For years the UK has been identified for being discriminatory towards ethnic minorities, specifically when carrying out ‘stop and search’. Throughout recent times, the tactic has been called upon for being a tool that has been abused by the police and that it forms more harm than good. This report will identify how and why the UK has failed when carrying out ‘stop and search’. It will discuss how ethnic minorities are targeted by the police when they desire to perform a ‘stop and search’ and how the ways they go about it can be described as intrusive, demoralising and embarrassing for those involved. The report will explore the rise in ‘stop and search’ amongst ethnic minorities, specifically after 2001, but also how historical milestones have implemented discriminative views towards ethnic minorities and have caused a divide in the modern-day world. This report will also explore how this has impacted the victims emotionally and how the aftermath unfolds once the ‘stop and search’ has taken place. Furthermore, the report will also identify ways in which the institution can form solidarity amongst the police and those who are stopped.
The source carries high significance as it demonstrates key flaws within the UK’s criminal justice system. The data that has been provided by the governments website demonstrates the rate of stop and search per 1000 people between 2016/17. Equality is essential in any demographic society, equality is where all are treated in the same manner, where people are not treated differently due to their ethnicity. A person’s ethnicity is their identity, from skin colour to religion, it forms a person’s characteristics and places them into their own ethnic groups (Bowling and Phillips 2002: 24). The data identifies a wicked truth within modern-day policing, which is that the views from previous generations that withhold hostility which can be identified as xenophobia which is the disapproval of those who originate from other countries, still lurk within the UK’s government agencies and societies towards ethnic minorities. (Case et al 2017: 268). This is controversial as neo-colonialism which is the ruling of a significant amount of land over many nations which was undertaken through the British empire. During the early 1950’s and thereafter the Windrush generation started to make their way to the UK as well as other ethnic groups such as Pakistanis and Indians. 55,000 people from these two regions alone made their way over to Britain by the end of 1958 on the basis of the 1948 Nationality Act which granted those from current or former colonies of Britain to obtain a British passport (Fryer 1984: 372).
The data demonstrates a high level of discrimination when stop and search is being carried out amongst ethnic minorities. The police can be found being discriminative on a daily basis due to them carrying “attitudes, prejudices and stereotypes” (reference RCJ BOOK pg.38) towards these ethnic minorities which impacts the way the police choose to handle a situation. Discrimination can be identified through every stage of the system. When analysing data from previous years, it identifies that although generally speaking stop and search is on the decline, ethnic minorities are still heavily being identified as suspects of the procedure by the police which impacts the way the public and police force perceive each other. This can be associated with Institutional racism which was established from the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry of 1999, where a black 19-year-old male was a victim of an indirect racist knife attack which was a turning point when identifying ‘race’ within the UK (case et al 268). Race is a term that in essence is “a biological concept that and is often thought of as a signifier genetic difference” (bowling & phillips 2002 pg 23). However, ethnicity was a term to replace race as race was deemed as extremely racist. Ethnicity has moved on and doesn’t reflect society anymore as social relations vary but the term still occurs to this day. The inquiry established that there was institutional racism both within societies and the police force due to the way that they dealt with the perpetrators which highlighted racial issues within the criminal justice system. This incident can be associated with the critical race theory which was established to ‘study and theorise’ the association between “Race, racism and power” and to form equality in all of society. The theory was formed to ask questions such as: why is there such a high level of ethnic minorities in the criminal justice system and why do institutions like the police appear to target ethnic minorities when carrying out stop and search. (case et al 264). The Lawrence inquiry triggered a significant alteration within the Race Equality Legislation, alongside the amended Race Relations Act 2000, where it became unlawful to treat a person with less desire on the basis of their “race, colour, nationality, and national or ethnic origin” (case et al 269). This was an attempt to stop the negative attitudes regarding ethnic minorities that first emerged when they entered the UK. However, despite these attempts the data suggests that institutional racism still exists alongside these views today. The reason why the ‘black’ category is much greater is because of the stereotypes that surround them. When the windrush generation made their way to the UK many turned a blind eye and refused to give them jobs resulting in a high unemployment rate amongst black people. It has been said that an individual’s job status can relate to their IQ and therefore stating that those who are unemployed have a lower IQ than the average person which formed a perception on black people as well as other ethnic minorities (BELL CURVE PG 81). This caused the police form to form pre-judgments on those who were unemployed.
When looking at the statistics for the Asian and mixed category, as a collective they accumulate for a significant amount of stop and searches that are carried out. It could be said that Xenophobia has a strong presence when the police identify those who come under these ethnic groups, especially after the catastrophic incident of 9/11. After September 11th, 2001, the use of stop and search dramatically increased under the Terrorism Act 2000, it was discovered that there were 21,900 more searches compared to the year before September 11th, 2001. (CHANGE Cowen, 2004). As a result, those who share a similar ethnicity to the suspects of those who pursued the attack had consequently started being identified as a potential terrorist. Previously before 9/11, to try and form unity between the police and the public, the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 was introduced to try and restrict this and to equate the powers of the police to the powers of the those being interrogated (davies… pg202). The act provides codes that are rights to police officers when carrying out stop and search and how they may choose to proceed the situation (gov uk (ONLINE). Despite the acts aims to form unity, it did not defuse the controversial opinions within a community towards the police (Ahmed, 2010 pg 4) as well as pre-judgements that are still being carried by many police officers today towards ethnic minorities, especially those of the Islamic faith. The reason why this is the case, is because the media angle their reports to blame all terrorist attacks such as the Westminster bridge and 7/7 attack on those who belong to the Islamic faith, when the attacks are actually being carried out by extremist groups. As a result of the way the media have reported these attacks, all those who can be identified as having a similar genetic make up to those perpetrators, such as those who fall under the mixed and Asian category where many do worship Islam, are now immediately portrayed as a potential terrorist. It has been acknowledged that public opinions are usually manipulated through stereotypes and information in its simplest form which creates shadows over the full picture (Fekete, pg 8).
The white and other categories accumulate for a low amount of the stop and search data. When a government is trying to differentiate between those who are criminal and those who are not, they go through what can be described as a vetting process so that a criminal is more likely to be identified. It is apparent that the police are prioritising looking for people who come under the description of ‘terrorist’ at this moment in time than ‘white’ (Fekete pg.8). It has been acknowledged that the availability of an individual to be stopped and searched plays a role within the data and it is known that those who live within poverty, where there is a high account of school exclusions, unemployment as well as homelessness, can all be linked with racial patterning amongst stop and search (Newburn pg 758). When looking at employment figures, they demonstrate that white people are at a higher employment rate compared to ethnic minorities, this can be associated with ‘white supremacy’ which generally “refers to the attitudes, ideologies, and policies associated with the rise of blatant forms of white or European dominance” (Frederickson, 1981). This is a key reason why it is less likely for white people to be suspects of stop and search compared to ethnic minorities and therefore those who are described as white, and other, who are stopped and searched are more likely to be living in poverty due to racial availability which is a significant factor to consider within the statistics.
It is apparent that the data suggests a variety of factors that contribute to the reasons as to why the police target ethnic minorities. The data demonstrates that ethnic minorities remain to have historical and social factors that contribute to the perceptions of the police as well as the public. Discriminative views are still dominantly present within the attitudes of police officers as well as the public which is influenced through the media which forms innuendos and contribute to the stereotypes and views that surround ethnic minorities and why these misconceptions cause the police to primarily focus on these groups. The report has also identified that despite the rate of stop and search being on the decline towards ethnic minorities, they remain to be dominantly the prime suspect when a stop and search is being carried out. The key reason behind this is that their unemployment rate is much higher than ethnic majorities and not being given the opportunities to make a change in their lives, this contributes to the availability of people to be stopped and searched. These issues can be challenged and therefore resolved through a variety of tactics that focus on the education and awareness of the way that their perception can be manipulated. A key way to form a less discriminative police force is to create a new law that forbids personal opinions to affect their duties within the workplace, failing to do so will lead to prosecutions. By doing this, the police force as well as other governmental bodies will start to be aware of the way they communicate with people in question and the way they go about it. In order to ensure that this is not deception, the government should invest in recording devices that take note verbally when an officer is on duty. Another way to form solidarity between those in question and the police force is by playing police community support officers (PCSO’s) within communities of poverty to provide protection rather than fear. By doing this the relationship between the police and the general public, but specifically the ethnic minorities, will begin to become more resilient and trustworthy.