Is it fair to site the Police stop and search figures as proof of racism?
Police forces are up to 28 times more likely to use stop and search powers against black people that white people. Is this as some claim proof of racism amongst front line police officers?
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has examined the statistics on the use of stop and search and found that police forces are 28 more times likely to use their powers against black people. The arrest rates following a stop and search are similar for black and white Britons suggesting that black people are being singled out by officers. The metropolitan police force carried out 75% of all stop and searches. Outside of London the West Midlands and Mersey side forces were the biggest users of these powers. Some forces barley use the power.
So what can we conclude from this? It would appear that in populations with high ethnic minorities the police make much greater use of their stop and search powers and that they disproportionately use these powers against black people. That the subsequent arrest rates don’t justify this focus on black people .Put another way it would appear that police offices in areas where there are more black people believe that black people are more likely to be carrying a knife, gun or drugs. They continue to believe this even though their searches don’t support this.
The first thing to say is this proves the value of recording an individual’s ethnicity since otherwise we would not have this hard evidence. The following observation must be that simply recording ethnicity doesn’t change anything. For example the Metropolitan police chief does not accept that these statistics mean that the force is racist. Is he right? Well certainly young black men think they are being picked on by the police because of their colour. The police in inner city areas will however say it is because of their behaviour, the number of high profile stabbings and shootings involving black youths, the gang culture and it association with drugs. The police will say that the public want to see them taking action to regain control of public places stop and search gives them some powers to exert their authority. Ask a Metropolitan beat officer what a gang member looks like and they will describe a young, unemployed, black man living on an estate notorious for gang violence and drugs. What is the difference between this type of racial profiling by the police and the negative stereotyping of young black men which the Macpherson enquiry into the murder of Steven Lawrence called institutional racism?
So whilst the disproportionate number of black people subjected to stop and search is not proof of racism amongst individual police officers is it continued evidence of institutional racism within the force?
Blair McPherson is author of An Elephant in the Room –an equality and diversity training manual published by Russell House. You can follow Blair on Twitter @blairmcpherson1
