Profiling is Prejudice and Prejudice is Injustice.The police profiling people is nothing new. While racial profiling is the most talked about form, profiling can be based on age, clothing, the type of car, being a single male in a car after 2 am or anything that can trigger the “suspicion” of the police. The problem is that these types of “clues” lead to false arrests, needless confrontation and outright injustice.
There are many places, New York City being one, where cops commonly “Stop and Frisk” so called “suspicious” youth. These types of random unwarranted searches do not differ from DUI patrols where people are stopped and questioned without any evidence or fact based suspicion. Not surprisingly, the results are similar: under-trained, overworked police officers making false arrests based on their biased and prejudiced views.
In a DUI context, officer’s play the “statistics game.” They figure to themselves that if there is a male between the ages of 18-30 alone in their car after 2 am, the chances are statistically high that that that person has had something to drink and is driving home. Of course, if you are over 21, having something to drink is not illegal. It is not against the law to literally drink and drive. But if you are a single male in a car alone past 2 am, you are just begging to be pulled over for any or no real reason.
Whether it is an inner city youth or a baby boomer, Gen Xer,or Gen Yer in Central Pennsylvania, profiling leads to false arrests. This needs to stop. Remember: Profiling is prejudice and prejudice is injustice.
