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Learning Objectives

12-1:  Identify the characteristics of a democratic and multiethnic society that impact police–multicultural relations.

12-2:  Describe the historical origins of the current problems associated with multicultural relations and the police.

12-3:  Discuss the various strategies that can be implemented by both the police and the public to improve the perception of police.

12-4:  Identify various strategies that may be implemented to mitigate acts of discrimination and improve police officers’ understanding of racial and ethnic diversity in the communities they serve.

12-5:  Explain the historical and current roles and challenges that women have in policing.

12-6:  Discuss the evolution of the treatment experienced by minority group members in policing and whether or not you believe the current treatment of these groups is fair and impartial.

Article 1
Miller, Kirk (2007). Racial Profiling and Postmodern Society: Police Responsiveness, Image Maintenance, and the Left Flank of Police Legitimacy. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 23(3) 248-262. doi: 10.1177/1043986207306868

Racial profiling is among the most important challenges to the legitimacy of law enforcement agencies in the United States. In response to concerns about racial profiling, police departments have taken a number of approaches to address the threat to legitimacy that racial profiling poses. Among the most common approaches, and one that citizens, policy makers, and scholars have all supported, is the implementation of data collection programs designed to document the situational characteristics of traffic stops. The consensus is that data collection will provide an empirical basis for determining whether race-based or other biased policing is occurring. This article argues that this approach is limited in its effectiveness. It is argued that police interest in documenting and preventing racial profiling is driven by concerns about developing and maintaining the perception of responsiveness to the public. Police strategy, ironically, uses technology and science to enhance institutional legitimacy.

1. How does profiling affect police legitimacy?
2. What are the purposes of data collection programs?
3. What are the impacts of data collection?

Article 2
Colvin, Roddrick (2009). Shared Perceptions Among Lesbian and Gay Police Officers: Barriers and Opportunities in the Law Enforcement Work Environment. Police Quarterly, 12(1) 86-101. doi: 10.1177/1098611108327308

Building on existing race- and sex-based research into the law enforcement workplace, this study examines differential treatment of lesbian and gay officers. A survey of 66 police officers revealed that lesbian and gay officers not only face barriers to equal employment opportunities similar to those faced by women and other minorities in law enforcement but also perceive some workplace benefits as lesbian or gay officers. The research suggests that police departments have made good strides in opening the law enforcement workforce but continue to face ongoing challenges in creating fair, diverse, and representative work environments for lesbian and gay officers. Policy implications as well as the organizational effects of both barriers and opportunities identified are discussed.

1. How do LGBTQ officers’ experiences in law enforcement different from heterosexual officers?
2. How can agencies create a more equitable workplace?
3. Why is equity in police departments critical?