The Color of Crime and Our Perception

[Thoreau]

So I recently looked up some crime statistics which led me to this...

http://www.colorofcrime.com/colorofcrime2005.pdf

Now, please understand that the purpose of this post is not to debate crime statistics but rather to debate our perception of these statistics.

Some will say this link and it's contents are racially biased, others will see it as perfectly fair and justifiable. Furthermore, it is my personal opinion that most of those who dislike or disagree with the findings presented in this link will more than likely refute them based on thier own conditions; more specifically because they may be a racial minority.

If these statistics are infact true, then some would even go so far as to claim racism against one who cites these statistics.

In further exploration, if these statistics are truth, then my question for you is this...

Is it justifiable and/or ethically logical for a person, based on the information provided, to prejudge certain racial minorities as well as utilize racial profiling?

 

[Tiassa]

The simplification isn't surprising, all things considered

The first major problem the stats encounter is that they are presented by the New Century Foundation, which publishes a white nationalist periodical.

But beyond that, the study doesn't do much to explain why crime statistics say what they do. The underlying presumption is an inherent problem with dark skin.

The reality is that the situation is much more complex than they present it.

Imagine that police come in and arrest 17% of a town's white population, and then black juries convict them of cocaine trafficking based solely on the testimony of a crack-smoking black police officer with a history of stealing from his employer and who presents exactly zero evidence.

And imagine that the tallest sentence, over 400 years, was handed out to a black guy who happened to be married to a white woman.

Unthinkable, right?

Now, change the roles of black and white, and you have Tulia, Texas.

Or ask, perhaps, why "the majority of crack users and sellers are white" but "more than 80 percent of people incarcerated in federal prison for crack are black" (Piper).

And yet among the major findings of The Color of Crime is that, "Blacks are seven times more likely to be in prison than whites". What explains this? The Color of Crime doesn't say.

This sort of superficial examination is called fearmongering.

And that's just the brief overview at the outset.
____________________

Notes:

Stop the Drug War. "Tulia: Drug Warriors Decimate Texas Town's Black Community, But Fight is Just Beginning". The Week Online, #154. October 7, 2000. StopTheDrugWar.org. Accessed June 8, 2009. http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle-old/154/index.shtml

Piper, Bill. "Major Blow Struck Against Racist U.S. Crack Sentencing Policies". December 13, 2007. DrugSense Weekly, #528. December 14, 2007. DrugSense.org. Accessed June 8, 2009. http://www.drugsense.org/nl/show_dsw.php?the_file=2007/ds07.n528

New Century Foundation. The Color of Crime. 2nd ed. 2005. ColorOfCrime.com. Accessed June 8, 2009. http://www.colorofcrime.com/colorofcrime2005.pdf

See Also:

American Renaissance. http://amren.com/

 

[Thoreau]

Granted, the information provide may not have been true. But if it IS/WAS true, my question is still up for answering.

 

[spidergoat]

You mean, when I see a minority, should get the draw on them first, so they don't kill me?

 

[Thoreau]

You mean, when I see a minority, should get the draw on them first, so they don't kill me?

Not at all.

For example: Not all snakes bite, but we still take caution around any snake we come across.

 

[spidergoat]

Criminal activity doesn't mean you are a bad person, or even a violent one. You do what you gotta do in the hood yo.

 

[takandjive]

So I recently looked up some crime statistics which led me to this...

http://www.colorofcrime.com/colorofcrime2005.pdf

Now, please understand that the purpose of this post is not to debate crime statistics but rather to debate our perception of these statistics.

Some will say this link and it's contents are racially biased, others will see it as perfectly fair and justifiable. Furthermore, it is my personal opinion that most of those who dislike or disagree with the findings presented in this link will more than likely refute them based on thier own conditions; more specifically because they may be a racial minority.

If these statistics are infact true, then some would even go so far as to claim racism against one who cites these statistics.

In further exploration, if these statistics are truth, then my question for you is this...

Is it justifiable and/or ethically logical for a person, based on the information provided, to prejudge certain racial minorities as well as utilize racial profiling?

No. Most rapists are men, but I am almost positive you're not trying to rape me, MZ. (ALMOST! )

Nothing is cited in regard to their statement about poverty having no real effect.

Asking, "Will this young African American male dressed in gang colors mug me in the parking lot here at midnight?" is like asking, "Will a strange dog bite?" I don't know, but I do know ANYONE who approaches me in that situation is getting a face full of mace.

 

[Thoreau]

No. Most rapists are men, but I am almost positive you're not trying to rape me, MZ. (ALMOST! )

Nothing is cited in regard to their statement about poverty having no real effect.

Asking, "Will this young African American male dressed in gang colors mug me in the parking lot here at midnight?" is like asking, "Will a strange dog bite?" I don't know, but I do know ANYONE who approaches me in that situation is getting a face full of mace.

Well said. lol