Reply to: It does matter if I'm Black or white!

[BrilloPad]

I wish I could be Michael Jackson. Black and white.

[vetran]

To be fair if they did release these figures and it was still disproportional then yes they should do something about it but I bet it isn't as racist as he thinks.

The earlier link breaks it down to Borough, there are wide variations and some areas have higher than I would expect stop & search (I would expect Croydon & Haringey to be top)


But in this situation we should be 'whiter than white'

[northernladuk]

So we know how many times black men get stopped v others. I wonder what the ratio of offenses found are.

They also need to compare the ratios of white people stopped in gun ridden, poor council estates as well... and the ratio of white to black people living in these areas etc...

It's a minefield and just quoting how many times a black guy gets stopped is useless.

To be fair if they did release these figures and it was still disproportional then yes they should do something about it but I bet it isn't as racist as he thinks.

[vetran]

Get blacks to stop committing a disproportionate amount of crime, then there will be no advantage to disproportionately stop them. Hope that helps.

It doesn't. Certain black people commit crime, many don't.

I may be wrong but the portrayed social class of the complaining stopped people doesn't reflect the likelehood of comitting crime.


If the people stopped looked like P.Diddy and drove a range rover then its reasonable to suspect they might be involved in drugs, if they are wearing a Burton suit and driving an old Volvo its less likely, that seems to be the issue they are stopping the Volvo drivers to make up the numbers or to be bloody minded.

[escapeUK]

I suspect this is a minority in the Police but how do we stamp it out?

Get blacks to stop committing a disproportionate amount of crime, then there will be no advantage to disproportionately stop them. Hope that helps.

[Troll]

However I still believe that targeting any group is wrong. Police should target people according to their behaviour.

So you would see no value in say Airport security targeting certain groups of people prior to boarding ?

[BoredBloke]

But if blacks make up, say, 10% of the population shouldn't they be stopped 4.5 more frequently?

I was going to make the exact same response. If 10% of a population is responsible for almost half the crime and that population is distinguishable by some form or other then it stands to reason that the coppers would focus more on people with this group.
It's like anything else. The customs will take a keener interest in people entering the country from certain other countries or on passports for certain countries than others, based on the probability that they might be up to something.

Yes it must be really annoying for the innocent people who are stopped regularly, but I'd have thought it was a pretty obvious tactic by the coppers.

[vetran]

Sorry - I didn't realize we were going to assguru level of stats. Mine was a guesstimate.

However I still believe that targeting any group is wrong. Police should target people according to their behaviour.

Except for gingers! They should be stopped every time.....

was meant to be a nugget of information not a challenge.

I suspect its the usual situation, both sides are wrong and know it, if they argue about it long enough they either make their career as a Yuman rights lawyer or it goes away if you are a copper.

Personally I'd video all police interaction and either use it as evidence (if they kick off during a stop & search) or as a training / discipline aid (review random ones and all complaints).

[Alias]

sorry, forgot to tow the official line...

no targeting goes on here...move along, nothing to see

[shaunbhoy]

so does that mean that targeting bobs on here will stop then?

Not as long as Troll and his merry band of sycophantic sockies have logins.

[BrilloPad]

its 6 - 10 times more frequently.

Sorry - I didn't realize we were going to assguru level of stats. Mine was a guesstimate.

However I still believe that targeting any group is wrong. Police should target people according to their behaviour.

Except for gingers! They should be stopped every time.....

[BrilloPad]

targeting people simply due to colour is enough to make the good people in that sector of society turn against it IMO.

No-one seems to mind about the family courts targeting men simply due to their gender.

[vetran]

But if blacks make up, say, 10% of the population shouldn't they be stopped 4.5 more frequently?

its 6 - 10 times more frequently.

[vetran]

It would be reasonable to target black men for 54 - 66% of the stop and searches then, any more than that is a statistical bias that would suggest the met are a bunch of racists. .

Agree

http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/u...rch_report.pdf

is interesting

Also some stats to show what percentage of black men go through life never having committed an offence would be helpful in this discussion, targeting people simply due to colour is enough to make the good people in that sector of society turn against it IMO.

Hmm now that might be a self fulfilling prophecy, friend of mine spent 9 months on remand (case dismissed eventually) maybe that was because he was a stupid idiot but it could also be partially because he was black?

[shaunbhoy]

there didn't seem to be any intelligence led policing involved.

BAU