...cCheckpoint: Women and the Minorities in Law Enforcement Response In earlier times, women were pretty much compared to African-American men and minorities. Women needed much higher qualifications than the white men did to become police officers. Becoming a police officer was always looked at as a masculine job and was looked down on if a woman wanted to become a police officer; women never had the right to do what men did. So if a woman did end up getting the job they had limited duties, they were not permitted to advance beyond certain ranks and were rarely considered for special assignments unless their race was viewed as helpful for particular types of cases. Women police officers have helped police agencies across the world in a few ways. Sometimes there may be specific cases where a person would rather speak to a female officer than a male officer, they feel more comfortable telling a women officer what happened to them, or they feel safer. There are just many ways a women police officer can help out, men can help out too, but we need women in policing agencies these days. The employment of ethnic minorities along with women has greatly increased over the years, along with laws and different statistics. In the beginning it was hard for women and other ethnic minorities to become employed with a police department there were the obvious obstacles they have always faced with not meeting “requirements” to be employed. With time this has changed along with the other obvious...
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...populations they serve. This includes women and those from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds as well as other minority groups. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, racial and ethnic minorities in state and local agencies made up 23.6 percent of full-time sworn personnel in 2003, up from 14.6 percent in 1987. Women accounted for 11.3 percent of officers in 2003 up from 7.6 percent in 1987. While the numbers are increasing, the profession continues to seek greater representation of women and minorities in its ranks, and many agencies are actively and aggressively recruiting these demographics. For many agencies, particularly those serving large immigrant communities, the need for racial and ethnic minorities extends far beyond traditional groups. Furthermore, as agencies look for officers who mirror their communities, they are also extending their definitions of diversity. From this perspective, diversity can include religion, sexual orientation, age, family background or occupation, and even neighborhood or high school. Law enforcement requires a unique blend of traits and characteristics. Some of these include •empathy •effective communication •compassion •intelligence, and •the ability to relate to people on a personal level. These are traits anyone can bring to the table regardless of gender, ethnic heritage, or background. Law enforcement is a field that respects and encourages individuality. Being a member of a minority group will not limit your ability...
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...Women and Minorities in Law Enforcement Jacob Hollen CJS/210 5/23/2014 Jeffrey Scott Abstract Throughout history women and minorities have struggled to be seen as equals in the law enforcement. In this essay we will discover some of these struggles and changes that have been made in lew of these struggles. Roles of women and minorities Throughout history women and minorities have struggled to be seen as equals. From discrimination in ranks, to stereotypes and being overlooked for promotions, women and minorities have seen and experienced the worst imaginable. They have went from not being allowed on the force, to only being able to work office positions, to showing a strong presence on patrols and beats all around. Effects of the change in the roles of women and minorities I believe that these changes have had a huge impact on the view of the force, not to mention a tremendous leap for equal rights. Having more women and minorities being present on the streets has made women and minorities more app to communicate with the law and giving most of the community a sense of equality. This being said there seems to still be a profiling issue among the forces as seen from the public’s eye. Recruitment issues The grounds for recruitment have leveled out between men and women. What was once seen as a man’s profession has made a complete 180 and became equal amongst most departments. The only differences that still remain among some departments are to do with...
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...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...
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...and history that follows along with it. There are many topics that can be analyzed when identifying, and describing the elements and the significances that are associated with policing. A large element of the police job that plays a large factor in the work and attributes to the policing culture is the amount of stress that an office will face while performing on the job. Another part of the job that plays a large part in the culture of policing can be found when one examines how women and ethnic minorities have achieved equality in law enforcement. Finally, policing culture can be analyzed when looking at the internal and external mechanisms that influence and control police discretion. Police culture continues to puzzle the average citizen; not belonging to “the brotherhood.” Police officers command a certain respect simply by donning the uniform and carrying a badge. The police culture provides many benefits to individuals who belong to this private organization. Officers of the law have their own social circle that only persons with a badge and uniform are allowed to be a member of. Also, it has been shown that police officers have difficulty in relationships with family members, friends, and personal relationships with significant others. Police officers maintain strong bonds of loyalty and a code of silence amongst each other; showing a form of solidarity that is seldom ever shared with the rest of society. This bond is sacred to fellow officers, believing...
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...I feel there are many benefits to having representation of females and minorities in law enforcement. Times are charging and law enforcement is an ever changing profession. Statistics from the Bureau of Justice show there has been an increase of female and minorities being hired in law enforcement and the number continue to rise every year. I feel as law enforcement continues to expand we must too also be understanding and accommodating of our communities in which we work. A perfect example of this topic would be our local advocacy center. Our advocacy center has realized the need for cultural expansion and accommodation. They have hired and trained different gender, race, and cultural ethnic background forensic interviewers to better suit...
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...number of police officers employed has increased, public scrutiny has as well. The police employment practices have affected the publics’ perception of the police because of the factors involved as well as the desire to seek employment in law enforcement. The paper below will describe some of the factors involved with race and ethnicity when seeking police careers. Diversity among the law enforcement was limited until several years ago. A significant positive change has been seen in the perceptions of minorities within the employment of law enforcement. This helps to redress the historic workplace inequity by having police forces better reflect ethnic constituency of society (Perrott, 1999). However, minorities are still more likely to suffer inequalities. These inequalities are shaped by structural constraints that include childhood and adult poverty, unemployment, inadequate health care, and lack of economic and education opportunities (Smith, 2009). Minorities are also placed at the bottom of the social class. Because of these inequalities, employment with the police department has been difficult to achieve as some of these inequalities cannot be overcome by the already existing police. This in turn creates racially disparate outcomes. Minority recruitment is an essential component of the police and community relationship. Given the fact that the majority of police officers are White, the experience tends to be of the White norms, the White values, and the White beliefs. This...
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...Minorities in Law Enforcement Christina Moore CJS/210 November 01, 2013 Jeffrey Scott Minorities in Law Enforcement Throughout the history of policing the roles of women and minorities has been limited. [ Some roles of women and minorities throughout policing history include not being able to work a beat, not being able to be selected for higher ranking, Where there was a community made up of primarily minorities such as a Hispanic neighborhood more Hispanic police officers would patrol in that area and where there were more African Americans in a neighborhood that is where African Americans would patrol. In the Past: Subjugated to a lesser status than men, paid less for equal work, unequally represented in governments and as CEOs. In the Present: They are rocking and still third world countries women are yet to be developed. This is possible only through education. In US policing there is typically a state police force, but crimes are usually handled by local police forces which usually only cover a few municipalities. National agencies, such as the FBI, only have jurisdiction over federal crimes or those with an interstate component. Funding by different levels of government determines jurisdiction. Sheer size: the smaller size of a woman allows for better use of cover and concealment.. Women have better vision in low light, better peripheral vision and better hearing. [ They can hear a broader range of sound frequencies and tones in the human voice. Women are better...
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...tool in sociology developed by Michael Omi and Howard Winant, which is used to look | | |at race as a socially constructed identity, where the content and importance of racial categories | | |is determined by social, economic, and political forces. | |Segregation |The physical and social separation of categories of people. | |De jure segregation |Segregation that is imposed by law. | |Pluralism |A state in which people of all racial and ethnic categories have about the same overall social | | |standing. | |Assimilation |The process by which minorities gradually adopt cultural patterns from the dominant majority | | |population. | Part II Answer the following questions in 150 to 350 words each: • Throughout most of U.S. history in most locations, what race has been the majority? What is the common ancestral background of most members of this group? The White race has been the majority of the population throughout most of U.S. history. The reason for this is...
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...Women and Minorities in Law Enforcement Throughout policing history the roles of women and minorities have changed tremendously. In this paper I will discuss the role of women and minorities throughout policing history, how it has changed over time, how the change has affected modern policing agencies and compare women and men police recruits. In 1972 the act “Tittle VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act” prohibited employment discrimination on the basis of color, race, religion or sex (Grant & Terry, 2008). Policing was considered to be a white man’s job and if any women were hired they were more like social workers. Because laws were created there was political pressure to hire women and minorities. Overtime the role of women and minorities have changed because of the increase of hire rates among them. A major change in women policing is that women were assigned to patrol duty (Walker & Katz, 2011). According to Walker & Katz, Hispanic and African American officers are the majority in some departments today. There are also gay and lesbian officers. The roles changing have affected modern policing agencies such as women and minorities holding high ranks. There has also been an increase in diversity among police departments which may have been difficult at times. When the police were looking for recruits the males more than likely didn’t have a high school diploma and were only required to know how to speak, read and write English well enough to get by. The women recruits...
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...Women and Minorities in Law Enforcement Women and minorities can be found in many policing agencies across the United States. Unfortunately the history of policing in the United States portrays how hard it was for women and minorities to become police officers. Additionally history also shows how the minorities and women rose up to earn an equal opportunity to represent their communities as police officers. An All White Male Club Police agencies in earlier years lack several elements that most present day police agencies have. In history most police agencies lack both ethnic and gender diversity (Grant, 2008). As the 1960’s and 1970’s pass through, many equal opportunity and equal rights movements occurred, which opened up opportunities for women and minorities. Legislation was passed such as the 1964 Civil Rights Act which helped minorities fight employment discrimination by policing agencies (Grant, 2008). Eventually Affirmative action was born, which made policing agencies overlook ethnic and gender criteria, and hire personal based on their performance and qualifications. Their Changing Role With an equal opportunity of becoming police officers, many women and minorities need to adjust to their new roles. Women in today’s policing agencies currently answer more domestic abuse calls because they have been statistically better at handling those situations then male police officers (Grant, 2008). Policewomen also tend to hold more roles in community...
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...Cultural Considerations In Today’s Society Nikia Hughes AJS/502 The world of law enforcement has come a long way sense law enforcement began a very long time ago. The face of law enforcement has changed over the centuries and has become more culturally diverse. The world is moving at a rapid pace and the justice system must change with the times. As more technologies come into play and more sophisticated jail systems come about it is necessary to understand and have a wide variety of people to take on these changes. According to cnn.com, “990,553 people were granted lawful permanent residence in the United States in 2013. Approximately 40% of these "green card" recipients, or LPRs, were born in Asia, while about 32% were born in North America. In 2012 The Department of Homeland Security estimates that there are 11.4 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States, down from 11.5 million in 2011.With the top being Mexico.” (cnn.com/immigrants) These statistics alone speak for themselves in terms of being concerned for the justice system. Law enforcement is trying to keep up with a rapid change that no one was prepared for. The biggest problem for the justice system is more so the illegal immigrants that are in the country unregistered, therefore not accounted for. This causes hikes in crime rates, heavier prison populations, and a big concern for home land security. The bigger question...
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...System The United States has the largest documented incarceration rate in the world. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics at yearend 2012, approximately 6,937,600 offenders were under the supervision of adult correctional systems (2013). Of this number, more than 60% of the inmates in prison are minorities however; they make up only 37% of the United States population. Considering the trends in which minorities commit crimes, such broad statistics conceal that racial disparities pervade each stage of the U.S. judicial system, from arrest to trial and sentencing. The first stage of the judicial system is the arrest made by an officer. Police are given an incredible amount of discretion to use that leads to bias and racial profiling. According to Paul Bou-Habib in his article “Racial Profiling and Background Injustice”, he states, “The main reason in favor of using racial profiling in the context of criminal investigation is that I can increase the chance of catching criminals” (para. 2). A key factor in the imbalance of the arrests on minorities in comparison to whites is that they commit more crimes at higher rates. In the article, “The Correlates of Law Enforcement Officers’ Automatic and Controlled-Race Based Responses to Criminal Suspects” by B. Michelle Peruche & E. Ashby Plant (2006) suggests that: Such responses may be influenced by stereotypic expectations. For example, it is possible that Black men are more likely to be violent and hostile may create expectations...
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...Overall Social Interaction of the Gay Community, has Law Enforcement Adapted to Modern Times in Addressing Their Needs Associated with Hate Crimes? Leitha Powell Diversity Issues Professor Thomas September 9, 2014 Before the creation of the first modern police department founded by Sir Robert Peel of England, the Metropolitan Police of London it was the duty of every able body person to contribute to the policing of their community. People were more trusting of the “police” because essentially they were neighbors looking out for one another so there was a general harmony within the community. Sometime during the early part of 20th century formal police agencies were created in the United States with this came the breakdown of interaction between different communities and police for instance, minorities and the gay community. Throughout this country history, there has always been discontentment and strife between the minority communities and law enforcement in the United States which is still an imperative issue today. This problem started with execution of slave patrols by the legislature when they passed An Act for Establishing and Regulating of Patrols. Which were a group of white men not exceeding seven who were hired to prevent slave insurrection, enforce and discipline slaves; they policed slaves on plantations and hunted down fugitive slaves. Slave patrols played an instrumental role in enforcing existing laws of southern societies and operated until slavery...
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...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 Police Department as a police officer. After World War II, the hiring of women as police officers doubled. In the 1960s women were allowed to expand their abilities having proved themselves to be equal to the men to go out on patrol (womenandpolicing.org, 2009). Because of the hiring issues of race and gender by police departments...
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