The problem of racial profiling prevents law enforcement officers from identifying the exact criminals who engage in activities that can lead to terrorism or gang activity. Stereotypes and labels put on individual from certain races and religious backgrounds by law enforcement officers has been a source of controversy. There is therefore great need to avoid racial profiling to ensure that the actual criminals and identified and apprehended (Lever, 2009). Personally, I feel that racial profiling by law enforcement officers should be avoided because it fuels criminal activities in the society. Strategies which deal with law enforcement subculture and racial profiling should be developed and implemented in such a way that, they will not bring about any significant changes in the functioning of the criminal justice system and that of the society as a whole (Sizer and Saltzman, 2009).
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The two strategies, which if effectively implemented, can deal with Law Enforcement Subculture And Racial Profiling include; creating system which reflects the nature of diversity in the city, and reaching out to the community to help build a mutual trust between police officers and community members. The first strategy seeks to address the problem of law enforcement subculture and racial profiling on an ethical perspective while the second strategy focuses on maintaining the functioning of the criminal justice systems and that of the society as a whole (Sizer and Saltzman, 2009).
The problem of law enforcement subculture and racial profiling can be solved by creating a law enforcement team or agency which closely represents the cultural diversity of the city. This strategy will help in increasing the mutual understanding between law enforcement officers and people in the society. In order to achieve this, the criminal justice system needs to review its hiring processes and standards in order avoid hiring officers who work against diversity (Sizer and Saltzman, 2009). Some of the ways through which the criminal justice system can modify its hiring processes and standards include broadening education requirements for police officers, improving the times spent in processing applications, streamlining background investigations to prevent delays in the application process, and having time with those who are rejecting the offer in order to understand their reasons for rejection. The criminal justice system can also create an agency which matches the community diversity by eliminating barriers for Police Cadet who may want to be hired as police officers. Police Cadet Programs offer good opportunities for hiring young police officers from different racial groups who are interested in doing a good job (Sizer and Saltzman, 2009).
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In order to boost mutual trust between police officers and members of a community who have been affected by racial profiling, it is important to reach out to the community and have a close contact with them. In order to achieve this, the criminal justice system must provide opportunities for police officers to acquire a comprehensive knowledge of the communities they serve. Moreover, this second strategy can be achieved by scheduling time for police officers to meet community members for the purpose of relationship-building. In this manner, the police officers will learn to avoid racial profiling and the community members will view police officers as good people who are interested in eliminating crime. Effective implementation of the two strategies described above will assist police officers to do their jobs as required. In addition, it will help reduce the risk of expensive litigation for members of different racial groups who have not committed any offense (Sizer and Saltzman, 2009).
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