7 Arguments to RACIAL PROFILING: Is it a Bad Idea?

Top 7 Arguments Against Racial Profiling

Racial Profiling Doesn't Work

• black suspects were no more likely to actually have drugs or illegal weapons in their cars than white suspects.
• According to the Public Health Service, approximately 70% of drug users are white, 15% are black, and 8% are Latino. But the Department of Justice reports that among those imprisoned on drug charges, 26% are white, 45% are black, and 21% are Latino.

Racial Profiling Distracts Law Enforcement Agencies From More Useful Approaches

• Focus on suspicious behavior leads to more arrests than focus on race.
• The increase in arrests on suspicious behavior alone is 24%.

Racial Profiling Prevents Police From Serving The Entire Community

• The message is sent to the community that whites can be more trusted and Blacks and Latinos are seen as criminals.
• Having a poor raporte' with the community makes preventing crime almost impossible.

Racial profiling prevents communities from working with law enforcement.

• This connects with the prior argument.
• The community won't come to you and report crime if they know you already have a biased and narrow-minded focus on certain people.
• Racial profiling sabotages community policing efforts, and offers nothing useful in return.

Racial Profiling is against the 14th Amendment

• It is clearly stated in our United States Constitution that no state may "deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
• By searching Latinos ad Blacks more often, Whites less often, there are unequal protection of the community.

Racial Profiling will likely escalate into riots and racially-motivated violence

• Refer to Rodney KingRodney King case.
• By having a lower standard of evidence to take police action against Latinos and Blacks, police brutality and over-exertion of power is greatly heightened.
• Reports of suspicious deaths involving unarmed Latino and black suspects trickle out of our nation's major cities on a regular basis.

Racial Profiling is Morally Wrong

• Racial profiling is Jim Crow applied as a law enforcement policy.
• It creates a world where Blacks and Latinos are remain in as segregated and second-class citizens.

Looks Like The Enemy

Of the 19 hijackers who directly instigated the September 11th attacks, 15 hailed from Saudi Arabia, three from the United Arab Emirates, and one from Lebanon.

Our reaction? Build simple prejudices. WE built into our laws additional airline security for Arabs boarding airlines...the additional scrutiny really made us more secure! (sarcasm aside)

A Dangerous and Unconstitutional Approach

As we racially profiled Middle Easterners, it decreased attention to other passengers. That's great news for non-Arabian terrorists!

A Pathway to Abuse

The popular anti-Arabian sentiment and racially profiling against them has spread like wildfire across America. It has affected those who oppose the Iraqi War from coming into our country and has impacted a wide range of decisions.

Even those Arabians trying out for a football team may find themselves discriminated against!