Racial Dynamic of Police Essay

Since 2015, data collected by the Washington Post has shown that use of lethal force by the police has seen many Blacks falling victims. According to the United States census estimates, the Blacks makes up of 13% of the American population. However, 26% of those killed in 2015 by police shooting were Blacks. The percentage dropped to 24 % in the year 2016 (The Society Pages, 2018). This data shows that police shooting in the United States has a racial basis and it emanates from racial prejudices lack of racial inclusivity in the police force. I, therefore believe that there should be diversification in the police force to reduce racial problems towards the minorities and hatred towards police.

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Incidences of police killings of unarmed black civilians have been on the rise from late 2014. These killings have made the world and United States citizens question the countries institutions and allegiances, and this has been made worse by the few black people working in the police force (Hall, Hall, & Perry, 2016). The contention over the racial bias influence against black people in the shootings became a point of discussion among many people. The conflict between the "Black," who is the unarmed black male civilians and the law enforcement ("Blue"), has had a significant impact in these incidences. As a result, the police-civilian partnership has weakened over the years, and instead of the minorities feeling protected, they feel threatened by the police officers (Fryer, 2016). There have been existing stereotypes that explain racial differences in the use of force by police.

Black people have been viewed as subhuman within the American society which has been one of the reasons for the police shootings. This was suggested by the use of the slogan, "Black Lives Matter," which became trending between 2014 and 2015 in civil demonstrations (Hall, Hall, & Perry, 2016). Studies have shown that historically, blacks have been dehumanized in the United States culture. Also, Blacks have also been viewed as superhuman (Fryer, 2016). In this stereotypic view, they are perceived to possess supernatural physical and mental qualities (Hall, Hall, & Perry, 2016). Consequently, police officers holding this view may justify the extreme use of force against Black males.

According to experiments conducted on "shooter bias," it has been concluded that there exist racial stereotypes against the black people in the context of shooter bias (Fryer, 2016). In the experiment, computer stimulated white targets or Black targets are the targets of the shooting. The participants make a quick decision whether to shoot or not shoot either of the races. The study shows that participants shot more black people as compared to Whites (Hall, Hall, & Perry, 2016). This study proofs that police may act on these stereotypes without conscious awareness.

Conclusion

In conclusion, police shootings in the United States and the use of lethal force can only be stopped by embracing people of all race and diversifying the police force. This will make the minorities feel represented and will cooperate with a person of their race. Diversification will also reduce police-civilian confrontation which usually ends up with life being lost as people from all walks of life can find it easy to express their concerns to people who have first-hand experience.

References

Fryer, R. (2016). An Empirical Analysis of Racial Differences in Police Use of Force. doi:10.3386/w22399

Hall, A. V., Hall, E. V., & Perry, J. L. (2016). Black and blue: Exploring racial bias and law enforcement in the killings of unarmed black male civilians. American Psychologist, 71(3), 175-186. doi:10.1037/a0040109

The Society Pages. (2018, March 1). POLICE KILLING OF BLACKS: Data for 2015, 2016, 2017, and first half of 2018 - Sociology Toolbox. Retrieved from https://thesocietypages.org/toolbox/police-killing-of-blacks/. Accessed 30 August 2018.