Race and Law Enforcement Research Paper

Predictably, due to the high incidence of crime in such regions, they have been flooded by police activities, thus creating tensions between the police and African Americans. Some critics blame the high incidence of police violence towards African Americans in such communities on the behavior and the attitudes of the African Americans themselves. According to them, the many incidences of black on black violence in these neighborhoods validate the influx of police activities. This perception is undeniably flawed because it fails to recognize the role of the white population, and other majority groups in the propagation of crime among the minority groups. This paper will thus analyze why the police should be more careful when dealing racial issues, and why it is wrong for the white community to entirely blame African American for the increased police activity in their homes.

Propagating the idea that most of the African Americans are criminals is no less than spreading prejudicial notions. Indeed, less than five percent of African Americas engage in criminal activities. Of those who participate, the reasons are generally greatly misunderstood. For instance, in many African American neighborhoods, children are raised by broken families (LaFree). The rates of poverty in these areas are also notably higher than in predominantly white communities. These conflicts typically paint the police negatively, and as a result, it is necessary for the police to solve issues involving minority groups with more care and attention. When conducting their operations, the police should always ensure that the core human decency is observed whenever they discharge their activities. They should develop programs that aim to improve the whole community rather than targeting individual criminals.

This process entails the promotion of measure that fixes the most common problems that affect African American neighborhoods to minimize the number of people who will ultimately engage in crime. Additionally, government services should be mobilized and provided in to make the standards of living in these neighborhoods to improve. The minority communities feel more engaged in the activities of the police if they are actively included in situations that directly affect them (Van Maanen 70). This will help in the fulfillment of the duties of the police. Promoting the input of the public is an effective way of eliminating the notions of racial prejudice when conducting operations. The police force should have an active community policy for its function to be effectively integrated into those of the community.

A sound community policy ensures that all the activities of the police are conducted in association with the approval of the community. It has been a cause of concern that the police usually respond to call from majority populations promptly, while for calls made in predominantly African American neighborhoods, the police hardly respond. Such claims have undeniably furthered the tensions between the police and minority groups such as African Americans. All the cases handled by the police should always follow the procedural rules (Zehr 70). When cases concerning African Americans are treated differently, tensions are bound to arise. The police should also desist from any utterances that may criticize the minority groups in one way or another. Undeniably adequate security can only be achieved when both the majority and minority racial groups coexist.