SOC219H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Racial Profiling, Crown Attorney, Roy Mcmurtry
Document Summary
Racial profiling: toronto police settle human rights complaint with man who was pulled over. Those who attribute stops to profiling (race, age, sex) less willing to accept stop as legitimate. Racial minorities more likely, when stopped, to view it as a result of a profile. Support for police undermined by belief that they engage in simple profiling. Those who see the police as being polite, respectful, and acknowledging of rights, less likely to view stop as a result of profiling. But in reality, white people use more drugs than black people. Differential visibility: black people more visible to cops. Can"t afford secure places to use drugs: white people do it more hidden, privately. Differential enforcement: heightened level of surveillance, heightened level of interaction with police. Undercover cops buying drugs to catch criminals and arrest them. Police focus their attention more on crack than methamphetamine. Crack: 1/3 of transactions, 3/4 of arrests. Black people over-representation: from choice of drug.
