The Contentious Relationship between African Americans and Law Enforcement

The African-American community is continually victimized by law enforcement agencies under the pretext of a “war on drugs” or a “war on crime.” We continue to be victims of racial profiling and illegal searches. I would estimate that about 30 percent of the African Americans arrested are illegally searched before their arrest. This is done with impunity because law enforcement is given the privilege of discretion. For example New York City Police Deparment used their discretion when they performed 575,304 “Stop-and-Frisk” patdowns of New Yorkers in 2009. Fifty-five percent of those stopped and frisked were African American. What can we do about this. Listen in on this Thursday’s show to hear some startling ideas on how to deal with this very serious issue; especially for African American males.