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Social Activism and Data Analysis
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 bias policing can be categorized as institutional discrimination, which means that the justice system is explicitly targeting certain people and certain races or ethnicities or any other form of minority. For this particular assessment, I‘ll look at the matter of institutional racism in the criminal justice system. In the paper, I will identify sources of racism and ethnicity within the justice system, evaluate a number of methods applied by institutional discrimination against minorities, and compare a number of policy options for decreasing racism. Mitigating prejudices inside the somewhat enigmatic criminal justice system has the potential of setting up a fair and inclusive society that ensures everyone’s equal treatment when dealing with the justice system.
Central Tenet of Institution Inequality
The criminal justice system in the United States of America is ‘color-blind’; it is claimed that everyone is treated the same under the law. However, various academic works indicate that institutionalized discrimination is present, especially against Black people. The author Durante, while writing in 2020, notes that African Americans are incarcerated at a rate 5. 1 times that of Whites. This can be attributed to the SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 racism in society, whereby policies and activities of the criminal justice system have an impact on colored populations in a negative way.
Baldwin and McNeal (2021), for instance, pointed out that the evidence indicates that despite research controlling for variables like prior criminal records, seriousness of offense, and socioeconomic status, Blacks are sentenced more harshly than Whites (Smith et al., 2021 ).
This can be seen in the example of drug offenses: Blacks are overrepresented in arrests for drug offenses, while their rate is the same as whites in terms of drug consumption (Vo, 2020).
Data Analysis to Make Social Inferences
The following are some of the plausible sociological conclusions that one can derive from research articles concerning the central theme of institutional injustice in the criminal justice system:
Blacks’ Overrepresentation
Let me come up with one sociological inference: the higher number of black people incarcerated points towards the fact that this is due to racism and discrimination from the police and other authorities. In the concern to internal offenses, various research investigations have revealed that Blacks are arrested, convicted, and imprisoned more than Whites or any other color. For instance, Eriksson (2019) noted that the incarcerations of black men outstrip that of whites in the course of the study. This means that theories such as systemic racism and discriminative policies in the criminal justice system have higher validity as far as the perpetration of institutional racism is concerned.
Use of Force
The other SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 social inference that can be made is that the incidence of force used by the police against Black persons was a result of racially motivated prejudice. Research shows that police are more likely to use violence on Blacks than on Whites, causing increased deaths within the Blacks. This implies that racism and biases in law enforcement agencies as an institution support and enhance institutionalized discrimination. For instance, Edwards et al. (2019) noted that police officers are inclined towards using force on Black people compared to other races, hence the increased mortality and injuries in black societies.
Factors Contributing to Racial Disparities
There are various reasons why disparities are witnessed in the criminal justice system, and these are pegged on individuals’ race and ethnicity. Outlined below are some of the broad causes of such disparities.
Implicit Bias and Stereotyping
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 consequence of and a significant factor influencing race and ethnic disparities in the criminal justice system is Systematic(a) racism. Several studies show the effects of what is often called implicit prejudice—subtle discrimination in favor of or against people based on their race or ethnicity. For example, Lundberg et al. (2018) observed that participants who demonstrated prejudice towards Blacks would be more willing to perceive items with ambiguous use as utilizing more force when held by Blacks rather than Whites.
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 Legal Limited Resources
This is also a significant reason why racial and cultural minorities fail to receive adequate legal help in criminal courts. The studies also show that due to the lack of financial capabilities, mainly because the population under concern is people of color, such persons cannot afford an attorney to represent them, which in turn leads to undesirable outcomes in the criminal justice process. For instance, Zane et al., in their cross-sectional study published in 2020, found that defendants who were defended by public defenders received longer and more severe sentences than those who hired (private) attorneys.
Economic Inequality
There is evidence that points to a stable indication of the fact that SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 economic disparities contribute to racism in the criminal justice system. First, arrest, conviction, and imprisonment are conformities that are more often endorsed by low-income people, who have a higher likelihood of being people of color. For instance, Van (2022) demonstrated the level of economic inequality in a particular race arrested for crimes by the police.
Policies Linked to Racial Disparities Within the Criminal Justice System
It can be seen that there are realistic connections between the ways in which the racial disparities in the criminal justice system are associated or can be affiliated with or linked in a number of ways to public policies. These policies had developed out of racism and have institutional racism, which has resulted in unfair treatment of people of color in criminal justice.
War on Drugs
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 Drugs refers to the series of policies that have been designed to fight the use of drugs and drug-related crimes, which has affected the racial and ethnic diversity of the criminal justice system. Research has revealed that drug laws and policies have affected people of color in a very pathetic way as compared to white people, where issues to do with drug use, possession, and dealing have involved more people of color as compared to white men. For instance, in the study conducted by Champlain et al. (2020), Black people were arrested for drug offenses more than white people thought they used drugs in equal ratios.
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
These policies force a judge to sentence a particular crime in most. It means a lengthy sentence for a disadvantaged person. Jenkins further notes that mandatory minimum sentencing has particularly affected persons of color as more are imprisoned and get more extended periods of imprisonment. For instance, Smith et al. (2021) unveiled the result that Black people were given longer prison terms for offenses than White people despite the offense level.
Racial Profiling
A form of policing known as racial profiling, whereby individuals are arrested based on their color, has been condemned for social harm to people of color. Several empirical studies have established that racial profiling has escalated rates of arrest and imprisonment among people of color, as well as brutal encounters with the police.
Impacts of Discrimination on Minorities
Minorities have been victims severely due to racism institutionalized in the legal mechanisms. This can be defined as a situation in which the justice system and its policies, procedures, and practices respond unfavorably towards some groups of people in the society, mainly on racial aspects of the society.
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 Institutional discrimination that exists in the justice system has had one of the worst consequences on minorities, as they are now more than ever gravitating toward the criminal justice system. Durante (2020) reported that People of color are incarcerated at a higher rate than White people. This over-representation has created a cycle of disadvantage, with individuals who are released from prison facing a range of barriers to re-entry, including but not limited to: This over-representation has created a cycle of disadvantage, with individuals who are released from prison facing a range of barriers to re-entry, including but not limited to:
- Limited employment opportunities
- Housing discrimination.
- Limited social acceptance
Cognitive institutions have been an ever-greater driver of the health and well-being of minorities in society. For instance, Williams et al. (2019) observed that internalization of racism is positively related to stress, which in turn has related health consequences such as heart disease, diabetes, and mental health disorders. This stress likewise has other social and economic repercussions in that it hampers one’s and community’s education and financial prospects.
The consequences of institutionalized racism in the sphere of the criminal justice system on society, in general, are more problematic in a particular way. This type of discrimination can lead to a lack of trust in the police and the justice systems, which are very discouraging to community policing and solutions to crime. They also cause a lack of trust between the citizens and other institutions, which in turn results in social unrest and protests observed from the incidences of police brutality and other forms of discrimination.
Strategies for Reducing Institutional Discrimination
In fact, eradicating racism within the framework of the justice system’s function is a challenging issue that demands a multilevel strategy. The following are some policy measures that can be taken to address this problem: modification of existing policies, funding of non-custodial measures, and minority representation in the criminal justice system.
Policy Reform
An intervention route to eliminate institutional discrimination, therefore, involves changing such policies to eliminate racial and ethnic bias in the justice system. This can entail such areas as the reconsideration of the guidelines on sentencing, limitation of the employment of mandatory minimum sentences, and combating of racial profiling, among others. Craigie and Zapryanova (2021) established that limiting the use of the retribution policy, known as mandatory minimums, could go a long way in decentralizing racial and ethnic disparities when it comes to federal criminal justice systems. Policies that would enable the judges to decide over the sentences that would be implemented on the criminals would be more effective in the reduction of disparity and the mandatory minimums.
SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 Alternatives to Incarceration
The other approach to curtailing institutional racism is to fund compound practices that are different from imprisoning. These are diversion, justice, and communal supervision. These programs can assist in stopping the crimes and the causes that lead to such acts and lessen the confinement of offenders that most affect the minority group. For instance, Wolff et al. (2019) opine that a community-based alternative to incarceration programs leads to decreased new criminal conviction rates and decreased jail time.
Diversity and Inclusion
Another approach to addressing institutional racism is increasing equality and nondiscrimination within the justice system. This could involve a range of activities, including police and judicial officers’ diversity, SOC FPX 2000 Assessment 3 training of the justice system professionals in cultural competition, and bias reduction, among others. In a similar case, Feigenberg and Glaser (2021) noted that reduced racial disparities in traffic stops and arrests were achieved after offering the police officers implicit bias training.
References
Champlain, R., Camplain, C., Trotter, R. T., Pro, G., Sabo, S., Eaves, E., Peoples, M., & Baldwin, J. A. (2020). Racial/ethnic differences in drug- and alcohol-related arrest outcomes in a southwest county from 2009 to 2018. American Journal of Public Health, 110(S1). https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.2019.305409
Craigie, T.-A., & Zapryanova, M. (2021). Mandatory minimum reforms, sentencing, and racial-ethnic disparities. The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1515/bejeap-2020-0215
Durante, K. A. (2020). Racial and ethnic disparities in prison admissions across counties. Race and Justice, 10(2), 176–202.
https://doi.org/10.1177/2153368717738038
Edwards, F., Lee, H., & Esposito, M. (2019). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(34), 16793–16798.
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1821204116
Eriksson, K. (2019). Moving North and into jail? The great migration and black incarceration. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 159, 526–538. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2018.04.024
Feigenberg, B., & Glaser, J. (2021). Implicit bias training for police. Urban Labs Crime Lab Retrieved February 27, 2023, from https://urbanlabs.uchicago.edu/attachments/a11adfec96ff6054bc4146c1d366bdf26861fcc7/store/35ceee1c8a33feebad18b35aa80f7c55c435ce0f7f9e56d6cbee40b6bf27/Implicit+Bias+Training+for+Police.pdf.
Lundberg, G. J. W., Neel, R., Lassetter, B., & Todd, A. R. (2018). Racial bias in implicit danger associations generalizes to older male targets. PLOS ONE, 13(6). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0197398
Pierson, E., Simoiu, C., Overgoor, J., Corbett-Davies, S., Jenson, D., Shoemaker, A., Ramachandran, V., Barghouty, P., Phillips, C., Shroff, R., & Goel, S. (2020). A large-scale analysis of racial disparities in police stops across the United States. Nature Human Behaviour, 4(4), 1–10.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-020-0858-1
Smith, C. M., Goldrosen, N., Ciocanel, M.-V., Santorella, R., Topaz, C. M., & Sen, S. (2021). Racial disparities in criminal sentencing vary considerably across federal judges. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/j2gbn
Van, G. (2022). Munich Personal RePEc Archive. Retrieved February 27, 2023, from
https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/112214/
Vo, H. (2020). SSRN Electronic Journal. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3575257
Williams, D. R., Lawrence, J. A., Davis, B. A., & Vu, C. (2019). Understanding how discrimination can affect health. Health Services Research, 54(S2). https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6773.13222
Wolff, K. T., Baber, L. M., Dozier, C. A., & Cordeiro, R. (2019). Assessing the efficacy of alternatives to incarceration within seven federal districts. Justice Evaluation Journal. https://doi.org/10.1080/24751979.2019.1654354
Zane, S. N., Singer, S. I., & Welsh, B. C. (2020). Criminal Justice Policy Review, 32(2).
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