Essay On Racial Profiling
Prof. Audrey Breay
RWS 92B
April 6, 2011
Racial Profiling in Our Society
People of color get pulled over more than white people. Is it because the people of color are all criminals or because the police are getting lazier? people who use racial profiling usually have a negative perception or judgment about African Americans. Racial profiling is a hot subject in the world today. Racial profiling is a fact of life for many Americans today, and I for one think it’s sad. Authors Ahmed Rehab and Randall Kennedy both comment on the negative impact that racial profiling has on society today in America. These authors helped me to see the reason why racial profiling is still used, but at the same time they helped to confirm my position on why racial …show more content…
Yes it may save time and prevent some crimes, but what about the people in between catching the suspect? Nobody cares if they are getting harassed and wrongfully accused (501-2). Kennedy also notices some of the other negative impacts of racial profiling. He uses a quote from a black political leader to show this negative social attitude. “There is nothing more painful to me at this age in my life,” Jesse Jackson said in 1993 , “than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start to think about robbery and then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved”(501). So if the advocate of colored people is tricked into thinking that African Americans are bad as a result of the popular trend of racial profiling, imagine the impact that racial profiling has on the average American citizen. These people are taught to profile every person they see because it will protect them from being hurt or harassed. Later on in the essay Kennedy states, “Individuals should be judged by public authorities on the basis of their own conduct and not on the basis of racial generalization”(502). This statement helps to show how racial profiling is wrong because it’s not based on a way a persons acts or behaves. Based on my personal experience I agree with this
RWS 92B
April 6, 2011
Racial Profiling in Our Society
People of color get pulled over more than white people. Is it because the people of color are all criminals or because the police are getting lazier? people who use racial profiling usually have a negative perception or judgment about African Americans. Racial profiling is a hot subject in the world today. Racial profiling is a fact of life for many Americans today, and I for one think it’s sad. Authors Ahmed Rehab and Randall Kennedy both comment on the negative impact that racial profiling has on society today in America. These authors helped me to see the reason why racial profiling is still used, but at the same time they helped to confirm my position on why racial …show more content…
Yes it may save time and prevent some crimes, but what about the people in between catching the suspect? Nobody cares if they are getting harassed and wrongfully accused (501-2). Kennedy also notices some of the other negative impacts of racial profiling. He uses a quote from a black political leader to show this negative social attitude. “There is nothing more painful to me at this age in my life,” Jesse Jackson said in 1993 , “than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start to think about robbery and then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved”(501). So if the advocate of colored people is tricked into thinking that African Americans are bad as a result of the popular trend of racial profiling, imagine the impact that racial profiling has on the average American citizen. These people are taught to profile every person they see because it will protect them from being hurt or harassed. Later on in the essay Kennedy states, “Individuals should be judged by public authorities on the basis of their own conduct and not on the basis of racial generalization”(502). This statement helps to show how racial profiling is wrong because it’s not based on a way a persons acts or behaves. Based on my personal experience I agree with this