The Racial Conundrum

One reason often cited in justification of racial profiling is the assertion that minorities have a greater propensity toward crime. To answer their critics, proponents of this argument simply point to the prevalence of crime among minorities, and especially in the inner cities where minority population is known to be high and on the rise. While statistics could be useful in measuring crime trends, numbers alone do not provide, and can not be used as proof that a particular demographic has a natural inclination to commit crime.

It is my contention that were minorities to be treated equally by law enforcement officials, their inmate population would decline, and with it would go the "propensity" argument.

There is no gainsaying the fact that individuals prone to racial profiling by law enforcement officials are more likely to be arrested and incarcerated. If a minority citizen were profiled mainly because of the color of his skin and in the process illegal substances were found on him, he would be arrested nonetheless. On the other hand, if similar substances were in the possession of a non-minority citizen, that individual might never be arrested for the same crime because her chances of being searched and ultimately arrested are very very slim.

Whites are not less likely to commit crimes; they are merely less likely to be arrested even if the same actions would necessarily lead to the arrest of minorities, and as jrank.org finds, they are also more likely to be placed on probation than incarcerated.

It thus beg the question why anyone would be surprised at the high number of minority inmates in US prisons. It is racial prejudice, stupid!