Racial Profiling AFAM/WMST 2020 Valdosta State University

Discussing Racial Profiling Chundra Williams Sherron Edgerton Manuela Passos Chiquita Bryant

Racial Profiling- The practice by police of considering a person’s race or ethnicity in detaining suspects or making traffic stops.  How the media portrays Racial Profiling  Is it a crime to be Black and licensed to drive  The Justice Dept. & Racial Profiling  Real Life

Media Blackface  Racial Profiling- The discriminatory practice.  Failure to acknowledge own practice of media racial profiling.  Over representation of the # of African Americans.  Issues defined in blackface and subjected to racial profiling.  Study by the Reagan, Bush, & Clinton Administration.  Racial profiling as an instrument of modern media.

Driving While Black  Black and Hispanics are searched more often than White drivers.  Reports show that Whites carry more drugs than minorities.  Skin color makes one a suspect in America.  Skin color makes you more likely to be stopped, searched, arrested, and imprisoned in America.  Thousands of innocent motorists are victims of racial profiling on America’s highways.  A statistical survey shows that Black drivers are issued more citations by State Troopers in dozens of counties.

What part does the Justice Department play in Racial Profiling?  Attorney General, John Ashcroft John Ashcroft  Views of ACLU  Views of Congressional Black Caucus  FACT: A Justice Department report issued last fall found that most of those facing federal capital prosecutions have been either African Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans or of Pacific Island Origins. Of those on federal death row, 81 percent are people of color.

Real Life Experiences  Rodney King,  Abner Louima,  Amadou Diallo, 1999.

What to do in a Racial Profiling Situation What to do in a Racial Profiling Situation  Stay calm & relaxed  Never run  Do not reach for anything  Always leave hands in officers view  Take mental notes of the day, time, officer’s name and shield number  Don’t argue  It is your right to refuse a car search

Racial Profiling in 1999  Is Racial Profiling widespread?

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