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Institutional Racism In The Criminal Justice System

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Racism is an ongoing issue which had been taking place for centuries. Racism can take various forms, direct, indirect, individual or institutional. Institutional racism however, has been questioned frequently recently in light of criminal justice system, especially and more noticeably in the US now, where many believe the police is treating/handling black people unfairly comparing to other ethnic groups. According to Macpherson (1999) institutional racism is where organisation does not provide appropriate service due to someone’s colour, culture or ethnic origin, and can take form of racial discrimination in forms of attitudes, behaviours and processes. Macpherson developed this definition when undertaking an inquiry of Stephen Lawrence, a black child who was murdered …show more content…

Stop and search is just one of the methods used by the police in order to draw out any suspicion of deviance. Black and other ethnic minority groups tend to however, be the most frequent target of this practice, this especially shows the institutional racism side of criminal justice system. The police service of England and Wales has the right to stop and search anyone if there is a suspicion. Section 60 of Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994, and the Section One of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 cover some frequent stop and search powers used by the police. Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act allows police to stop and search for any offensive weapons or harmful equipment which are intended to harm, this act however, allows to stop and search without any reasonable suspicion. The Section One of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act, similarly, allows to stop and search for any prohibited items as such, however, this act allows the police to search however, only if there are reasonable grounds for suspicion for possession of those

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One example of institutionalized racism that was demonstrated in 13th is the mass incarcerations of minorities. I think it is a problem not only because there is a disproportionate amount of minorities but also because people do not realize this is happening. It is institutionalized racism because after being in prison these minorities cannot vote or get a job and therefore puts them at a disadvantage. I think getting people to realize this problem is the first step to address it but I am not sure what should happen next.

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Americans will. Institutional racism is a type of racism expressed by institutions, or social groups. Even though the Unions rules regarding seniority has nothing to do with race it can still be viewed as a form of institutional racism against African Americans, because the union is majority is white. Therefore whites are going to have more power when it comes to making decisions then what African It’s not fair for African Americans because they are the minority not the majority so their chances of having sonority are slim because there will always be someone in front of them. Also the unions predominantly white so the rule of seniority and ability to make decisions sway in their favor, not the African Americans.

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One’s earliest exposure to the concept of racism was through learning about how African Americans were once slaves to White people and were treated under awful conditions. However, even though this is true Daniel Tatum expresses that racism can also be defined as “... a system involving cultural messages and institutional policies and practices as well as the beliefs and actions of individuals (Tatum, 1999, p. 7). Racism is categorized as a system that will allow one race to suffer a disadvantage in many aspects of life while another race will have more advantages. Just like back then today, Whites are the superior race that receives various advantages thus resulting in people of color being treated differently and having unequal opportunities in life (Tatum, 1999). White people will most likely be treated better, talked to with more respect, and receive a greater number of opportunities.

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On September 26,2016 the first presidential debate commences between Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. One of the topics that was extensively debated on was the Criminal Justice system and the issue of systemic racism in this country. Donald Trump took the stance of Law and Order in order to solve the issue that are prevalent in our society today. In contrast, Hillary Clinton approach was one of Criminal Justice Reform. By analyzing the candidate’s responses in relation to outside reliable sources we can the verify which running mate is truthful.

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Centuries of institutionalized racism have created inequality throughout various aspects of American life - from education to employment opportunities, housing, healthcare access, and criminal justice. The movement emerged as a response to widespread incidents of violence targeting unarmed black people, particularly those killed by law enforcement officers. These acts often went unchecked due to the biased systems favoring white suspects over black ones during investigations by unethical people.

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1.The theory/concept of intersectionality is a theory centered around oppression, domination and discrimination through various mediums from the social and cultural elements of society. The theory can be applied in many ways toward women as well as their involvement in the criminal justice system. Some forms of discrimination that is more prevalent in perceiving the individual is using a woman's status, race, sexual orientation, ability and age, however there can be more added to this list. The wiki article said “The theory proposes that we should think of each element or trait of a person as inextricably linked with all of the other elements in order to fully understand one's identity.”

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The differences between institutional racism and individual racism are stark and clearly defined. Institutional racism is prejudice on a large a scale, usually in regard to a company or institution. It’s not hard to find examples of institutional, the United States government provides man different instances for consideration. Segregation is a huge example of intuitional racism, as there were many laws put in place with the purpose of keeping ethnic groups, aside from white people, from getting opportunities to obtain power or social standing. More recently the war on drugs was a political policy put in place in order to target specific ethnic groups.

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One case that relates to this flaw in the criminal justice system would be the Floyd v. City of New York. The date that this case was filed was on January 31, 2008 by David Floyd, David Ourlicht, Lalit Clarkson and Deon Dennis. This case challenged the New York Police Department’s (NYPD) practices of racial profiling and seeing whether or not the stop and frisk policy is unconstitutional. The clients represents thousands of black and Hispanic New Yorkers who have been stopped for no reason (according to the clients).

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It’s unfortunate that even in today’s society that institutional racism is something that happens in the everyday life of many people, especially minorities such as African Americans and Hispanics. Koppelman (2014) defines institutional racism as “establish laws, customs, and practices that systematically reflect and produce racial inequities in American society” (Koppelman, 2014, p. 189). One example of where institutional racism is prevalent is in standardized testing in schools. There has always been a question of whether standardized testing, in particular the SAT’s, have been fair to minority students. Even though the SAT board feels that the test has been researched to include questions that give students from different races and

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An officer may only be allowed to search a person 's personal belongings if their reasoning is associated with a lawful arrest and if they have a probable cause to search (Matthews). After it being a huge deal in New York, other cities and states began embracing the use of stop-and-frisk as it began growing around the United States. In the 1950s police officials in other cities took up, and expanded, the stop-and-search tactics by using the LAPD to embrace the theory of crime

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One of the greatest challenges law enforcement are facing is providing effective policing for minority communities. Some factors that prevent minorities from gaining access to justice or being taken advantage of certain criminal justice services are language barriers, racial stereotyping, and cultural differences. Since the 30 's and 40 's, and even during the 60 's, civil rights activists damaged the police-minority relations in the United States, believing that police only interest are protecting white communities. A big explanation of why there 's a poor police-minority relations in the United States is racism on the part of the individual officers. Many minorities in the United States have continued to complain about being treated more harshly than whites and the Department of Justice believes that racial profiling and police discrimination will continue to be a big problem.

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Prison is the last place Bigger dreamed he would end up. The road to this prison was paved by the side effects of the racism he had dealt with in his life. The psychological effects of racism on African Americans consistently pave a road that ends in incarceration. Bigger shows that these effects can affect his self – worth, inhibit social interactions, and change the way he sees himself. The book foreshadowed the consequences of racism on Bigger 's psyche from the beginning with the apartment scene.

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For years now there has been a lot of controversy involving the looming question: Is the criminal justice system racist? Racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one 's own race is superior. Ever since the Trayvon Martin case of 2012, the justice system has been in a complete downfall including all of the police brutality cases since then also. According to sources, 1 of every 4 African American males born this decade are expected to go to prison in their lifetime. Census Bureau reports that the U.S. is 13 percent percent black, 61 percent white, and 17 percent latino.

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Pre-existing beliefs of ethnic minorities from the media, police sub-culture or other micro-level influences mean that ethnic minorities are more likely to be stopped by the police than white people in an occupational culture where targeting is encouraged (see Cashmore, 2001; Bowling et al, 2008). Such targeting mandates are guided by discretion and are likely to become entrenched in the structural policies of the police. It is in such a situation that institutional racism finds its expression. Oakley (1999, p.290) defines the term as ‘the way institutions or organizations may systematically treat, or tend to treat, people differently in respect of "race"’. When such patterns of ill-treatment are repeated continuously, they take on a ‘rule-like status’ and cannot be easily disrupted (see Haney-Lopez 2000, p. 1723).

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But I love my skin. Because I love being a woman. Because not hating myself as a black woman is considered radical. Because I’ve been called a racist for defending myself. Because all the major protests are for cis black men.

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