Guest Column

The New Face of Racial Profiling

By Nathan Tabor

As I was flipping TV channels the other day, I stopped on VH-1 for a moment, because they were discussing whether Jesus Christ was black or white.  Well, Jesus actually was Jewish, so I’ll bet He probably looked a lot like Jerry Seinfeld.

Anyway, then a black comic offered the opinion that it is nice to walk through an airport these days and not be stared at or followed by the cops.  Things have changed, he said, since the look of “criminals” has now been transferred to Middle-Eastern rag-heads. This brought forth a lot of laughs from the other African-Americans on the show.

I suppose this just reinforces the universal truth that for most folks (black, white or otherwise) the perception of injustice depends on whose ox is getting gored. Lots of things may seem funny to me when they’re happening to some other guy. But when it happens to me, I don’t laugh quite so hard.

Let me say right up front that I stand unalterably opposed to racism. Over the years many innocent people have been ridiculed, beaten and even killed — just because of the color of their skin. This is evil and wrong.

Where I grew up, way down in Alabama, the attitude used to be: don’t stand too close to the black man.  Then, when I moved to North Carolina, that saying was changed to include: don’t stand too close to the Mexicans, either. It’s that “us-versus-them” mentality that can be so destructive of peace in our society.

Racism is a terrible and hurtful aspect of life. Yet the sad fact is, as long as people can see, there will be racism.  (Has anyone besides me noticed that there are a lot of black racists who hate white folks, too?) Hopefully, by admitting rather than denying that these wrongheaded and hateful attitudes still do exist in some quarters, we can discourage and eventually eliminate them, and make the world a better place for everybody.

America lived through the violent racial crisis that erupted in the wake of the Rodney King beating by the LAPD. Today many people believe that all police are racists who only want to brutalize blacks. Others still insist that even in that hard case, those officers were basically good and decent human beings who were just doing their jobs.

Here’s a definition of racial profiling that I found on the Web: a form of racism consisting of the (alleged) policy of policemen who stop and search vehicles driven by persons belonging to particular racial groups. (See www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn.)

But is that definition accurate? Is this alleged racial profiling really racially based bigotry, or is it just sound police protocol?  Basically, is it just another part of the often dangerous and thankless job of being a police officer? 

This is a very hard question.  I believe the answer to be both.  There are some bad cops who really are racially biased, and who will pull over a Black or Middle-Eastern suspect merely because of their looks. 
   
Then there are some good cops who are only doing their jobs and using their gut instincts.  They are putting their lives on the line every day to make our society a safe place for all of us to live. Many times I believe it is better to be safe than sorry. I’m sure those cops’ wives and children would agree.

What about sports profiling?  No matter what their skin color, a 6’7”,  230-pound weightlifter has a better chance of being a pro football player than a 5’3”, 120-pound beanpole.  Is this comparison an example of bigoted stereotyping? No, it’s simply a common sense observation based on known facts.

Then there’s health screening.  Women are known to be more likely to get breast cancer than men are.  So is it wrong for doctors to advise women to get more mammograms?  Is it wrong for doctors to advise black men to get tested for prostate cancer because its frequency is higher in their race?  No, again, this is common sense.

The same logic applies to law enforcement. In a perfect world, people wouldn’t commit crimes. But in the real world, they do. The cops’ job is to catch them.

If you don’t want to be profiled, then don’t commit crimes and don’t let your friends. Don’t dress and act like a thug, and you won’t be nearly so likely to arouse the suspicions of police.  Help self-police your own neighborhood, and teach your children the difference between right and wrong. 

As my mother always told me — keep your nose clean. That’s good advice.
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Nathan Tabor is a conservative political activist based in Kernersville, North Carolina. He has his BA in Psychology and his Master’s Degree in Public Policy. He is a contributing editor at www.theconservativevoice.com.  Contact him at Nathan@nathantabor.com.  Copyright © 2005 by Nathan Tabor