Justice System - 1190 Words

Introduction In today’s American society much of the issues incurred are centered on racism or racial discrimination encompassing crime and the criminal justice system. A vast majority of the issues in the criminal justice system relate to race, ethnicity, or economic class and captures actions by legislators, the policies of the police, and the practices of the courts. In 2009 alone, African American males accounted for 6.7 times more incarceration rates than whites in both state and federal penitentiaries, largely due to the U.S. drug laws. In 2010, legislators of the State of Arizona required the local police to verify the immigration status of anyone based on mere suspicion, which leads to ethnic profiling of Hispanics and lawsuits for the laws’ constitutionality. The notion that the police conduct traffic stops and racially profile based on skin color and not the law being broken, as well as the statistics of prosecutors offering better plea deals based on class, o r Judges sentencing people of color more harshly, all yield a feeling of injustice for minorities and a fear of crime for whites (Walker, Spohn, Delone, 2012). The American society has tremendously grown in terms of being multiracial and multiethnic according to the 2008 census, which found that 65.4% of Americans identified as white, 12.1% as Black or African-American, 1% Native American, with 0.3% as Asian or Pacific Islander, and 2.5% identifying with Hispanic ethnicity. Recent data concluded thatShow MoreRelatedRacism And The Criminal Justice System1739 Words   |  7 PagesWith so many news stories and incidents surrounding the topic of race and the police these days, it is not surprising for people to come to the conclusion that racism may exist within the criminal justice system. We will be taking a deeper look into the problem to find out what other possible determinants may play a role in deciding how an officer makes an arrest or stop and continue to analyze what is happ ening in those contexts. The issues surrounding the topic of race is like the two faces ofRead MoreRacism : The Criminal Justice System1040 Words   |  5 PagesBagley PLS 213 American Federal Government-Online 25th November 2015 Racism in Our Criminal Justice System There are many different types of unlawful racism in the criminal justice system. It goes from back in the early part of our great nation’s birth to the killing of Martin Luther King Jr. to Ferguson, Missouri. The path that racism takes is from old time’s point of view. The way to clear up racism in our criminal justice system is simple and easy. Americans need to fully understand the idea ofRead MoreRacism in the Criminal Justice System Essay1276 Words   |  6 PagesIs the Criminal Justice system racist? This question has been asked many times by people of many colors. According to Mac Donald (2008), the criminal justice system is not at all racist. The article depicts arrest rates of both whites and blacks and compares statistics on these arrests. It looks at the number of whites and the number of blacks in jails and prisons. In this critique, we will be looking into this article to see these points in which Mac Donald states proves that the criminal justiceRead M oreRacism And The American Criminal Justice System1584 Words   |  7 Pagesover-represented in the criminal justice system, but under-represented politically in the United States of America. Since well before its inception in 1776, the United States of America has been a nation characterized by white supremacy. In fact, modern day America may not exist if not for the taking of land from the Indigenous Peoples on this very premise. Today, many Americans believe they live in a post-racial nation, citing the abolition of slavery in the 1860s. While racism has certainly beenRead MoreRacism in the Criminal Justice System Essay1208 Words   |  5 PagesAfrican Americans suffer from economic, psychological, political and social exploitation at the hands of powerful Whites in this country. As a result of this exploitation, Black people usually are put into situations where the commission of a criminal act is often seen as the most effective resolution to their problems. Most Caucasia ns, however, will probably never understand the predicament in which most Black find themselves. Stolen from our homeland and then forced to work under the most miserableRead More Racism in the Criminal Justice System Essay6900 Words   |  28 PagesRacism in police treatment of minorities has created great disparities in incarceration amongst the races. Blatant cases of racist law enforcement that are covered in the  news are a testament to the fact that racism within police departments exists from coast to coast. However, these are only the cases that people find out about; there are countless other cases of police racism and brutality that are not reported. A series of reports that have been published in the last few years have shown thatRead MoreRacism And The Criminal Justice System2409 Words   |  10 PagesIs there segregation and unfairness in the criminal justice system? When we as people watch the news or read our newspapers, we can see that most of the criminals committing crimes are usually of African American or Hispanic descent. Society today even depicts people of color as criminals in all novels and comic books while white characters play the victim. It may seem as if the media only focuses on the crimes and pettiness involved with black people. What are included for Blacks to be more requiredRead MoreRacism And The United States Criminal Justice System Essay2200 Words   |  9 PagesThere is a very evident problem with racism in the United States Criminal Justice System. Society chooses to ignore this problem because many do not think they are a part of it. What they do not understand is they are a part of society, therefore a part of the problem. Even if a particular person is not doing anything to cause this problem directly, they are not helping the situation either. Society has to become aware of this issue and stop pretending as though it is something that will go awayRead MoreThe Criminal Justice System Has Served As A Focal Point Of Much Of Societal Racism993 Words   |  4 Pageswhite† (Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)). These studies propose that while criminal behavior cuts across race and class lines, the common response to these behaviors may significantly influence the course of a potential criminal career. Decisions concerning the most effective balance of responses by law enforcement, social services, and community intervention are critical in determining many of these outcomes. Bias within the criminal justice Historically, the criminal justice system has served asRead MoreDisparity and Discrimination Essay790 Words   |  4 PagesMany different situations occur within the criminal justice system. The situations that will be discussed in this essay are Pseudospeciation, bigotry vs. racism, hegemony, social construction, and disparity vs. discrimination. There will be definition on these terms. After defining the all terms, I will apply these terms to the criminal justice system using examples to illustrate the understanding of the definitions. Pseudospeciation Pseudospeciation begins with the fact that cultural differences