If a person of a certain demographic commits a crime, should everyone from that population be held accountable? Hypothetically, consider these scenarios: a caucasian bank robber, an African American suicide bomber, a muslim school shooter, an atheist child molester. Should all “white” people be considered thieves? Are all people who appear to be of African American descent kamikazee hijackers? Are all who follow Allah a serial killer? If you don’t believe in a deity, are you prone to sexually violate children? Should the whole of a community be under scrutiny in hopes of preventing similar attack? Interrogated or surveilled for no other reason than they share the same skin color, or cultural background, and/or religion as the perpetrator? Can these perceived generalities lead to unfair harassment?
These stereotypes don't just stop here, there are countless more races such as Hispanics, Japanese, Chinese, Indians, and Vietnamese- that have gone through prejudices based on racial stereotypes. “Racial profiling is a longstanding and deeply troubling national problem despite claims that the United States has entered a “post-racial era.” It occurs every day, in cities and towns across the country, 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. Racial profiling is patently illegal, violating the U.S. Constitution’s core promises of equal protection under the law to all and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. Just as importantly, racial profiling is ineffective. It alienates communities from law enforcement, hinders community policing efforts, and causes law enforcement to lose credibility and trust among the people they are sworn to protect and serve.” (ACLU, American Civil Liberties Union). Racial profiling is a very big problem in modern society that continues to hurt and discriminate millions of people all around the world. To prevent a crime or catch a criminal the authorities suchs as FBI, police, or Homeland Security use certain types of information to narrow down the list of suspects. This process can include behavioral, cultural, and physical characteristics, basically its profiling somebody on the chances that they have committed a crime or will in the future.
The popular TV series Criminal Minds displays this perfectly. The FBI profiles the criminal based on whether the offense was organized (planned) or disorganized (unplanned). The attackers are typically very conscious of leaving behind evidence. A disorganized attack usually acted spontaneously, are acquainted with the victim, and left some sort of evidence at the scene. Organized offenders are generally categorized as very intelligent, better than average IQs, high birth-order status in their family, socially competent, in a skilled profession, and follow the crime in the news media. Disorganized offenders are typically described as of average intelligence, had minimal-birth order status, socially immature, poor work history, lived near the crime scene, and had minimal interest in the news media. Suspects are profiled by their mental stability, which is then categorized by during what ages these illnesses are most common. These features also contribute to profiling. Based on the type of crime committed the FBI can estimate sex, race, and which neighborhood the suspect lives in.
If you are born in a poor neighborhood, with average intelligence, are socially immature, and fall under a few other categories, does this mean you committed a crime or will in the future? If you have a beautiful house in a well taken care of, rich neighborhood, are highly intelligent, and are socially competent, does this mean you will never commit a crime or that you’ll commit high order thinking crimes that the minority cannot think of. For some cases, these theories may lead to a convicted criminal. But is this because of profiling, or coincidence? Did that person commit the crime because of the color of his/her skin?
“Recent studies show that during the last 5 years, 60 percent of the entire world’s city residents have, directly or indirectly, been a victim to violence, crime and felony. Thus, the increasing crime rate, violent or nonviolent, is a serious threat for all the urban societies of the world” (Salehi, 2012). This proves that society has contributed to fostering a social environment that thrives with criminal behavior. But there are other variables that need to be seriously considered when attempting to identify what draws a lifestyle of deviant behavior. Instead of looking at physical characteristics, such as skin pigment, why not use factors which can be measured.
Genetics, brain chemistry, hormones, brain structure and anatomy are examples of significantly more quantifiable physiological traits. Studies with twins have shown that identical twins are more likely to share criminal tendencies than fraternal twins. This was true even when identical twins were separated at birth, so environment or upbringing would not necessarily have been a factor. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter in the brain that affects mood, which can affect behavior. Testosterone, a male hormone, is linked to levels of aggression. Poor nutrition before the age of 3 has also been linked to higher levels of aggression. Each of these is related to brain chemistry and linked to criminal behavior. The part of the brain associated with our emotions is called the Amygdala (am-ig-d-la). It is believed that damage to the Amygdala can have an effect of criminal behavior. This may be because the person concerned would have a limited fear and conditioning response, thus fear of punishment would not deter them from committing a crime. The Hippocampus is where we store our memories. Damage to this area could mean we do not remember being punished from our crimes, so they would commit them repeatedly. “Some genes are expressed or turned on (or not) because of physical, social, and cultural factors in the environment; and some genes—for example, those that influence difficult temperament, impulsivity, novelty seeking, and lack of empathy—predispose people to be exposed to environmental risks.” said Kaiser & Rasminsky (Nature vs. Nurture Article). Our environment is a doorway to unlocking genetic traits that are instilled in us from conception. The studying of genetics can help prevent crime, instead of running after a criminal based on the color of their skin, their social skills, or the neighborhood they live in. The color of someone’s skin will not determine whether or not they have specific genetics that would make criminal behavior more likely. Our genetics, however, influence how we react to our environment.
The ethos of this story is showing the discrimination between all races. Several people experience daily encounters of unfair treatment because of the neighborhood they reside in, the car they drive, or the color of their skin. These things say so little about a person, that they hardly speak any words. The pathos, or the emotional appeal, is the reality that it’s not just you being looked down upon. It’s everyone. It may not seem like it at times, because of how much it hurts to be targeted for who you are. The important thing is to remember you’re not the only one, and it doesn’t have to stay the way it is now. My perspective of logos is that just because one white person robs a bank, the white race as a whole should not be defined as a “thief”. Just because one person does something a certain way, does not mean the whole race will follow suit.
In relation to the Allegory of the Cave, I think that by racial and social profiling we, as humans, isolate other humans into a cave. However, it’s not just one cave. Each race is in their own cave, meaning each race has things they’re unfairly known for, and that is all that is believed of by people looking from the outside in. I think that if we stop allowing these generalizations no one will be forced into a cave at all. When it is no longer the norm to have prejudices against other races, then the caves will be torn down.
“In the investigation phase, profiling is used to develop strategies to apprehend the unknown criminal and to assess the likelihood of escalation in the perpetrator’s crimes.” (Scott Bonn, Ph.D). The takeaway from this statement is that profiling is a strategy of the likelihood of a crime. Race does not define the likeliness of a crime. A simple reasoning to a complex solution is forced when evil tries to overpower good. Profiling starts at home, travels to school, once you get older, you’ll find it in your workplace. It seems like you can’t get away from it. But what would have happen if we didn’t introduce stereotypes and racial profiling into our homes. Would it still be in school? Would the FBI use it for strategic developments of criminal behavior? Would we still be ashamed of other people just like us?