Racial Bias In The Criminal Justice System Essay

The racial disparities within the criminal justice system are staggering. The policies passed by the government to combat the drug epidemic within the country, has been a losing battle. However, the war on drugs disproportionately affected communities of color. The selective enforcement and patrol of economically poorer urbanized areas has resulted in more minorities under the control of correctional institutions today, more than the enslavement era in the United States. Despite the fact that rates of drug use is similar among racial lines, Blacks and Latinos enter the system 10 times more often than whites. The racial bias within the criminal justice system is both implicit and explicit, meaning the system is designed to keep people of color under the supervision of prisons and parole. This is the first time in United States history where people of color have been incarcerated excessively and deprived of liberty. The issue is ignored because it doesn’t affect most people. Over the past 40 years, the United States government has spent trillions of dollars on a failed and ineffective war on drugs. …show more content…
Racial profiling is when “law enforcement and private security target people of color for humiliating and often frightening detentions, interrogations, and searches without evidence of criminal activity and based on perceived race, ethnicity, national origin, or religion.” (ACLU) Although it is unconstitutional, because of equal protection under the law for all and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. The injustice of the criminal justice system is clear, this practice widens the gap between law enforcement and communities. Law enforcement has lost the trust and credibility among communities of color across the United States. This is problematic because we depend on law enforcement to protect us from harm, they were sworn to protect and serve the