Racial profiling is "a sloppy, lazy substitute" for actual
policing, said Professor Deborah Ramirez from Northeastern
University School of Law, at a House Judiciary Subcommittee on
the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties hearing
called "Racial Profiling and the Use of Suspect Classifications
in Law Enforcement." The witnesses at the hearing represented
many different organizations and fields, like the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Sikh
Coalition, Muslim Advocates, police officers, and professors.
This diverse group of experts agreed on the following key
points: - Racial profiling is an abusive practice that targets
innocent citizens solely because of the way that they look. -
Racial profiling is not an effective law enforcement strategy.
Research shows that racial profiling diverts officers' attention
from using actual, objective signs of suspicious behavior to
effectively assess situations. - Racial profiling erodes trust
between law enforcement and its community