...Recent events that have occurred over the past few years have begun to put great strain on the law enforcement of our nation to effectively fulfill their duties and responsibilities on a daily basis. Many of these issues are rooted in what many consider to be a lack of diversity within the police force and the population that support and defend, but there are many challenges that do not fall on the shoulders of our agencies to overcome. Many feel that when the term diversity is used it only applies to race and gender but other factors are now becoming more prevalent in terms of diversity; religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and language are now just as important. I will exam what I feel are three of the major challenges that are affecting our nation. In October 2016 the Justice Department and the U.S. Equal...
Words: 1473 - Pages: 6
...Culture Diversity in Criminal Justice Elaine Ramon CJA/344 November 15, 2011 Sherry Caperton Culture Diversity in Criminal Justice Culture diversity is one of the many issues facing the criminal justice department, including police departments. Culture diversity is important to get over because of the cultural and religious differences it brings. Socializing and studying cultural diversity brings about a better understanding. The more we understand other cultures and religions, the more tolerant we become. Throughout history in law enforcement all policemen were white, and especially no police women. Before the 1960s police departments were guilty of employment discrimination by not hiring minorities and women. Police departments also required applicants to be a certain height to keep minorities from applying and didn’t hire nonwhites (cliffnotes.com, 2011). One of the first African Americans to be hired in the United States as police officer was in Jackson Tennessee in 1960. When James Cherry was hired as a police he was sure he would not be welcomed by the white community, but instead he was rejected by the black community. Although James Cherry was a police officer he still had to follow the segregation rules (Morris, 2003). The first woman police officer was discovered to be in Chicago. According to Feminist Majority Foundation women were often hired to protect and supervise other women and juveniles. In 1893 Mary Owens was the first woman to be hired by the Chicago...
Words: 1027 - Pages: 5
...Diversity in Law Enforcement MAJ-660 Across the United States there are many challenges among law enforcement agencies when it comes to hiring the most qualified candidates and also those candidates that come from racial/ethnic minorities and female applicants. Having diversity within a law enforcement agency is critical. Bringing cultural understandings and native language skills to the force, minorities’ play a key role for success when the officers are called to help those groups of individuals. “In short, the police may be seen more legitimate and may be better able to partner with community organizations in fighting crime if they more closely resemble and identify with the communities they serve” (Raganella and White, 2004; Scivner, 2006). Due to the higher standards that most of the law enforcement agencies require, there are many individuals that would make outstanding police officers, but do not meet many of the requirements such as a college education. However, there are many other circumstances that can attribute to the lower number of minorities and women in law enforcement. One of the biggest issues with recruitment of racial/ethnic minorities and women basically boils down to “an insufficient number of these groups simply not applying for the job” (Scivner, 2006). According to Ravens 2010, “lack of awareness suggests a deficiency in outreach actions and events; that is, there is not enough recruitment in areas where demographics...
Words: 2038 - Pages: 9
...country is still working to overcome. Throughout history, there are reports of police abusing discretion to satisfy their prejudiced beliefs. Some examples of this are the beating of Rodney King in 1991, the deaths of African American citizens during the Hurricane Katrina tragedy in 2005, detainment of Professor Gates, and, of course, the abuse of African Americans during slavery in the early days of America (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2012). It seems eliminating all discrimination in law enforcement is close to impossible. Today, institutionalized, contextual, and individual acts of discrimination keep the attainment of pure justice just out of society’s reach. Types of Discrimination Institutionalized discrimination is not always intended, but occurs when a policy or procedure inadvertently leaves or singles out a specific group of people. In modern law enforcement practices, this form of discrimination is reflected through the war on drugs. Through research and years of enforcing drug laws, it has come to be expected that the common drug player will be an African American male. Hispanics are also commonly singled out through the war on drugs. While this discrimination is unintentional, African Americans and Hispanics are more likely to be arrested for drug related offenses than their white non-Hispanic counterparts. Because this stereotype has proven useful in the past, officers are more likely to search for drugs or signs of drug use when encountering a person that fits...
Words: 1555 - Pages: 7
...effects of this impact when different cultures are combined. The culture in which a person is raised plays a significant role in shaping his values, morals, behaviors and attitudes. These characteristics impact how a person thinks, and what his overall mind-set is toward the world around him. When a person is met with the principles and ideals of a different culture, a cross-cultural interaction takes place. ANALYING CROSS CULTURE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT Most all law enforcement officials want to protect and serve people in their community equally even those with a mix of different back grounds. Most officers realize the challenges they face with understanding the complexity of the diverse society. The police have a hard time dealing with the challenges of police procedures and the interaction of the citizens in the diversity culture. Most departments and its officers have a lack of knowledge on the different cultures and this can end up violating someone’s rights or even an officer’s safety or cause a public embarrassment. Law enforcement officers and their personal must make sure their prejudices are in check and they refrain from acting on their biased. Most department are working on...
Words: 731 - Pages: 3
...BEHS 220 (2152) Personal Action Plan for Diversity Consciousness 8 March 2015 Introduction Diversity is an ongoing discussion in day-to-day life. Not many situations occur without diversity having a role. There are a multitude of topics that introduces or involves diversity, to include age, sex, race, gender, ethnicity and so on. Prior to participating in this Diversity Awareness class, I’ve always thought diversity was more geared around discrimination and racism. Through weekly readings and discussions, I have discovered that diversity is much broader than that. There are many countries that are mixed culturally with people from all over the world, but none like the United States. The United States has the largest mixed culture in the world. Growing up in South Carolina I was exposed to different cultures, however I never fully witnessed some of the cultural things I’ve witnessed since joining the Army. My time in the Army has taken me places I never would have imagined and have exposed me to many different cultures. Reasons for taking BEHS Diversity Awareness I am pursuing a baccalaureate degree in Criminal Justice and it is required for me to complete 6 semester hours of Behavioral and Social Science courses. I’ve always been fascinated with understanding and learning more about...
Words: 1967 - Pages: 8
...Policing for the benefit and protection of the people has become a thing of the past in the eyes of many. The executives in the law enforcement agencies have made policing truly a game of numbers, meaning that police are more worried about how many arrests or traffic violations they make than taking into account the solution to the everyday problems of the communities. There seems to be a lack of concern for the communities and if they are actually becoming safer. The civilians of these communities recognize the dysfunctional focus of our police forces. A militarized police force is organized in a way in which our patrol officers or beat officers are not treated as equally to their superiors. “Structures operate better when they allow lower - level employees to make decisions and participate in leading organizations” (Conser, Paynich, and Gingerich 123 - 24)....
Words: 645 - Pages: 3
...In the event that they ever have a run-in with the law, they also expect to be treated justly by the criminal justice system. While laws have been amended and created over the years, lawmakers have neglected to create a substantial amount of laws that take diversity into account. In the instance of selling drugs, certain drugs such as crack, a drug used primarily by African Americans, result in longer prison sentences and higher penalties. On the other hand, cocaine, a drug used primarily by Whites, ensues fewer penalties. Our laws must take ethnic differences into account because not all crimes result in the same course of punishment. In this paper, I will discuss the impact of culture on the criminal justice system and describe contemporary methods used by the police department and security firms while working with diverse populations. Furthermore, I will detail nondiscriminatory practices within the criminal justice system and outline Sir Robert Peel’s nine principles in relation to police departments. Race and ethnicity are important factors to incorporate into laws. Many of the current laws are outdated in the sense that they do not take cultural differences into account. Current US populations have a different racial and ethnic make-up than when most laws and the Constitution were created. Present day America has numerous immigrants, legal or otherwise, who must live and abide by outdated, and at times, unfair laws. Immigrants, on a whole, are fearful of being a...
Words: 1564 - Pages: 7
...Officers in Law Enforcement Abstract There are many factors in which comprise the impact of females in policing, one in which how they are treated within the work environment. Other things do come into play when trying to increase females in policing such as expanding on the diversity being accepted in police agencies. Many females think they are treated unfairly and unjust according to the system, it seems to always come back to the fact that women feel like they are being mistreated which needs to be changed. Females should not feel inferior to males within the workplace even if they are feeling belittled by other male officers. One way females can “vent” about what is being said or done to them, is mentoring within the workplace; this will help them with stress, and getting more comfortable with the job by being able to talk to someone about it. There are many positive affects that females have in law enforcement, and knowing that there should be a population growth with females in policing. Police departments are more diverse today than ever before. Females in policing are known to have a positive impact within all law enforcement, policing being most common. Many things come into play when females are within law enforcement, some being good, and some bad. Females do come across problems within the workplace, but so do males; this factor not setting them apart from males on the job. Females make a huge impact on policing in many ways, in which are positive to law enforcement...
Words: 2170 - Pages: 9
...Flawed System……………………………………………………………………Pg. 6 Controlling the Police…………………………………………………………………………Pg. 7 Chapter two: Police Solutions The Debate over Body Cameras…………………………………………………………….Pg. 9 Changing Policies and Regulations...……………………………………………………….Pg. 10 Chapter Three: Community and Behaviour Police Subculture……………………………………………………………………………….Pg.12 Impact on Minorities…………………………………………………………………………….Pg.12 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………….Pg.14 Works Cited………………………………………………………………………………………Pg.15 Appendix A: Julianne Silva Survey Summary………………………………………………..Pg.17 Appendix B-1: ………………………………………………………………………………….... Appendix B-2……………………………………………………………………………………... Introduction One of the most controversial topics in police enforcement throughout history has been the issue between racial minorities and the misconduct of police officials. Throughout North America, high incidents involving police use of force has led racial minorities to mistrust the police and publicize the perception that the police are racially biased. Police brutality is the leading cause of police misconduct, followed by sexual misconduct. These unacceptable activities of police officials are a violation of civil rights which occurs when police act with...
Words: 6747 - Pages: 27
...a capacity to relate the events of the day to the social, political, and historical context in which they occur” (Peak, 2008, p. 384). Much of the debate concerning education in policing became mainstream with the civil rights movement at which time law enforcement was center stage in what some perceived as persecution of African Americans in the South. Fast forward 45 years and law enforcement is once again faced with the real or perceived issues of persecuting those within the minority communities. It was believed in the late 1960’s...
Words: 865 - Pages: 4
...legally and guaranteed him that he would not be deported. The DACA policy should remain the way it is because DACA provides a possible and easier path to citizenship for the Dreamers, it would be a revenue generator, and it would allow law enforcement officers to focus on more important and possibly deadly cases. DACA isn’t just a policy, it is people’s lives. To start off, DACA can provide a possible path to citizenship for the Dreamers. Dreamers are people who were brought into America under the age of 18 by their parents. Many Dreamers will start being deported back to the countries they were born in. According to americanprogress.org, “Each day congress delays acting on the Dream Act from now until March 5, 2018 approximately 122 people will lose their DACA protection. That is 851 people each week, and more than 7,900 since the announcement.” For most of the Dreamers, America is their home and they don’t know any other place. With the Dream Act Dreamers have an open path to legalization....
Words: 452 - Pages: 2
...Administrative law is especially valuable to agencies such The Department of Housing and Urban Development as it addresses fairness and responsibility issues with governing laws. Court cases help to make change where needed when it can be shown the system has failed or if one’s rights have been violated. The Department of Housing and Urban Development The Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) manages and is responsible for the running of programs that provide housing as well as community development assistance. The HUD agency also works to ensure fair and equal housing opportunity for all people. An example of one of the programs is the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which is part of HUD, is a government agency which objectives are to improve housing conditions and standards as well as provide a house financing system with insurance of home mortgage loans. Congress created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) in 1934. The FHA became a part of the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Housing in 1965. The HUD agency and issues it covers is very broad so administrative law is a must for this agency to ensure there is fair housing and equal opportunity. Administrative law covers several areas such as rule-making, agency discretion, test and inspection, mediation and arbitration, the requirements of fairness, due processes, hearings, equal protection, affirmative action and diversity in the housing market. Administrative law was created...
Words: 2335 - Pages: 10
...THE ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES Prior to October 2007: 1. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES COMMISSION [EOC] The EOC worked to try to eliminate sex discrimination: By providing advice and information to the public about their legal rights, what options they have, and the next steps they can take. By taking legal cases under the Sex Discrimination Act and the Equal Pay Act. These cases help to secure equal treatment for women and men in the areas of pay, pensions and caring. By publishing research and statistics about women's and men's lives. These show clearly and simply where change is needed. By running high-profile campaigns to change public opinion and the law. By investigating organisations or areas of life where sex discrimination is common.. 2. THE COMMISSION FOR RACIAL EQUALITY [CRE] The CRE's legal powers The CRE had statutory powers under the Race Relations Act 1976. These included powers to: • advise or assist people with complaints about racial discrimination, harassment or abuse • conduct formal investigations of companies and organisations where there is evidence of possible discrimination; if the investigation does find discrimination, the CRE can oblige the organisation to change the way it operates • take legal action against racially discriminatory advertisements, and against organisations that attempt to pressurise or instruct others to discriminate — such as employers instructing employment agencies not to send them applicants from ethnic minorities...
Words: 1798 - Pages: 8
...1 For more than 100 years, Genesis Industries (GI) has been guided by a simple belief ‐‐ do the right thing for the employees, the communities, and the customers. The Share Serve Sustain initiative is a conservation and community program that can be built on that legacy. The initiative will focus on the company's social responsibility in three critical areas: empowering communities and individuals, preserving the environment and promoting change for a sustainable future. Genesis relies on core principles to guide the conduct in all corporate affairs, including how the company gathers and shares information, how the public is served and how it relates to the government on all levels. In the 21st century companies must recognize the importance of sharing their commitment to businesses and communities. Genesis Industries is dedicated to doing the best work in the areas of communications and media and plans to continue working hard for others. It’s how the business thrives, communities grow and partnerships prosper. This isn’t just “corporate responsibility” — it’s ingrained in the company’s culture and values. 2 Genesis’ social responsibility strategy for people addresses ethical leadership considerations and will be rooted in company values, which includes the commitment to helping shape a better world. Genesis Industries should embraces the idea of doing the right thing during daily activities of building the business, serving communities and interacting with others...
Words: 2402 - Pages: 10