Policing and Discrimination in the Developed Nations

Prejudice and policing have now become a very contentious issue within the developed world. Many individuals, particularly in minority populations, believe that prejudice is embedded within the policing environment. Stereotypes and racial profiling are perceived to be rampant. Examples exist of individuals unarmed being shot to death be police officers. Police officers themselves are now much more fearful of doing their duty in society as they fear retaliation. This creates an interesting dynamic between prejudice and the overall policing environment.

Both prejudice and policing intersect each through constant interaction and communication. Law enforcement involves communication. Body language, tone, and speech all impact the manner in which law enforcement interacts with the population at large. In many instances officers vary their tone depending on race or perception. Studies have shown that police officers tend to be more aggressive in their tone and behavior when interacting with African America constituents. Likewise, officers often are less aggressive with their white counterparts. Many believe that racial stereotypes are the reason for this dichotomy. African-Americans are disproportionately incarcerated relative to their racial peers. African-Americans are often more likely to be placed in jail, while also having the least likelihood of graduating high school. Law enforcement is therefore tempted to make mental shortcuts when ascertaining a particular circumstance or situation. They assume that the minority individuals (Hispanic, African-American) are at fault when a contentious issue arises. They exhibit prejudice tendencies, which manifest themselves in their tone and overall behavior towards minorities.

Prejudice often leads to a discriminatory mindset on the part of law enforcement. As stated earlier, human beings make mental shortcuts to arrive at decisions. These mental shortcuts often prove correct in day-to-day life. For example, if an individual observes clouds and thunderstorms, he or she may assume that it's going to rain. It's a mental shortcut based on hindsight bias. The same applies to policing and their discrimination towards others. However, these mental shortcuts often prove to wrong and costly for all parties involved. A common example is that young Hispanics, with nice vehicles are drug dealers. Likewise an African-American dressed with urban clothes, is a drug dealer. These stereotypes are often perpetuated in popular media and society. However, as it relates to policing they lead to uninformed decisions. This is particularly true in the African-American community where Sandra Bland, died while under police custody, and Travon Martin was shot and killed while unarmed. These situations are becoming more and more common as prejudice continues to creep into the policing and law enforcement culture. Simple aspects such as traffic stops are disproportionately towards African-American males, further exacerbating the problem.